this might be the one.

9beers: Who does Artest think he is, Trayvon Martin?

No, trayvon wore a hoodie.

scary thing is that these people who think they're more transcendent or elucidated are the most crazy people ever.

Is that "World Peace my ass" or "World Peace, my ass"?

Ron Artest is a douchebag

/that is all

The coach didn't win any points with me either the way he acted in front of the camera.

/world pest

He probably just had a little too much Hennessy during halftime.

Fifteen game suspension looks about right.

FishyFred: Was I the only one who thought it looked like an accident on the court? One of those things where you go a little nuts in the heat of the moment and then feel terrible about it afterwards?

Maybe a heat of the moment thing, but not an accident.

rudemix: That fact Artest didn't pause for a moment or look back to see what had happened makes me believe he was completely aware what had happened.

He did the same when he clotheslined JJ Barea in the playoffs last year. Didn't even tried to argue, just made a beeline for the locker room.

Peace ejected

*try, not tried

2wolves: Fifteen game suspension looks about right.


you're kidding me, right? he squared off against the entire OKC team. i'd say 25-50 games, but i wouldn't be surprised to see a year suspension. that's the most violent thing in a game since Rudy T getting jacked up.

The Angel of Stern is not going to look kindly at World Peace.

Treygreen13: FishyFred: Was I the only one who thought it looked like an accident on the court? One of those things where you go a little nuts in the heat of the moment and then feel terrible about it afterwards?

Maybe a heat of the moment thing, but not an accident.

Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, it's forgivable to go elbow to mouth.

Harry_Seldon: Treygreen13: He did the same when he clotheslined JJ Barea in the playoffs last year. Didn't even tried to argue, just made a beeline for the locker room.

I know they are both Black, but that was Andrew Bynum with the cheap shop clothesline.

You sure? This was the Bynum one.
Bynum ejection.
Or is the casual racist accusation enough to overwhelm the video evidence?

Look at :39 on my first link. If that's not Artest throwing the clothesline, then Bynum is wearing his jersey.

Cheesus: Treygreen13: Harry_Seldon: Treygreen13: He did the same when he clotheslined JJ Barea in the playoffs last year. Didn't even tried to argue, just made a beeline for the locker room.

I know they are both Black, but that was Andrew Bynum with the cheap shop clothesline.

You sure? This was the Bynum one.
Bynum ejection.
Or is the casual racist accusation enough to overwhelm the video evidence?

Look at :39 on my first link. If that's not Artest throwing the clothesline, then Bynum is wearing his jersey.

Yeah the one you linked to was clearly Artest. Although Barea was apparently a punching bag last year.

To be fair, I'd feel pretty frustrated if I got swept in a series and the Mavericks trotted out a Puerto Rican midget to close me out.

marfar: Harry_Seldon: Treygreen13: He did the same when he clotheslined JJ Barea in the playoffs last year. Didn't even tried to argue, just made a beeline for the locker room.

I know they are both Black, but that was Andrew Bynum with the cheap shop clothesline.

I was thinking that too, 7 foot 23 year old vs. 6'7" 31 year old, come on it's not even close, and Artest has done so much crazy crap do you really need to make one up as an example of him being a loose cannon.

I'd appreciate if you'd at least watch the links you're disparaging.

Harry_Seldon: Treygreen13: marfar: Harry_Seldon: Treygreen13: He did the same when he clotheslined JJ Barea in the playoffs last year. Didn't even tried to argue, just made a beeline for the locker room.

I know they are both Black, but that was Andrew Bynum with the cheap shop clothesline.

I was thinking that too, 7 foot 23 year old vs. 6'7" 31 year old, come on it's not even close, and Artest has done so much crazy crap do you really need to make one up as an example of him being a loose cannon.

I'd appreciate if you'd at least watch the links you're disparaging.

