Artest, Kings beat up Hawks By SEKOU SMITH The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 02/13/06 Sacramento — Ron Artest is supposedly still working his way into game shape nine games into his tenure with the Sacramento Kings. But if this is the way Artest plays when he's not in shape, the Hawks should thank their lucky stars they faced the NBA's patron saint for odd behavior now rather than when he really rounds himself into game shape. Because it was Artest, all burly 6-feet-7 and 260 menacing pounds of him that engineered the Kings' 109-84 smackdown of the Hawks Sunday night before a rowdy Arco Arena crowd of 17,317. "I just think Artest brings a different demeanor to their team," Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. "He definitely makes them abetter team. They feed off his energy." Formerly a pass-happy outfit with little to no interest in playing defense, the Kings defended like their recently anointed leader and defensive tone-setter. The NBA Defensive Player of the Year two years ago and the scourge of the league last year after inciting a brawl between Indiana Pacers players and Detroit fans at the Palace of Auburn Hills in November of 2004, Artest put a halt to his redemptive season sixteen games in. He stunned the Pacers with a trade request, having grown tired of the constant scrutiny from fans and the media that accompanied him every step of the way. The Pacers placed him on the inactive list and searched for the right trade partner, they contacted the Hawks but were rebuffed. Six wildly speculative weeks later, on Jan. 25, he was dealt to the Kings for Peja Stojakovic. So he's just three weeks removed from being the most talked about inactive player in recent NBA history. Three weeks too soon for the Hawks (15-34), who lost their second straight game after a stunning win over league-leading Detroit last Wednesday at Philips Arena. "They just physically outplayed us in every way," Woodson said. "They outplayed us. And I can't say that's happened too many times this season. We've got to go back to the drawing board." Artest finished his night with 20 points, six assists, six steals and three rebounds in 38 maniacal minutes. But he did so many more valuable things that don't have a statistical category. He also helped apply the defensive clamps on both of the Hawks' best scorers, co-captains Joe Johnson (13 points) and Al Harrington (10 points). And he did it all while playing on a hip nasty hip pointer that caused him to grimace with every step he took. "He didn't do anything out of his character," Johnson said. "And he definitely makes them a better team. Their bench also played really well. I thought those two things combined really made the difference." Artest had plenty of help, as a total of seven Kings reached double figures in scoring. Kevin Martin matched Artest's 20 points while Kenny Thomas (17), Brad Miller (15), Mike Bibby, Francisco Garcia (10) and former Hawk Shareef Abdu-Rahim (10) all joining the party. Hawks reserves Josh Childress (13), Salim Stoudamire (12) and Marvin Williams (11) all reached double figures in scoring. But the Hawks had other problems. They got worked over inside for the second straight game, getting outscored 48-34 in the paint and getting outrebounded 46-35. But they really lost control in the second quarter when they couldn't contain Artest. He scored 13 straight points during a seven-minute stretch when the Kings took total control of the game. "He's a beast," Harrington said. "A beast." 資料來源 http://www.ajc.com/hawks/content/sports/hawks/stories/0213hawks.html --

※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 59.121.23.181 ※ benliang:轉錄至看板 Kings 02/14 15:23