If there’s one thing Metta World Peace knows, it’s toughness.
The basketball player formerly known as Ron Artest says the NBA has gotten soft since he entered the league in 1999.
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"I remember I came into the NBA in 1999, the game was a little bit more rough. The game now is more for kids. It's not really a man's game anymore," World Peace said via the LA Times . "The parents are really protective of their children. They cry to their AAU coaches. They cry to the refs, 'That's a foul. That's a foul.'"
World Peace is currently fighting for a spot on the Lakers roster after spending last season playing in China and India. After playing on other continents, World Peace is convinced it’s a global phenomenon.
"Sometimes I wish those parents would just stay home, don't come to the game, and now translated, these same AAU kids whose parents came to the game, 'That's a foul,'" he said. "These kids are in the NBA. So now we have a problem. You've got a bunch of babies professionally around the world."