[SoccerDude28]

I dunno if Anyone here is an NBA fan, but I'm what you call an NBA fanatic. If anyone is following the NBA or any sport in general, check this out:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_yl...v=ap&type=lgns

This has never ever happened in US history where a professional athelete punches a fan in the crowd, and then his teammate punches other fans. And we are not talking only on the basketball court, but Ron Artest actually jumped into the stands and threw a punch right into the face of a watching fanm because the fan threw a cup of beer at him. Anyone smells lawsuits?

What do you guys think of this?

[Terabin]

I think Ron Artest is a punk. The guy obviously has no respect for authority according to his actions in the past. He thinks he rules the world. I think Stephen Jackson was probably just trying to defend his teammate after Artest jumped into the stands. Even if Artest is a huge guy, having a mob of angry Piston fans come down on you isn't going to be pretty.

Either way, it's pretty sad. I'm not sure whether I can support either side in this incident. I'm sure the players get a lot of abuse and it's easy to pick on them because of their contracts, etc, but it doesn't justify what Artest did. If you're going to get paid that much money with those talents, you're going to be in the limelight and some of that attention is going to be negative. So a fan throws a cup? Artest was just waiting for any sort of reason to get dirty with the fans.

That being said, the fans obviously get way too wound up in the spectacle. They don't think these players are people and so they think they can say whatever they want, do whatever they want. They have no respect either. They paid for their ticket and they're going to have their fun. And now they're going to sue players who take their abuse night after night after night not because they care, but because they want some of that sweet NBA money. They've got green eyes.

I don't know how you're going to solve this. Maybe you have to put up a plexiglass barrier between the court and the crowd.

[SoccerDude28]

I agree with you that Ron Artest is a punk. He should be fined and believe me there will be a lot of law suits knocking on his door. Some reporter is stating that the guy Ron Artest went after is not even the guy who threw the beer bottle. Read This. Steven Jackson is the same. I think it is stupid though, suspending ben wallace indefinitely. it's true that he started the whole thing by shoving Artest, but brawls between players happen all the time. He didn't touch any fan. The most he should get for that is a 2-3 game suspension. I hope the NBA takes that into account.

As far as the fans go, it is definitely the fan's fault. They actually not only threw beer bottles and cups on the floor, but they also said racial slurs to Ron Artest and the Pacers. A glass beer bottle that was thrown on the court hit the referee in the head and cut his forehead. That is barbaric. But still I agree with what you said. No matter what the fans say or do, a professional athelete should never engage with the fans. I know he is only human, but like you said, he is payed millions of dollars. He is risking his image, career, and even possible financial losses for not having restraint. And going into the fans to throw a punch is uncalled for. He is outnumbered 1-10 and no matter what the outcome is, bystanders will be hurt.

Shame on you Artest, and shame on you Detroit fans

[rio]

Ron Artest being a punk has been common knowledge for some time but he really took it too far this time. I think there should have been security or someone to promptly take whoever threw the beer out of the arena. Both sides here just needed self-control.

This is just another reason that I like college basketball more (Plus my teams #1 8-) )

[mag]

Well, let's keep this in perspective. At least they didn't show a woman's naked back.

mag

[SoccerDude28]

Originally Posted by mag

Well, let's keep this in perspective. At least they didn't show a woman's naked back.

mag

hehehehe or more like her arm

[SoccerDude28]

Originally Posted by rio

Ron Artest being a punk has been common knowledge for some time but he really took it too far this time. I think there should have been security or someone to promptly take whoever threw the beer out of the arena. Both sides here just needed self-control.

This is just another reason that I like college basketball more (Plus my teams #1 8-) )

He (Ron Artest) didn't give security time to react. He went berserk, and sprinted like a cheetah which just saw a baby deer in the horizon.

[peb]

Originally Posted by SoccerDude28

This has never ever happened in US history where a professional athelete punches a fan in the crowd, and then his teammate punches other fans.

