Metta recalls his intense battles with Kobe and Pau Gasol in the playoffs: 'That was physical series'

The 2009 NBA season was a pivotal one for Kobe Bryant. Seven years had passed since his last championship in 2002, and critics questioned whether he could lead the Los Angeles Lakers to glory without Shaquille O’Neal.

With immense pressure to deliver, No. 24 and the Lakers entered the Western Conference Semifinals against the Houston Rockets, a team led by the rugged and unpredictable Ron Artest—now known as Metta Sandiford-Artest.

Tussling it out

With Houston holding a 1-0 lead, playoff tension boiled over in Game 2. While battling for a rebound in the fourth quarter, Artest believed Bryant had elbowed him in the neck. Frustrated by the lack of a call, the Rockets small forward confronted the two-time MVP on the court. The heated exchange resulted in a technical foul and an ejection for Artest, who had been instrumental for H-Town throughout the series.

“The one with Kobe, I just expected the ref... I know he’s going to get calls, but when you blatantly see the elbow, I just felt like it wasn’t fair,” Artest said. “So if the ref wasn’t going to handle this, I’ll just handle it. And I didn’t expect to get ejected—I was playing, I averaged 22 or 25 that series, I was playing well. All I did was go to Kobe and say, ‘My brother, you know that was wrong,’ and I was upset at him, like, he threw an elbow.”

Bryant was assessed a flagrant foul after the game, but it had little consequence. The Lakers capitalized on the momentum and secured a crucial win to even the series.