'The Suspension Was Harsh': Metta World Peace Still Stung By 'Malice At The Palace'; Talks New Showtime Doc 'A Quiet Storm'
(CBS Local Sports)-- Metta World Peace has one of the most complicated stories of anyone to ever play in the NBA.
The man formerly known as Ron Artest is an NBA champion, All-Star, and Defensive Player Of The Year. However, all of these accolades are overshadowed by the "Malice At The Palace" in 2004. A new Showtime documentary called "Quiet Storm: The Ron Artest Story" addresses the up and down career of Artest and the man World Peace is today.
"The documentary on a big platform sums up my career," said World Peace in an interview with CBS Local's DJ Sixsmith. "My career, it was up and down. This is a huge opportunity for me to sum up, not so much the basketball part, but just the overall career. I was a good player, but the personal side, emotional side, and spiritual side are all in there."
The Showtime documentary chronicles the journey of a young Ron Artest to the NBA and through interviews with World Peace and others demonstrates how the longest suspension in league history impacted his career and life. All these years later, the former NBA player still has several thoughts about the "Malice At The Palace" and the NBA's response.
"That night was crazy. When I look back at it, I do blame some people for that event," said World Peace. "I was on the table for five minutes... what happened to the whistle, tech, and hand point to the locker room? There were a lot of frustrating moments at that time where I felt I took the bulk of it and I'm fine with that. I'm really fine with taking the bulk of the blame, I've been doing that all my life. There were things that happened that could've been different. The suspension was harsh. I don't know what's happening at the front office behind closed doors. You can justify because I was getting in trouble already. I led the league in techs and flagrants my whole career."
One of the highlights of World Peace's career was winning an NBA championship on the Lakers with Kobe Bryant and his longtime friend Lamar Odom.
"I thought it was great to play there. I grew up with Lamar," said World Peace. "We got championships together, we shared MVPs. Me, Lamar, and Elton Brand we all shared MVPs in tournaments. To get a title with Lamar, that was amazing. Kobe's dad and my dad went to the same high school. Phil Jackson was my favorite coach because he was on the Bulls. Kobe plays like Michael Jordan, we were running the triangle and this was an absolute dream."
"Quiet Storm: The Ron Artest Story" premieres Friday May 31 at 10pm EST/PST on Showtime.
