Cross-posted at Sactown Royalty...In his forty games as a Sacramento King during the 2005-2006 campaign, Ron Artest led the team in time on the court, averaging 40.1 MPG. Now, a pair of lawsuits have surfaced that ensure Artest will see even more court time this year, regardless of how well he shoots the rock.
The first lawsuit stems from the infamous 2004 brawl between the Pacers and Pistons, where Artest played a starring role and soon became a household name, for all the wrong reasons. A fan in the stands that day, Michael Ryan, claims that Artest and Stephen Jackson assaulted him when they rushed into the stands. His lawsuit also says the Pacers were negligent in signing Artest and allowing him to play given his history of violence, repetitive bad conduct, and unfitness as a professional basketball player. (Source: Click On Detroit)
With that logic, he may as well sue society at large for our enablement, right? And what took him two years to realize he'd been slapped around a little?
In a second, unrelated, case, Artest has himself filed a lawsuit to gain custody of his son, saying that his ex-girlfriend is denying him access to his child. In fact, he's discontinued paying monthly child support due to the dispute. Of course, the lady's lawyer has a completely different opinion on the situation, saying that due to Artest's "history of psychological and anger-management issues, his request borders on frivolous." (Source: New York Daily News)
We know Ron-Ron is a fighter. We've seen that. We know he can juggle a few things at a time. Heck, TZ noted his new album is coming on Halloween night. But it could be scary, not just for the little trick-or-treaters, but for all Kings fans, if one of the team's key cogs on both sides of the ball is spending more time in court wearing a suit than on the court in a Sactown jersey.