latimes:If the Lakers, like any self-respecting sports fans, watched the NFL playoffs over the weekend, they saw a perfect illustration of why they're better off without Ron Artest.
Washington Redskin safety Sean Taylor made an incredibly athletic play, bending down to catch a bouncing fumble and racing 51 yards for a touchdown in Washington's victory at Tampa Bay.
He also made an incredibly stupid play, spitting in the face of Tampa Bay's Michael Pittman to draw a penalty and ejection.
Taylor and the Redskins were lucky that Tampa Bay's Edell Shepherd couldn't handle a perfectly thrown ball in the end zone and that quarterback Chris Simms missed an open Shepherd on the Buccaneers' next and final play or the game could have gone to overtime.
Would Taylor, Washington's best player in the secondary, have made a difference on those plays? We know this: He didn't make any contributions from the locker room.
It's not worth having a guy who makes great plays if he can't make good decisions. Taylor's choices have also led to his being arrested on charges of driving while intoxicated and aggravated assault with a firearm.
Artest made one of the worst decisions in the history of the NBA when he charged into the seats at the Palace of Auburn Hills last season. The resulting suspension cost the Pacers a shot at the NBA Finals. And even though the franchise had his back through it all, it wasn't enough for him. He demanded to be traded in December, and hasn't been in a Pacer uniform since.
A team with championship aspirations has been playing .500 ball without him, amid daily trade rumors.
You don't think Indiana could have used the game's best perimeter defender instead of Anthony Johnson and Fred Jones against Kobe Bryant on Monday night at Staples Center? Bryant scored 45 points in the Lakers' 96-90 victory.
The Lakers, by reliable accounts, aren't in the Artest derby. Golden State remains the favorite. Apparently it has been long enough that the Warriors have forgotten that whole Latrell Sprewell thing.
The Warriors learned what the Pacers will discover, that eventually someone will make your problem their problem. After being traded to the New York Knicks, Sprewell put on his best behavior (plus a new pair of [Swearing is not permitted at Clublakers. You must edit this post prior to submitting.]) and sparked a run to the NBA Finals. Then he broke his hand in an incident on his yacht. The exact circumstances were disputed, but he was guilty, at the very least, of not following proper nautical safety procedures. He had one good year with the Minnesota Timberwolves, then reverted to his bad attitude and sulked his way through last season.
