Since the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA championship last Thursday, the eccentric forward’s smile has been ubiquitous. Ron Artest stole Kobe’s spotlight during the postgame press conference by delivering one of the most hilarious feel-good sit-downs in sports history. He was spotted at an LA club following the contest, partying with his game-worn jersey and shorts. His surprisingly bearable “Champions,” is everywhere, especially if you’re from LA, and on Tuesday he performed the song on Lopez Tonight. Ron Ron even sat in on the Larry King Live telethon to raise money for the Gulf oil spill.
None of these behaviors, coming out of Artest, are particularly remarkable. A founding member of what ESPN columnist Bill Simmons calls “The Tyson Zone,” Artest is predictably unpredictable. Even the most far-fetched rumors about him gain immediate credibility because, well, he’s Ron Artest. Nobody doubted the verity of the claim when it was reported last season that Artest jumped on a Houston Rockets team bus reserved for staff and friends just in time to make it to game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals … wearing only his underwear. We didn’t flinch when he dyed “Defense” into his head in Japanese, Hindi and Hebrew earlier this season. But “Afghan Women” … you have to see to believe.
Read more Smile File.
Photo by PR Photos.