Pacers Finally Trade Artest . . .

. . . to the Sacramento Kings. In return they get all-star swingman Peja Stojakovic, who has battled injuries in recent seasons. Peja is not the complete player that Artest is, particularly with regard to defense. But, thanks to Artest's much publicized baggage, getting a player of comparable skill would have been impossible. When I first rumors of the Artest-for-Peja trade, I thought it would be a bad move on the part of the Pacers. Now, I think the Pacers made the best of a difficult situation: landing a skilled spot-up shooter who can score 20 every night and giving up a star who hadn't been playing anyway. I've always liked Stojakovic; I just hope he's a good fit for the Pacers.