Mea culpa

[t2.gstatic.com image 214x235]

marfar: Treygreen13: marfar: Harry_Seldon: Treygreen13: He did the same when he clotheslined JJ Barea in the playoffs last year. Didn't even tried to argue, just made a beeline for the locker room.

I know they are both Black, but that was Andrew Bynum with the cheap shop clothesline.

I was thinking that too, 7 foot 23 year old vs. 6'7" 31 year old, come on it's not even close, and Artest has done so much crazy crap do you really need to make one up as an example of him being a loose cannon.

I'd appreciate if you'd at least watch the links you're disparaging.

I did after, you are right about it being Artest, by bad.

Major props for the return. Carry on, gentlemen. We all make mistakes. Onward!

2wolves: Fifteen game suspension looks about right.


He should get more games than Raffi Torres.

FishyFred: Was I the only one who thought it looked like an accident on the court? One of those things where you go a little nuts in the heat of the moment and then feel terrible about it afterwards?

That was the weird thing to me: It was and it wasn't.

Clearly he was just showboating to start and wasn't looking to do more than that, but Harden's arms were draped over him for a good second or two before he delivered the kill shot. He knew Harden (or someone) was there and he just kept making the move anyway.

I feel bad that I'm too lazy to find the Arrest .gif where he jumps into the stands to chase that bucket of KFC.

/it sounds real racist
//but its there

skinink: The Lakers fans were cheering Ron as he walked to the locker room. Bunch of animals. I hope the Lakers lose their first round series and are thoroughly embarrassed in the loss.

Dude, calm down. They said repeatedly in the broadcast that the staples center didn't show replays of what happened. Most of the fans probably never saw it and had no idea what happened, and the ones who did obviously only saw it once and it happened rather quickly. They were cheering for their team and they had no knowledge of any reason not to.

What, you actually thought the name change meant something? If I change my name to Midas, that doesn't make everything I touch turn to gold, I'm still the same guy but with a stupid name. He's a goon that changed his name for publicity. Who could possibly be surprised by this?

182: 2wolves: Fifteen game suspension looks about right.


you're kidding me, right? he squared off against the entire OKC team. i'd say 25-50 games, but i wouldn't be surprised to see a year suspension. that's the most violent thing in a game since Rudy T getting jacked up.

Not unless they drastically change league policy will this happen. Steven Jackson only got 30 games for beating up fans.

Adolf Oliver Nipples: What, you actually thought the name change meant something? If I change my name to Midas, that doesn't make everything I touch turn to gold, I'm still the same guy but with a stupid name. He's a goon that changed his name for publicity. Who could possibly be surprised by this?

He also has a history of mental-illness.

Go figure

Adolf Oliver Nipples: What, you actually thought the name change meant something? If I change my name to Midas, that doesn't make everything I touch turn to gold, I'm still the same guy but with a stupid name. He's a goon that changed his name for publicity. Who could possibly be surprised by this?

From everything I've heard and read about him, he seems like a genuinely nice and kind person who is somewhat unbalanced and has an extremely short fuse. I don't think its fair to call him a 'goon' - he's someone without self-control, but I've never heard anything about him being a generally violent person.

DamnYankees: Adolf Oliver Nipples: What, you actually thought the name change meant something? If I change my name to Midas, that doesn't make everything I touch turn to gold, I'm still the same guy but with a stupid name. He's a goon that changed his name for publicity. Who could possibly be surprised by this?

From everything I've heard and read about him, he seems like a genuinely nice and kind person who is somewhat unbalanced and has an extremely short fuse. I don't think its fair to call him a 'goon' - he's someone without self-control, but I've never heard anything about him being a generally violent person.

I dare say that one incident can be written off as a mistake but two cannot. Thousands of basketball players have made it through their entire careers without ever committing a flagrant foul or going into the stands. This incident only confirmed the nature of the first, and if he needs help because he has bad wiring in his head he should get it and not jack people on the court.

