Over the past weeks there was a lot of talk about resigning Ariza being a key factor for the Lakers during the off-season. After all, he turned out to be an excellent contributor in the post-season and helped the Lakers with a lot of clutch plays down the stretch to clinch the title. However, the franchise decided to take a different route to achieve their goal of defending their NBA championship next year. Shortly after the free agent market opened on the 1^st of July the Lakers were able to agree on a multi-year contract with Rockets free agent and former All-Star Ron Artest. Although contractual details have not been made public yet, most experts expect a five- year deal worth roughly $30 million.

Given Artest’s acquisition it appeared to be inevitable that wing player Trevor Ariza would have to face limited minutes if he chose to re-sign with the Lakers. Thus, he decided to listen to offers around the league in order to play starters minutes and further work on elevating his level of play to his full potential. Ironically, Ariza agreed to sign a contract in Houston where he will most likely start at the shooting guard or small forward position in 2009-10.

On one hand it seems a little odd that the Lakers are making any significant roster changes to their championship team, but it is hard to argue with L.A. being the team to beat next year with Artest on board. Last season, Ron Artest averaged 17.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game for the Houston Rockets. Throughout his 10 years in the NBA he played for the Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings and Houston Rockets while appearing in one All-Star game as well as achieving four nominations for the NBA All-Defensive team. In contrast, the 24-year old Trevor Ariza put up 8.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.7 steals in 2008-09 while playing only 24 minutes for the Lakers. Obviously the numbers favor Artest, but it remains to be seen how the swap turns out for both teams in the long run. Unlike Artest, Trevor Ariza has yet to reach his full potential and can be expected to improve his stats line as he will get more playing time in Houston than in Los Angeles. Nonetheless, the Lakers can now rightfully be considered to be everyone’s favorite to win it all next season – containing a starting five featuring Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Ron Artest will be an incredibly tough task for every team in the league.

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