Kobe Bryant Says “F*ck a Cav and a Shaq… We Have Artest!”: Ron Artest Signs With Lakers

Kobe Bryant is already setting up the pieces to win next season. Ron Artest has just signed with the Los Angeles Lakers:

The newly minted NBA champions made what amounts to a daring trade Thursday night, shaking up the league’s second day of free agency by essentially swapping out on-the-rise swingman Trevor Ariza for the versatile, physical and famously unpredictable Ron Artest.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Artest have struck an agreement in principal on a multiyear contract that, according to sources close to the process, will total roughly $18.7 million over three years or $33.5 million over five years, depending on which contract structure Artest ultimately prefers. But they had to let Ariza go to create the financial flexibility to do so.