Adolf Oliver Nipples: DamnYankees: Adolf Oliver Nipples: What, you actually thought the name change meant something? If I change my name to Midas, that doesn't make everything I touch turn to gold, I'm still the same guy but with a stupid name. He's a goon that changed his name for publicity. Who could possibly be surprised by this?

From everything I've heard and read about him, he seems like a genuinely nice and kind person who is somewhat unbalanced and has an extremely short fuse. I don't think its fair to call him a 'goon' - he's someone without self-control, but I've never heard anything about him being a generally violent person.

I dare say that one incident can be written off as a mistake but two cannot. Thousands of basketball players have made it through their entire careers without ever committing a flagrant foul or going into the stands. This incident only confirmed the nature of the first, and if he needs help because he has bad wiring in his head he should get it and not jack people on the court.

Like I said, he's somewhat unbalanced. I just dont think calling him a 'goon' is approrpiate.

DamnYankees: 182: 2wolves: Fifteen game suspension looks about right.


you're kidding me, right? he squared off against the entire OKC team. i'd say 25-50 games, but i wouldn't be surprised to see a year suspension. that's the most violent thing in a game since Rudy T getting jacked up.

Not unless they drastically change league policy will this happen. Steven Jackson only got 30 games for beating up fans.

good point. stephen a. jackson was talking 3 games....wtf? lakers need to get rid of him, stat.

DamnYankees: Like I said, he's somewhat unbalanced. I just dont think calling him a 'goon' is approrpiate.


Hitler was made fun of a lot in grade school, I don't think he directly ordered the death of all of those people he killed.

Poor misunderstood guy, I blame it on that goofy moustache.

fatalvenom: DamnYankees: Like I said, he's somewhat unbalanced. I just dont think calling him a 'goon' is approrpiate.


Hitler was made fun of a lot in grade school, I don't think he directly ordered the death of all of those people he killed.

Poor misunderstood guy, I blame it on that goofy moustache.

You godwinned. That's not easy.

DamnYankees: fatalvenom: DamnYankees: Like I said, he's somewhat unbalanced. I just dont think calling him a 'goon' is approrpiate.


Hitler was made fun of a lot in grade school, I don't think he directly ordered the death of all of those people he killed.

Poor misunderstood guy, I blame it on that goofy moustache.

You godwinned. That's not easy.


I'm drunk and tired.

/I just wanted to shoehorn Hitler into the thread
//for the lulz

jayhawk88: FishyFred: Was I the only one who thought it looked like an accident on the court? One of those things where you go a little nuts in the heat of the moment and then feel terrible about it afterwards?

That was the weird thing to me: It was and it wasn't.

Clearly he was just showboating to start and wasn't looking to do more than that, but Harden's arms were draped over him for a good second or two before he delivered the kill shot. He knew Harden (or someone) was there and he just kept making the move anyway.

On top of that, after making contact--and there was such violent contact he had to know it--he did not pause or look behind him as if to say "Oh shiat my bad".

Thug City

expobill: his new name:
World B Ware

Or MC Cheapshot

tortilla burger: MWP was obviously being clumsy with his body, but I honestly don't think he was trying to hit James Harden. From the direction he was running, Harden was in his blind spot. MWP bumped into Harden but still hadn't turned his head, so it's likely that he didn't know where exactly Harden's body parts were. The retraction of the left elbow (which looks like he's cocking back) I think is a natural reaction to bumping into somebody. From the full-speed video, to me it looks like he's trying to push past somebody and his elbow went high as he was breaking into a run.

Either way it really is unfortunate, I really like James Harden, I think he's a fantastic player. I hope these shenanigans won't affect his health long-term.

9/10 woul;d laugh again

erratick: Barely a flagrant in a game from the 80s and 90s.

Pistons Bulls 1993

Probably was about the 3rd hardest foul if it took place in the game above.

Is there some time in that long assed video that you are referring to?

marfar: I'm a Lakers fan and he definitely meant to hit him with his elbow as a way to get him off of him, since Harden shouldered him, but I don't think he meant to hit him in the ear and lay him out cold like that.

