And THAT is why you don’t step to crazy…

Let me start by saying that I am in no way holding James Harden responsible for Metta World Peace’s stupidity. There is no place in the game for the elbow he threw and it will probably cost the Lakers any chance at a championship they thought they had. The incident was not James Harden’s fault.

It’s well established that Metta World Peace AKA Ron Artest AKA Ron Ron plays his best when harnessing some combination of his raw anger and at the same time manifesting that anger not in confrontation but in ferocious play, inspired defense, and an iron will.

For most of his time with the Lakers, Ron/Metta has lulled Lakers fans with uninspired play combined with a “great” attitude. It seemed as though he had finally put his demons to rest and, in doing so, became a pretty mediocre NBA player.

You can see here an important diagram of what Ron looks like at his best and worst.

For the last few months though, his game has been showing signs of life. With or without Kobe in the lineup, World Peace has ascended back to a place of importance in Los Angeles. In many recent wins, World Peace has been back in the head of his competitors and has even appeared active and engaged on the offensive end. But at what cost.

As outlined in the earlier article, there is a fine line between a Metta World Peace who is lackadaisical, smiling, and happy, a World Peace who goes into the stands in Detroit, and the great player who is somewhere in-between.

On Sunday, James Harden found out the hard way what happens when you find yourself in the heart of Artest’s inner battle.

After dunking on the Thunder on a fast-break, World Peace beat his arm against his chest. James Harden took a few steps toward the baseline and took a step toward Artest, who was celebrating. Like a child sneaking up on a wild animal, Harden never knew what hit him. Unlike a child though, I would argue that Harden had to know what he was getting himself into.

Harden, who has established himself as the third offensive threat on the Thunder this season, felt the need to do something about Ron’s chest-beating. In passively taking that step toward Metta, Harden took an elbow the likes of which haven’t been seen since The Rock retired from wrestling (he is retired, isn’t he?).

I am not arguing that Harden deserved what he got in any way, but he did not have to take that step toward Ron-Ron. He did not have to get in Metta World Peace’s personal space. But he did. And he paid dearly for it.

Here are some questions to ask in the aftermath:

1) How badly was Harden actually hurt? Harden is a savvy guy. He has been since his college days at Arizona State. He could even turn into this generation’s (poor man’s version of) Reggie Miller, kicking and scrapping his way to more points than his talent commands. But if I were Harden, I would have gone down in a heap as well. Having had a basketball concussion before, I think that if Harden plays again within a week, it’s entirely possible that he didn’t get hit as hard as he claimed. He was hit hard, don’t get me wrong. But if you thought you could gain an advantage by painting World Peace as even more of a villain than he already is, wouldn’t you?

2) It was not an accident. World Peace said, “It’s unfortunate that James had to get hit with an unintentional elbow…” Metta, he didn’t have to get hit. You hit him. Perhaps he was running his mouth or trying to stand up to you and that’s why he “had” to get hit.

3) If these two teams meet in the playoffs, will Metta be around? If so, how will the Thunder try to get him to blow up again? Can he be as effective for the Lakers if he is constantly monitoring his behavior and not just playing? I don’t think so.

No matter what suspension the NBA hands down, Metta World Peace isn’t going to learn any kind of lesson. The stigma of being Ron Ron can’t be shed with a name change, smiles, or even by winning citizenship awards. Other players, the media, and the NBA will continue to treat him differently and he will continue to act out. He is a human ticking time bomb and the closest thing to Dennis Rodman the NBA has ever had.

As for Harden, if there really was a lesson to be learned, it’s to steer clear of the beast.

Hopefully Harden learned his lesson… if he even remembers what happened. Because you don’t step to crazy.