NBA: City of Angels look over LA Lakers
In 2009 the Los Angeles Lakers decided to trade one of their players, Trevor Ariza for Ron Artest. However, soon after their decision the whole NBA nation froze in complete shock, the move made by the Lakers raised a lot of questions. Everyone feared that Ron might just destroy the legacy of the Los Angeles Lakers and ruin their chance of winning another Championship.
Ron is famous for his unstable behaviour. The thing that brought the most horror to the team and the fans was their fear of Ron and Kobe Bryant clashing. Every Lakers fan was preparing him or herself for the worst, thinking about the brawl that took place between them when Ron played for the Houston Rockets.
Ron Artest is a player who was open about his hatred towards Kobe Bryant. Before joining the Lakers Ron on many occasionally accused the referees of giving Bryant favourable calls, he protested many times that Kobe elbowed him on purpose. Artest hated Kobe’s guts, and was caught eye balling him on many occasions.
However, after Ron Artest was welcomed aboard by the Lakers last year, it was something that no one in the NBA expected. But what was more shocking was when in the 2009 playoffs Ron took the final winning shot and the first person he hugged was Kobe Bryant. Again after taking the championship title for the 16th time in 2010 Ron hugged Kobe Bryant.
Basketball pundits say, the amount of love the two have for each other now makes it seem like they have been best friends forever although the love has only grown in the past two years.
In this year’s free agency, LA Lakers added another antagonist to their luminous roster. According to various media outlets the Lakers signed Matt Barnes for a two years and 1.77 million dollars.
Matt previously played as the Guard/Forward for the Orlando Magic and appeared in two playoffs. Matt is widely known for being a relentless defender. Experts say Matt could possibly take over Ron’s defensive duties, leaving him in an uncomfortable position.
Both Forwards stand at 6feet 7 inches and are 30-years old. Barnes is known for his bad temperament, he reportedly elbowed Lamar Odom’s jaw once. Also, he tried getting under Kobe’s skin but was unsuccessful. Critics say he was trying to surpass Raja Bell who is known to be Kobe’s No.1 foe.
So the question is, can Matt settle in the Lakers roster and can Ron be okay about sharing his spot with him as a power forward?
Basketball purists say that the level of conflict between the two could arise, however if two rivals like Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest can find common grounds and become the best of friends so could Matt. The Lakers is a team filled with big egos, after all it is considered to be one of the greatest teams ever.
For now only time will tell if adding Matt Barnes to the bench would help LA Lakers win the next title. But if history has taught us anything we might just see Barnes hugging Bryant as well at the end of their 17th NBA championship win. There is one thing we know for certain as of now, Matt will remain a low key on the bench until he proves himself to the team.
They are after all in the City of Angles, where even the worst of enemies become friends.
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