So World Peace is actually the victim here?

Ya gotta love his "apology" though.


"It was unfortunate that James had to get hit with an unintentional elbow," World Peace told reporters, following the action that will likely see him face a suspension.

"I hope he is OK. I apologize to the Thunder and to James Harden."

....No Peace

mikaloyd: expobill: his new name:
World B Ware

Or MC Cheapshot

The Bionic Elbow.

So we're not going to give Peace a chance?

The fact that it happened during a dead ball makes this even worse. Hard fouls can be justified during the course of a game, but this was extracurricular. Suspend him for the season and void his contract.

RogermcAllen: Treygreen13: FishyFred: Was I the only one who thought it looked like an accident on the court? One of those things where you go a little nuts in the heat of the moment and then feel terrible about it afterwards?

Maybe a heat of the moment thing, but not an accident.

Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, it's forgivable to go elbow to mouth.

You never go ETM.

the same guy who went into the stands in Detroit and started fighting spectators? I am SHOCKED!

What_Would_Jimi_Do: who the fark is bruce bowen? Spurs defensive specialist. About the size of a 2 guard. And by defensive specialist, I mean he would stick his foot where guys in the air after jumping were about to land to intentionally sprain their ankle. He intentionally sprained the ankle of several guys during his career, knocking them on DL.

182: 2wolves: Fifteen game suspension looks about right.


you're kidding me, right? he squared off against the entire OKC team. i'd say 25-50 games, but i wouldn't be surprised to see a year suspension. that's the most violent thing in a game since Rudy T getting jacked up.


i agree......completely, but most of the ESPN pundits were saying 1-5 games.

TheShavingofOccam123: At 35 seconds in, watch the LA assistant coach in the dark suit with pink shirt, make fun of James Harden by stroking an imaginary beard. Motherfarker should be fired and never work in basketball again. He's a farking coach.

I don't see that at all - looks like he's patting his chest, more as a brush-off time thing which Kobe does alot. You are reading way too much into that. He's not laughing or smiling or anything while he's doing it.

Buncha f*cking drama queens.

Gunny Highway: Harden gets in front of him. Ron runs through him and swings an elbow. Was it premeditated? No. Was it an accident? No.

Maybe I need to watch the video again.

This. Looks like his arm gets caught up in Harden's arms, so he pulls back with his elbow to get it out, hits him in the head, and knocks him down. Not necessarily intentional KO, but wholly unnecessary and worthy of an ejection. However, this really isn't anything. Bomani Jones was getting into it with a bunch of reactionary morons like this thread all day yesterday, bringing up some videos of Karl Malone throwing elbows, noting he didn't get more than two games for them and he did a lot more damage.

As for the "squared off against the whole OKC team," and the "if I did that on a bus..." retardedness...just get out of all sports threads in the future. You would be charged with assault for doing damn near anything that happened in a basketball game if you did it on a bus, too. If you charged someone with assault for doing it in a pickup basketball game, you'd be the asshole. Welcome to contact sports.

TheShavingofOccam123: Did you see the guy realize he was on camera and start stroking a beard?

Good lord you people are f*cking delusional. So what if it did look like he was stroking a beard? WTF does that mean to you? How do you know he thought he was on camera? He's looking in a completely different direction. No cameraman is ever told "hey, shoot random assistant coach, get his reactions!"

GacysBasement: And at best, Artest is and always will be a farking hearltess creep that attacked spectators.

Maybe spectators shouldn't throw sh*t at athletes.

/more fans need to get punched in the mouth sometimes
//preferably by security, though

guestguy: DamnYankees: Like I said, he's somewhat unbalanced. I just dont think calling him a 'goon' is approrpiate.

[alcoholicsconspicuous.files.wordpress.com image 350x267]

Are you farking kidding me? Artest epitomizes the term "goon" in professional basketball. Being unbalanced might be an explanation for his actions...but it doesn't change the fact that's he's a dirty, violent player by NBA standards. He belongs in a mental ward, not on a basketball court.

