Round 3, Pick 11: Ron Artest, SF, Sacramento Kings

Artest may be a Tru Warier, but he’s a horrible speller.  However, last I checked spelling isn’t a category and if it was, I’d draft Martynas Andriuskevicius number one overall because if he can spell his name, he can spell anything.  But back to Artest… I don’t think there’s any question that he’s one of the most talented players in the game today.  But, he’s also one of the most volatile and unpredictable.  I think there was some sort of fracas, some hullaballoo if you will, a couple of seasons ago, but I just can’t remember what happened.  And like Ron Burgundy, it seemed like a “big deal” at the time.

Okay, I’m kidding.

However, what I’m not kidding about is Artest’s overall skills and value for a fantasy basketball team… good and bad.  He’ll either get suspended a ton of times to make you want to throw your soda at him because you’re not getting any stats while he’s away OR he’ll love being the touchstone for the Kings offense now that Rick Adelman’s motion offense has gone bye bye along with Adelman.  To make sure Artest is the happy latter, new head coach Eric Musselman will probably take advantage of Artest’s post play, where he is able to bull rush to the basket and/or find the open man. 

Oh, and the Maloofs will buy every single one of Artest’s CD and make it the #1 album in its debut week.  THAT should have Artest averaging a quadruple-double for the first month!

All kidding aside, Artest really is a difference maker.  He was the main reason the Kings made the playoffs, helping the Kings go 25-15 since joining the team about midway through last season.  And because of his versatility, amongst other things, he can do the same for your fantasy squad.

Some may point out that Artest’s points average dropped when he joined the Kings, from 19.4 with the Indiana Pacers to 16.9.  Have no fear, Artest just needed to get acclimated to his environment.  When he was traded from the Bulls to the Pacers midseason during the ‘01-‘02 season, there was a scoring dip as well, from 15.6 to 10.9. How did Artest come back the following season?  He basically averaged what he did with the Bulls before being traded - 15.5.  So, can we expect around 19.4 ppg then for this coming season?  It’s definitely not out of the question as Musselman is all about defense (Artest’s forte) and playing up-tempo ball (Artest can finish, but will more likely than not spot up on the break or post down low and find the cutter, which would be ironic considering the Kings’ previous offense under Adelman).  In any case, in half-court sets, don’t think the Kings won’t feed Artest down in the post like he’s Homer Simpson wanting donuts.  Artest has pretty good vision and will find the open man or attack the basket like it owes him money from their game of C-LO and convert.  Speaking of attacking the basket, Artest is a good rebounder, averaging 5.2 rpg last season and 4.8 rpg in his career.  Expect about a paper Lincoln (for those of you into U.S. currency) or a Jasper Johns (for those of you into Modern Art… damn, I’m versatile!).

In his limited time with the Kings, Artest averaged 4.2 apg, which is very good coming out of the three spot.  He may not average that many assists again since the Kings will in all likelihood score more points from the break, which Mike Bibby will be leading, but Artest does have a career average of 3.1 apg, which is still pretty good for a small forward.  Consider this a definite plus for your fantasy squad.

So, I think I’ve established that Artest can do damage from the inside the way a pothead does to a bag of Doritos, but Artest has an outside game as well, hitting 1.4 treys per game in total last season.  He should get his chances to bomb away this season, even if his shooting percentage from beyond the arch is a Shaq-like (from the FT line) 30.8% last season and 31.4% for his career.  You would think that someone would tell him to stop chucking the triples up, but really, who’s brave enough to do that?

Which brings me to Artest’s FG%.  He owns a 41.6% career mark, but it is seriously hindered by the abovementioned three-point shooting inefficiency.  Take away all mention of Artest’s trey endeavors and he’s shooting 45.8% from the floor, which is a lot more respectable.  So, what am I saying here?  Be prepared to complement Artest’s below-average shooting from the field.  From the charity stripe, Artest is decent and won’t bring your team FT% much as he is a 71.6% free throw shooter.

However, the thing Artest is really known for is his rock solid (much like my make believe abs) defense.  He’s strong enough to defend a center and quick enough to defend a guard.  Yes, all Artest has to do is dye his hair every third day and you have Dennis Rodman Redux.  It’s appropriate, isn’t it?  In any case, Artest can straight up steal the ball, averaging 2.2 spg last season and 2.1 for his career.  He’s made the NBA All Defense team three times in the years he’s been in the league, even winning Defensive Player of the Year in the ‘03-‘04 season.  It’s hard to believe Artest will only turn 27 years old just a little bit after the season starts.  In any case, need or like steals, mixed with a little bit of crazy?  Artest is your man.

In fact, when all is said and done with your fantasy basketball season, if Artest keeps his hands clean, his head clear and focused, and can stay healthy (he’s only played 72+ games in a season three times, but then again, Artest did miss a lot of games due to suspensions), you may be calling Artest “the man” that led you to your league championship.

The Kings are hoping a full season of Artest can bring the same thing (of the “real” kind) to Sac-Town.

How He Fits On This Fantasy Basketball Team

Artest just adds more defense to this team, which should finish somewhere at the top of both the blocks and steals categories each week in H2H leagues and at the end of the season in ROTO leagues.  Artest joins Kirilenko as a decent scorer that should put up about 16.0-17.0 ppg, but can do a lot of other things, such as drop dimes, board, hit triples, and, of course, steal the ball.  Yao is the only real scoring threat, but I believe this is still going to be one of the better frontlines in this league because they complement each other well… sort of the Three Stooges of basketball.  Kirilenko would be Moe because both have ridiculous haircuts.  Yao would be Larry because both are the quiet and forgotten ones of the trio.  And, you know that Artest is Curly because they’re both nuts… but also carry their team.

Other Team Members

1.11. Yao Ming, C, Houston Rockets
2.2. Andrei Kirilenko, SF/PF, Utah Jazz