Los Angeles Lakers forward Metta World Peace, formely known as Ron Artest, will always be known by most for one incident.
While he was a member of the Indiana Pacers in 2004, a fan threw something at Artest at the Palace at Auburn Hills in Detroit in a game between the Pacers and Pistons, and Artest being the fiery guy that he was went charging into the stands to fight the fan and a massive brawl ensued.
It could have been a lot worse for Artest, who was suspended for a full NBA season, if it were not for Pacers assistant coach Mike Brown who chased Artest in the stands and stopped him. Brown, who is now an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors, called the incident surreal, via Anthony Slater of the Mercury News:
“It was a surreal experience,” he said. “You really felt like there were 10 to 12 of us fighting 15,000 people.”
World Peace had a special relationship with Brown that began in Indiana and carried over to Los Angeles when the Lakers hired Brown to be their head coach in 2011. While Brown’s tenure in Los Angeles did not last long, World Peace is very fond of his relationship with Brown:
“One thing I love about Mike, he was never afraid to confront me,” World Peace said. “Although I wouldn’t listen at times – I was very, very controversial, in my own world – but Mike always confronted me. I loved it. Because he never let me do wrong. He never, ever let me do wrong.”
He also added that the Warriors are lucky to have him on their staff:
“They’re lucky to have him,” World Peace said. “Anybody who gets Mike Brown is lucky to have him.”
World Peace is entering his 17th NBA season, although he is currently on the bubble of making a roster spot out of Training Camp.