I like how everyone has completely absolved the Detroit fans of ANY wrongdoing in that fiasco. Everyone was wrong in that, but are we really going to pretend like the players weren't being harassed and attacked? Please.

A 2-game suspension would cause him to miss the first game of the playoffs, so that seems appropriate.

Alternatively, you could link it to how long Harden is out.

Adolf Oliver Nipples: If I change my name to Midas, that doesn't make everything I touch turn to gold,

I changed my name to Midas and now everything I touch turns to mufflers.

IAmRight: Alternatively, you could link it to how long Harden is out.

I really don't like this idea. The act is what's wrong - if someone is lucky enough to avoid injury, that's merely the grace of god. You should punish harshly for any attempt to actually injure.

guestguy: Do you think Artest is the only player to ever have insults and/or objects hurled at him from the stands

I literally can't think of anyone else who that (being hit by an object) has happened to in the NBA during a fight.

TheShavingofOccam123: It means I'm watching a league that condones coaches making fun of injured players.

How is that making fun of him? Also, Harden may well have been back up and standing by then. He wasn't down that long.

jst3p: You could not have chosen a more incorrect fark handle if you tried.

Interesting, because the basketball fans in here (the ones that actually watch basketball and pay attention to the sport) think it's not that big a deal. The people whining are people that don't know sh*t about basketball and only come in because they heard about some violence - now they're excited because they get to get back to their racist "thug" comments with less likelihood that they'll be called racist because he did do something pretty f*cked up.

However, you won't see hockey players called thugs, yet there's been more violent head-shots than that in every single playoff series in the NHL's postseason.

DamnYankees: IAmRight: Alternatively, you could link it to how long Harden is out.

I really don't like this idea. The act is what's wrong - if someone is lucky enough to avoid injury, that's merely the grace of god. You should punish harshly for any attempt to actually injure.

Well no one's really attempting to injure (except Bruce Bowen back in the day and he barely ever got punished). WP is stupid and a bit unbalanced but I doubt he ever wanted to injure Harden.

guestguy: Do you think Artest is the only player to ever have insults and/or objects hurled at him from the stands?

No, I have not seen other players get hit with a full beer from the stands.

IAmRight: Interesting, because the basketball fans in here (the ones that actually watch basketball and pay attention to the sport) think it's not that big a deal.

I honestly don't see how this is any worst than any other flagrant 2. And yes, I agree it should be a flagrant 2 - if not intentional, it was certainly reckless. As a Lakers fan, I don't really see how what Artest did yesterday was worst than what Bynum did to Barea, or what Raja Bell did to Kobe, or a bunch of other things. I think a lot of it is because ESPN keeps showing slow motion shots of his elbow slamming into Harden's jaw, and its a rather unsightly thing.

jst3p: DamnYankees: IAmRight: Interesting, because the basketball fans in here (the ones that actually watch basketball and pay attention to the sport) think it's not that big a deal.

I honestly don't see how this is any worst than any other flagrant 2. And yes, I agree it should be a flagrant 2 - if not intentional, it was certainly reckless. As a Lakers fan, I don't really see how what Artest did yesterday was worst than what Bynum did to Barea, or what Raja Bell did to Kobe, or a bunch of other things. I think a lot of it is because ESPN keeps showing slow motion shots of his elbow slamming into Harden's jaw, and its a rather unsightly thing.

In a vacuum it isn't, but he has a history and that makes it deserving of a stiffer penalty.

I agree he has a history, but its a while ago. He's actually been relatively ok since the Piston's brawl.

Like I said, its a flagrant 2, he should be suspended. But I'm not sure it needs to go beyond that.

DamnYankees: I think a lot of it is because ESPN keeps showing slow motion shots of his elbow slamming into Harden's jaw, and its a rather unsightly thing.

That's pretty much what it is.

It's funny when people whine about how thuggish the NBA is and how they quit watching after '98.

