NBA suspends Pacers' Artest for rest of season
Eight players get shorter bans
Nine players from the teams were banned for a combined 143 games, including some of the harshest penalties the league has ever issued. Artest is the first player to be suspended for nearly an entire season for a fight during a game.
Pushing and shoving among players at Friday's game escalated into one of the worst fights in U.S. professional sports history when a fan threw a drink at Artest and he jumped into the stands, throwing punches. Nine people were treated for injuries, none serious.
"The actions of the players involved wildly exceeded the professionalism and self-control that should fairly be expected from NBA players," NBA commissioner David Stern said in a statement. He added that the league must not "allow our sport to be debased by what seem to be declining expectations."
Indiana's Stephen Jackson was suspended for 30 games and Jermaine O'Neal for 25. Detroit's Ben Wallace — whose shove of Artest after a foul led to the five-minute fracas — drew a six-game ban, while Pacers guard Anthony Johnson got five games.
All the suspensions are without pay.
Artest, O'Neal and Jackson — who all threw punches at fans in the stands or on the court at the end of the nationally televised game Friday night — began serving their suspensions Saturday, when they and Wallace received indefinite suspensions. Indiana, limited to just six players because of the suspensions and injuries, dropped an 86-83 decision to Orlando.
Stern also noted that fans — who threw punches of their own and tossed drinks at players — shared the blame for the brawl. He said the NBA must "redefine the bounds of acceptable conduct for fans attending our games and resolve to permanently exclude those who overstep those bounds."
He added that security procedures in all NBA arenas will be reviewed and rules need to be added to prevent a repeat of what happened at Auburn Hills, Mich., on Friday.
Police were continuing to investigate the brawl, one of the NBA's most violent.
Artest and Jackson bolted into the stands near center court and throwing punches at fans after debris was tossed at the players. Later, fans who came onto the court were punched in the face by Artest and O'Neal.
Wallace began the fracas by delivering a hard, two-handed shove to Artest after Wallace was fouled on a drive to the basket with 45.9 seconds remaining. Referees ultimately called off the rest of the game.
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