Metta Sandiford-Artest is a very popular figure in the NBA community. Though he’s retired from his profession, the former Laker appears on podcasts to shed light on some much-needed information. Recently, he even spoke about how he was drunk out of his brains as a 19-year-old and passed on a workout with the New York Knicks! 

Sandiford-Artest was born Ron Artest in Queens, New York. The Knicks are a fabled franchise, and every kid born in that area has always dreamt of playing for them. Artest was no different and in addition to this, he was gifted with basketball skills. 

“I wanted to be a Knick. Absolutely I wanted to be a Knick,” Artest said on a recent appearance on ‘All the Smoke’ podcast. Artest completed his high-school and college in his hometown and thus he wanted to stay attached by signing with the Knicks in the NBA as well. 

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There was a real possibility of Artest signing with the Knicks on draft day until he created his own peril. The New York-based franchise was ready to sign him, and Artest too made his intentions clear with his agent; he wanted to go to the Knicks! But what went wrong? 

If you’re a long-time NBA fan, you’ll know that Artest was drafted by the Chicago Bulls with the 16th overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft. He was supposed to go in the previous pick which was controlled by the Knicks. But they chose another player instead. 

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Artest was an incredibly talented forward coming out of St. John’s University. He averaged 14.5 points in his sophomore year and had already gained strong attention. But his partying habit largely let him down from showcasing his strong potential. 

The Knicks passed him on in the draft due to a reason that falls entirely on Artest. The then 19-year-old had a workout scheduled with the team but never made it. Here’s what happened on the night before the workout, in Artest’s own words: 

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“Let me tell you how I fucked it up. By this time, I’m partying hard. I’m out,” Artest said. “I got fucked up at Flamingos. Got twisted, got back to the hotel. So I’m drunk and I’m like ‘I can’t make it to the workout!’ …I tell these dudes, ‘Yo, I can’t make it. Can I please come next time? Can you just have me back?’ That’s what I told them… In my mind, I’m thinking I’m going to the Knicks. It doesn’t matter what I do. I’m going to the Knicks, right?”

Come draft day, the Knicks generously passed on Artest to other teams, and the Chicago Bulls, who were right next to them in the order, signed the 6’6” forward. It was indeed a disappointment for Artest that he didn’t get to play with his beloved franchise. 

“I had the Knicks shorts under my suit, and the shirt,” said Artest about how confident he was during the draft day. On the bright side, Artest did feature for the Knicks during his career, which was during the 2013-14 NBA season. 

Metta Sandiford Artest did enjoy a wealthy NBA career, even though he did not get everything he wanted.