Hey, here's a clip from '93.

Makes this thing look like a little girl's tea party.

IAmRight: It's funny when people whine about how thuggish the NBA is and how they quit watching after '98.

It is true that the NBA was far more violent and thuggish in the 80s and 90s than it is today. I don't even know how anyone can debate that, other than out of ignorance.

jst3p: That is mostly due to the fact that you have already decided that anyone who thinks it is a big deal isn't a "true basketball fan".

I'm basing it on people I regularly see in NBA threads on here. You aren't one of 'em.

GacysBasement: You are seriously equating this to an NHL game? The game that they allow and expect much physical contact and wear pads, helmets and visors? Hmmm.

Oh, I'm sorry, it's legal to hit people in the head in hockey, right? Oh, wait, it's still illegal, yet they continually do it? I'm sorry you're not bright enough to see the correlations.

jst3p: Was it not a big deal or did he do something pretty f*cked up? You seem confused.

It was messed up. He got ejected and should miss another game, maybe. It's not "suspend him for the playoffs/kick him out of the league" level bad, like the whiners in this thread are saying it should be.

Gunny Highway: Great defense, offense, and sportsmanship from every teams and player in the league.

...sarcasm?

DamnYankees: I really don't like this idea. The act is what's wrong - if someone is lucky enough to avoid injury, that's merely the grace of god. You should punish harshly for any attempt to actually injure.

Well, the plan with this is that he gets 2 games as the minimum, based on how suspensions have always worked. If Harden misses more, then he gets more. It's more of a "whichever is longest" thing. I doubt OKC's going to let Harden stay out any longer than necessary.

This is what it should be for anything that doesn't happen in the course of play, at least. In the course of play, leave it how it is. But c'mon, man, you can't be elbowing people as part of your celebration, whether you hit 'em in the head or not.

Karl Malone knocked David Robinson OUT with an elbow to the face in '98. Didn't even get a foul called.

jst3p: Knowledge of the sport is directly proportional to the number of posts in the fark sports tab?

Okay, you hadn't even posted before I did.

So why would you act as though the other people had watched basketball?

BTW, the melee in Detroit was EIGHT F*CKING YEARS AGO.

It's cute when people realize they overreacted so they feel the need to act as if someone was being unfair to them to not allow their stupid opinions to be considered the mainstream opinion.

TheShavingofOccam123: But, Mom, everybody else gets to break jaws, poke eyes and punch groins. I get to too. Mom!

There's no reason his suspension should be more than 10x the length of everyone else who has done similar, that's the point. Not that he shouldn't be punished. Buncha idiots.

guestguy: (it wasn't a beer..it was a cup of diet coke)

Clearly, the critical issue.

guestguy: Fans throw things at players from the stands..it happens

It really doesn't. I can't think of another time a player was hit with a cup or bottle of liquid. Literally, can't remember it happening before that or since.

guestguy: Fans throw things at players from the stands..it happens, and those fans should be removed and many times arrested.

And they should occasionally get beaten by the players (too bad Artest hit the wrong one), just to remind them "guess what, dipsh*t, this isn't TV, those players down there are people, too, and they might not like having sh*t thrown at them."

Basically, to paraphrase the Chris Rock saying, "I'm not saying it's right, but I understand."

TheShavingofOccam123: And yet true fans like you use past violence like that to justify and excuse current player violence. Consistency? Heard of it?

Drawing parallels that have nothing to do with each other for $800, Alex.

DamnYankees: It really doesn't. I can't think of another time a player was hit with a cup or bottle of liquid. Literally, can't remember it happening before that or since.

Not in the NBA, at least. Most fans only try it at sporting events where there is a large wall separating the players from them. Like, say, Cleveland fans throwing bottles at the field, Philly fans throwing snowballs/batteries, etc.

I do recall a Rangers baseball player hitting a fan with a folding chair once. I do recall hockey players going into the stands (which requires a hell of a lot more of a concerted effort) to fight fans several decades ago.

