"If you take that brawl away, I've changed, anyway," said Artest, knowing that the brawl he ignited will live forever. "I've always wanted to try to become a better person, if you take the brawl away. If you put the brawl back in that situation, that was something that was out of my control. I'm happy it's over."
"It sure was a long time coming," Artest said. "I always wanted to be a Laker -- not coming out of college; I wanted to be a Knick. As I started to compete against the Lakers and against Kobe [Bryant], just really out of respect for him I always wanted to be a teammate of his."
"When the Lakers called at 12:01, I was surprised," Artest admitted.
Artest said he was informed by his agent that Kupchak had called. "I said, 'For what?' " Artest said. "He said, 'He wants to help you get a ring.' And I was just totally shocked and surprised."
"I was trying to figure out a number, I was talking to my wife and kids. I was on my twitter, MySpace, and Facebook and asking everybody to help me pick a number. On my MySpace, somebody named Trish T he Dish came up with the #37 and said that Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” was 37 weeks at number one of all time. 23 I was going to choose, it was available, it’s a great number but, I thought (with) that 37 and “Thriller”, I can make that a new great number. I think more kids should start getting the #37 for a great human being, since Michael loved all people. I think I’m representing greatness in wearing #37."