Artest for Odom is a rip-off

Other than the fact that Ron Artest is set to make about half the money that Lamar Odom will make next year, it’s curious to see the reports that the Lakers would be willing to part with Odom for a perennial firestorm in Artest. No doubt Artest would bring toughness to the Lakers, but he will also pack a wild card everywhere he goes. This is a person that once wanted to take a few months off during the season in order to promote his rap label. How distracted would he be in Los Angeles? The Lakers made it to the Finals last year and they weren’t 100-percent. They’ll still have arguably the best player in the world on their team and it’s not clear that any of the other Western Conference teams will be any better than they were last year. Bringing in Artest could upset last year’s chemistry, especially if the team doesn’t win right away. In the best case scenario the Lakers would be getting a motivated Artest that gives the Lakers scoring and rebounding and quickly learns Phil Jackson’s triangle offense. Scoring and rebounding should be a given with Artest. Motivation and learning the offense? That’s another issue all together. Odom can dribble, shoot, pass, rebound and won’t fly of the handle at any given time. Odom for Artest is a steal for the Kings.