Rapmaster2000: My favorite part about that fight was near the end where this chubby guy walks out on the court and challenges Jermaine O'Neal only to get knocked the fark out with one punch.

Indeed, that was the greatest. Even though that's really the highlight of Jermaine O'Neal's career.

TonyDanza: You do realize that the NBA's highest rating were during the 80's and 90's?

In raw terms, yes. Relative to TV ratings at the time, right now is by far its best ratings era.

fonebone77: Most NBA players never even get flagrant fouls.

There have been 76 players who have picked up a flagrant foul THIS SEASON. It's World Peace's first.

Now the superstars might not get them called often, and the players who are in the NBA for a ham sandwich and then sent back to the D-League might not get them, but the average player will have at least one flagrant foul in their NBA career. It's not that big a deal.

TheShavingofOccam123: is a big deal to us racist idiots who don't know anything about basketball.

I know. Thanks to you guys, players get suspended even for leaving a bench, whether they get near a fight or not. You people's horsesh*t and the dumbass overreaction to the rules helped cost my favorite team their best chance at an NBA title.

DamnYankees: In raw terms, yes. Relative to TV ratings at the time, right now is by far its best ratings era.

Of course, it has nothing to do with the perceived lack of violence and everything to do with the league being stocked with prime talent again, after the relatively down years of the early '00s.

TheShavingofOccam123: Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton pulled pistols on each other but thank goodness precedent doesn't write the rules.

And I'm sure they weren't punished, right?

Oh, suspended for the entire season?

You appear to not understand what precedent means. It's not about the actions, but the response to the actions in the form of punishment. No one would have a problem with the ACTUAL precedent in that situation being upheld.

Similarly, all the rational basketball fans are asking for is for the precedent to hold with this case, that it be treated like other elbows have in the past. He didn't go into the crowd and start another fight. He didn't pull a gun on anyone. So to punish him as though he did is stupid and overreactionary.

guestguy: I've seen fans hucking batteries onto the court before

You've seen a player in the NBA hit by a battery? Please, enlighten me.

guestguy: No they farking shouldn't; they should be arrested and thrown in jail! What a dumbass thing to say...

Let's carry this one over to the real-life situation. I throw a beer at someone in real life, yeah, I should be arrested and put in jail. But I also should fully expect to have the person I threw the beer at to come and try to kick my ass. Sure, he'll get in trouble too, but ultimately if I throw a drink at someone, I deserve to get my ass kicked.

guestguy: DamnYankees: You've seen a player in the NBA hit by a battery? Please, enlighten me.

I didn't say that did I? I said I've seen them hucked onto the court.

Oh, so then its entirely irrelevant to what happened to Artest. Good to know.

Slow To Return: IAmRight: It's not that big a deal.

Amen, brother. FREE SEAN PAYTON!!

That one's also not that big a deal, but the suspensions have to be made because of the PR. At least the other teams weren't dumb enough to document it.

MensRea: Good takedown of Artest from Deadspin:

Look past all the stunts and it's clear that Ron Artest isn't really a colorful character. He's not an interesting person. And he's not sympathetic. There's nothing to learn from the life of Ron Artest. Like Arenas, he's just a flaky shiathead. That's the full truth of his being. At his core, he's a boring player-one who can't shoot, can't jump, and can't dribble-with a violent streak who stumbled into making a briefly popular brand out of his own blithering idiocy. Part of me thinks he threw that elbow just so that people would talk about him, because you only talk about Ron Artest when he does something stupid to catch your attention for five minutes. Some of us, me included, used to get suckered by that kind of bullshiat. No more. He's run out of chances to try and convince the world that he's something other than a surly moron. Go the fark away, Ron.

I'm confused what part of that is 'good' - that's bad writing, bad argumentation and bad basketball acumen.

Slow To Return: Were Laker fans bending over backwards trying to defend Bynum then like they're doing Artest now? Or did it not matter at the time because the Lakers were swept out of the playoffs, and not about to enter the playoffs like they are now?

