NBA FREE AGENCY ‘MUSICAL CHAIRS’ AS ARIZA SIGNS WITH ROCKETS

Less than 24 hours after Ron Artest verbally agreed to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, the man he’ll replace in the lineup took his old spot in Houston.  Trevor Ariza, rebuffed for a pay increase by the NBA champions has verbally agreed to sign with the Houston Rockets.  NBA free agents aren’t allowed to put their name on the dotted line until next Wednesday, but both Artest and Ariza are expected to quickly make their team swap official.
The Rockets had their sights set on Orlando Magic restricted free agent Marcin Gortat, but when it became clear that he was all but certain to sign with the Dallas Mavericks they switched their focus to Ariza.  There had been some speculation that Ariza’s insistence that he’d leave L.A. was a negotiating ploy, but after the Lakers signed Artest he no doubt figured that he needed to ‘get while the getting’ was good’ and make the best deal possible.
Houston GM Daryl Morey flew to Ariza’s off season home in Las Vegas and pitched him personally, stressing the desirability of being a more important component in the Rockets lineup rather than another supporting player for LeBron James in Cleveland.  With the usual ‘come here and win a ring’ pitch not really applicable to Ariza, he opted to go where he’d get more playing time.  He’s reportedly going to sign a five year deal worth just over $33 million dollars.
Ironically, Ariza will be making roughly the same amount of money this year that he would had he accepted the Lakers’ mid level exemption and stayed in Los Angeles.  The team had made it clear that their major priority in the free agent market was to resign power forward Lamar Odom.  While that makes sense from a personnel standpoint, the Lakers are taking a gamble by signing the notoriously mercurial Artest.  Artest is older, but also a stronger and more physical defender.  On the other hand, Ariza was a very important part of the Lakers’ championship run and is significantly less of a chemistry ‘question mark’.
In some ways, Artest’s move to the Lakers evokes memories of coach Phil Jackson’s Bulls gamble on rebounding monster Dennis Rodman during his dynastic run with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippin..  Jackson likely feels he has the psychological know-how and experience to handle a talented player that is frequently derided as a ‘head case’.  Artest has usually had the most problems in situations where he grows frustrated at not winning, and obviously that shouldn’t be an issue on the defending NBA champions. 
As with Jordan’s Bulls, there’s also no question about who is the ‘alpha dog’ in Los Angeles.  Artest showed considerable maturity and leadership in rallying the Houston Rockets during the playoffs following Yao Ming’s season ending injury.  With Kobe clearly in control of the team on the floor and Jackson on the sidelines, the Lakers are confident that he’ll flourish in a clearly defined role.