Appearing via phone on the Stephen A. Smith show on ESPN Radio 1050 in New York, Ron Artest said: "I'm not retiring."

Citing club sources, ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported that Artest wanted to retire at season's end.

Artest said he told teammates he was thinking of retirement because he missed his kids, but he never thought those comments would make it to the public.

"I'm totally dedicated to this game," Artest said. "I'm totally ready to still try to make these playoffs.

"I don't plan to retire," Artest said. "When you don't have your kids around you can get a little bit vulnerable, a little weak."

Corliss Williamson looked at his cell phone last week and was surprised by what he saw.

It was a text message from Ron Artest, the Sacramento Bee writes, who was informing Williamson and nearly the entire Kings' roster that he was planning to retire after this season.

The message was short and to the point, with Artest making it clear that this matter wouldn't affect his performance for the rest of the season and, he wrote, the playoff push.

"That was it," Williamson said. "I was shocked. What is this? It's his personal decision he's made, and we'll see what happens."

Artest's teammates weren't the only ones he told of the news. Friday, he told the editors of www.hiphopgame.com, a Web site for which Artest writes a personal diary.

Artest was unavailable for comment before the Kings defeated the Phoenix Suns 107-100 Sunday at Arco Arena, and he did not speak after the game, either.

Many of his teammates remain unwilling to believe that Artest actually would leave the NBA at age 27, with a contract that is scheduled to pay him $7.8 million next season and a player option for $8.45 million in the 2008-09 season. But according to a source close to Artest and away from his basketball life, he is very serious about retirement.

According to the source, who didn't want to go on record for fear of reprisal, Artest plans to play overseas for a year or two, with hopes that he can put the seemingly nonstop turmoil behind him in a more discreet environment while leaving open the possibility of a return to the NBA. The list of off-the-court transgressions for Artest has only grown this season, from his dog being seized by Placer County in late January to his March 5 arrest on domestic violence charges.

Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie said during Sunday's game that he considered this "a matter of conjecture" on Artest's part, but the matter was serious enough that Petrie and Artest met to discuss it after the game.

Sacramento guard Kevin Martin injured his eye early in the second quarter of the game against the Suns on Sunday.

The Kings said Martin, their leading scorer at 20.8 points per game, wouldn't return. He had double vision, the team said.

Martin drove the lane while being defended by James Jones on Sacramento's first possession of the second quarter, and came away holding his hand to his eye in obvious pain.

Ron Artest told multiple teammates this week that he wants to retire at season's end to spend more time with his family, according to club sources.

Reached via e-mail, Artest wouldn't confirm or deny making such declarations, telling ESPN.com: "We can talk about it after [the] playoffs."

Ron Artest pleaded not guilty Thursday to misdemeanor charges stemming from a domestic dispute with his wife earlier this month.

A Placer County Superior Court judge also ordered the Kings forward to stay at least 100 yards away from his wife and children until further notice.

Ron Artest faces four misdemeanor charges because of a domestic dispute at his home earlier this month.

The charges were filed late Tuesday night. Placer County deputy district attorney Dan Quick said Artest will be arraigned Thursday on charges of battery and corporal injury to a spouse, false imprisonment and dissuading a witness from reporting a crime. Each carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison.

After the Sacramento Kings lost to Miami on Friday, they could not leave South Florida for Orlando after the game because their charter plane was stuck in New Jersey.

Bad weather forced it to remain behind and not arrive in Miami until Saturday morning.

The Sacramento Kings have given no indication that they will try to get out of the final two years of Ron Artest's deal, which has about $16.5 million left.

But more importantly, they would have "zero chance" of voiding his deal, according to a league source with a working knowledge of the collective bargaining agreement.

The Kings said Saturday they will allow Ron Artest to return to the team, five days after his arrest on suspicion of domestic violence.

The Kings called a news conference for Saturday afternoon to discuss the return of the controversial forward after missing two games. Sacramento hosts the Nuggets on Sunday.

With Ron Artest in trouble again, the N.B.A., according to spokesman Tim Frank, is monitoring the situation.

The Kings? president, Geoff Petrie, said: ?Right now we?re concerned about Ron and concerned about his family, that he?s getting good advice and the kind of support to deal with the issues here. But there?s also the other issues ? the potential impact on the image, reputations and on the team. With all that in mind, what we?ve done is take a measured but appropriate response.?