Former NBA forward Tyler Hansbrough recalled an incident involving Ron Artest during a game against the New York Knicks, admitting that he decided against confronting him.
Hansbrough said he became angry after being bumped from behind but changed his mind when he realized Artest was responsible.
“We’ve all seen Ron lose it a little bit. And I remember I was having a good game against New York, and I felt somebody bumped me in my back. I was pissed. I was ready. I turned around, I saw it was Ron. I was like, yeah, I’m not gonna mess with Ron.”
Hansbrough explained that he avoided the confrontation because he believed Artest would retaliate, either immediately or in a future game.
“Ron’s gonna get me back if I do something in some capacity. Whether it’s now or later on in the year, he’s going to take my head off if I try to fight him. And I remember turning around, be like, ‘Oh my bad, Ron.’ And a lot of people hit me up, ‘I can’t believe you did that.’ And I always tell them, ‘I’m sure you would have kicked Ron’s ass.’”
Hansbrough also said Artest was much bigger in person than he appeared on television, which contributed to his decision to avoid a fight.
“On TV he doesn’t look as big as he is. When you see him in person, he’s a big dude. He was a guy that was on the list like, I’m not going to really mess with him.”
