Even as he continues to bask in the glory of his first NBA championship, Artest lives with deep remorse over how it all came down in Indiana.
“A coward, I was a coward,’' Artest said before Wednesday night’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Pacers. “When you do coward stuff, you feel like a coward. I don’t care if it was done intentionally or by mistake, you’re still a coward. I don’t care how young I was. That’s not an excuse.’'
Artest admits that his mental health issues were a major cause of the problems he had in Indiana, and is trying to help other people, especially kids, get the kind of help he needed to fix his problems:
What Artest wants is for kids, troubled kids, to have the same access to necessary therapy he has been blessed to receive.
“It’s cost me $75,000 to fix my problems,’' he said with a laugh. “How many people have 75 grand? I want more therapists and counselors in the schools. I want people, especially our kids, to get the help they need, and to be properly diagnosed by professionals.’'
It’s great that Artest has gotten to such a good place, both personally and professionally. It’s just a bummer for Indiana fans that Artest had to go through rough times with the Pacers before getting his life together while playing for other teams.
