Could Metta World Peace have been more with the Indiana Pacers than what he became? At least, that is what Metta (fka Ron Artest) stated on multiple occasions. Although he does not blame anyone else but himself for what the team and Reggie Miller missed because of him. Appearing on Podcast P with Paul George, the former NBA star has again opened up on his time with the Pacers. 

Metta recalled that he was an introvert when he came to the Pacers. And rather than outing with teammates, he’d prefer spending time in his room. He stated he had things to deal with himself as an inexperienced player back then. “And then what I didn’t realize was the alcohol is like, a depressant. So you, like, trying to release some stress… That’s gonna pile up… Some days you feeling bad just cause of alcohol… It’s just like, you know… You gotta ease up. And then I wasn’t doing therapy at that point either,” he said on the podcast. 

Metta further mentioned how Jermaine O’Neal would also reach out to him, but he stayed in his room. Speaking of Jermaine, Metta was also asked on the podcast regarding Reggie Miller saying that his biggest failure was not getting Metta and Jermaine on the same page.

The 2010 NBA champ replied, stating it was all him as he was going through too much. “Reggie did it. Reggie reached out to me, ‘Hey, you know, Ron come to dinner,’ (I’m) like, nah, I’m good… I never even had plays at my house. I can’t remember one time a player was at my house…. especially when I was going through what I was going through,” Metta recollected. 

What happened between Metta World Peace and Jermaine O’Neal? 

It is worth mentioning that the two players did not speak to each other for 14 years. While the ‘Malice at the Palace’ brawl is considered a root cause of this. The two players later admitted that things were never too smooth between them. Speaking with ESPN in 2016, Metta admitted that he was jealous of O’Neal and never actually bonded with him.  

Coming to the ‘Malice at the Palace’ brawl incident it started with things heating up between World Peace and Detroit Pistons’ Ben Wallace. Notably, Wallace got physical with the Pacers star and was subsequently fouled hard by him. This led to the two players shoving each other, but in order to prevent things from escalating, it is said that Metta withdrew himself. 

But then one fan threw a beer at the 2010 NBA champ, triggering him to charge at the fan. Then, an all-out brawl broke out, resulting in an 84-game ban on Metta. Meanwhile, the 25-game ban on O’Neal was slashed to 15 because, as per his claims, he was just attempting to protect his teammate and did not enter the stands. However, this still came as a major setback for the Pacers, which World Peace still regrets. According to an ESPN article, he had stated his belief that his old Pacers team, led by Reggie Miller, could have won a championship if it was not for his faults.