"..I never thought Ron was a bad person... I thought Ron didn't necessarily understand everything because he's still trying to understand himself... So how do you expect for him to understand other people's feelings, when he's still reaching and trying to grab help from other people?.. And that's the part where I wish I would've understood better as a teammate, instead of being angry as a teammate... "

© Jermaine O'Neal.

Artest eventually apologized on national tv to everyone (even mentioned Jermaine directly) during the press conference following the Lakers victory over the Celtics in 2010.

Jermaine admitted that at the time he was not happy for Ron, and I don't think anyone could argue that he was wrong for that. Ron admitted to being embarrassed and afraid to face the pressure of returning to the teammates he felt he let down.

He ran.

But as you can clearly see, over time O'Neal realized that his mental illness is the difference.

If he understands that, you can too.



*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...