That's absolutely not correct. There was an infamous brawl between the players and the fans in a 1979 New York Rangers-Boston Bruins hockey game where a number of Bruins went into the stands and fought Rangers fans. That's probably the most similar incident. There have been other smaller incidents throughout the years where one or two players have attacked fans in various sports (plenty in hockey, Vernon Maxwell in the NBA and the baseball pitcher earlier this year who threw a chair at a fan). This particular fight, however, was pretty ugly. I haven't seen any report that mentioned racial slurs though.

I really like Ron Artest as a player, but there's no doubt he did the wrong thing and is going to be severely reprimanded for this. Speculation is that he'll be suspended the rest of the season. Now he'll have plenty of time to promote his R&B album that he wanted to take some time off for anyway.

[Terabin]

I think one of most interesting suggestions that has been made on ESPN is to have an empty Palace the next time the Pacers visit Detroit. To only allow the media to witness the game but keep every fan out. In Internationaly Soccer they've had a couple of instances of this happening to censure an unruly home crowd. It would obviously hurt the Pistons themselves that their fans acted the way they did.

I like the idea of the NBA listening to the justice dished in other sports internationally. I've gotten the feeling in the past that American sports have tried to protect their players rather than hold them up to a greater standard of justice when it comes to breaking the law.

[SoccerDude28]

Originally Posted by peb

That's absolutely not correct. There was an infamous brawl between the players and the fans in a 1979 New York Rangers-Boston Bruins hockey game where a number of Bruins went into the stands and fought Rangers fans. That's probably the most similar incident. There have been other smaller incidents throughout the years where one or two players have attacked fans in various sports (plenty in hockey, Vernon Maxwell in the NBA and the baseball pitcher earlier this year who threw a chair at a fan). This particular fight, however, was pretty ugly. I haven't seen any report that mentioned racial slurs though.

I really like Ron Artest as a player, but there's no doubt he did the wrong thing and is going to be severely reprimanded for this. Speculation is that he'll be suspended the rest of the season. Now he'll have plenty of time to promote his R&B album that he wanted to take some time off for anyway.

Wow you know your sports history. I am a one sport kinda guy (well 2 if you add in soccer) I stand corrected. I was just basing my comments on what the commentators of the game said, but I guess they didn't do their homework and spoke in the heat of the moment.

[SoccerDude28]

Originally Posted by Terabin

I think one of most interesting suggestions that has been made on ESPN is to have an empty Palace the next time the Pacers visit Detroit. To only allow the media to witness the game but keep every fan out. In Internationaly Soccer they've had a couple of instances of this happening to censure an unruly home crowd. It would obviously hurt the Pistons themselves that their fans acted the way they did.

I like the idea of the NBA listening to the justice dished in other sports internationally. I've gotten the feeling in the past that American sports have tried to protect their players rather than hold them up to a greater standard of justice when it comes to breaking the law.

Yeah I was actually thinking of that too. I think they should have empty courts in both Indiana and Detroit when these 2 teams play each other. This way, it'll be more fair, and you protect the players from both fans. I think Indiana fans too might do something when Detroit visits.

[peb]

Originally Posted by SoccerDude28

Wow you know your sports history. I am a one sport kinda guy (well 2 if you add in soccer) I stand corrected. I was just basing my comments on what the commentators of the game said, but I guess they didn't do their homework and spoke in the heat of the moment.

They probably just didn't know their hockey. To be honest, I've kind of forgotten about hockey since they haven't been playing.

The judgement is in, and it's not good for the Pacers.

[SoccerDude28]

Originally Posted by peb

They probably just didn't know their hockey. To be honest, I've kind of forgotten about hockey since they haven't been playing.

The judgement is in, and it's not good for the Pacers.

Oh man Artest for the rest of the season, Steven Jackson for 30 games and Jermaine Oneal For 25. That is the heart and soul of the Pacers team right there. I do think they deserved being suspended but this is too much. Now the whole team is screwed this year

[Terabin]

I'm really glad Stern came down so hard on the players. A message needs to be sent to other players that they need to control themselves on and off the court. Now, I think all that's left to do is impose some punishment on the fans. I wish that was feasible in some way.