We did not defend Bynum, because what he did was clearly intentional and unacceptable.

DamnYankees: I'm confused what part of that is 'good' - that's bad writing, bad argumentation and bad basketball acumen.

It's Deadspin, what do you expect?

Slow To Return: Were Laker fans bending over backwards trying to defend Bynum then like they're doing Artest now? Or did it not matter at the time because the Lakers were swept out of the playoffs, and not about to enter the playoffs like they are now?

There are Lakers fans in here?

Slow To Return: Isn't this Artest's 2nd incident in under a year?

It's his only flagrant of the year...what else did he do?

IAmRight: There are Lakers fans in here?

I'm a Laker fan.

IAmRight: Slow To Return: Isn't this Artest's 2nd incident in under a year?

It's his only flagrant of the year...what else did he do?

I think he's referring to the elbow to Barea in the playoffs last year.

Slow To Return: DamnYankees: clearly intentional and unacceptable.

There are people on the sports tab, who, while I don't always agree with them, I at least respect their opinions. You've always been one of them. However, in this case, I can't even respect your opinion that this wasn't intentional.

I guess the question is, what was the intentional part? Did he intentionally try to make contact with Harden? Maybe, but that happens every play in basketball. Was he trying to shove the guy away with his elbow? Maybe, and that's a foul. Was he trying to intentionally break his jaw? I highly doubt it. There's just no reason to think he would do that.

guestguy: Players have been struck with objects from the stands before

Ok, please cite that. I'm not aware of this happening to an NBA player.

DamnYankees: I'm a Laker fan.

right right right, I remember now. Colts, too, right? NFL fan allegiances are more fresh in my mind. I was just trying to make the point that many of us saying it's not the huge thing it's being made out to be aren't Lakers fans...some of us don't even like the Lakers.

DamnYankees: I think he's referring to the elbow to Barea in the playoffs last year.

Ah, so they play by calendar year rules when they can. The foul on Barea is a case of being caught going the wrong way and the fact that Barea is a midget. I doubt that, as they're going down 2-0 in a series, they were "on the verge of being swept" like the other person was saying. Also, that's not an elbow, that's a hand to the face. How the hell did anyone think that was an elbow?

My favorite part of that is that Barea's force causes him to twist enough that he knees Lamar Odom in the sack.

IAmRight: The foul on Barea is a case of being caught going the wrong way and the fact that Barea is a midget.

Eh. I think that foul was a bit inexcusable. The Lakers melted down in that series, it was embarrassing.

Slow To Return: Or did it not matter at the time because the Lakers were swept out of the playoffs, and not about to enter the playoffs like they are now?

That's what you said. At the time of his foul, they were on their way to being 0-2. I would think that if anyone defended Artest at that point, then the fact that they had at least two games remaining in their season would have mattered to them. For that, he was suspended one game.

So suspend him for a couple games. Which is what we're all saying.

guestguy: So you've never seen players pelted with stuff as they go to the locker room?

At that point they're already committed to going into the locker room and the debris isn't aimed at anyone in particular.

/besides, if it hit Ginobili, it could've been empty and he'd have fallen over as though it were an anvil that was thrown

Slow To Return: Read the ENTIRE post. I was talking about Laker fans defending the BYNUM foul on Barea

I don't think anyone defended that one. Tough to recall, though.

Slow To Return: I was talking about Laker fans defending the BYNUM foul on Barea

Oh, those non-existent people in this thread?

Slow To Return: I (facetiously) asked if anyone defended Bynum, like they're defending Artest. It wouldn't surprise me in the least; it was, after all, a "crime of passion", and Bynum certainly didn't intend to crush Barea's sternum.

No one's defending Artest, ultimately.

See, here's the annoying thing. Most of the early people say he should be kicked out of the league or suspended for half a season for something like this. So people that actually like the sport and watch it and comment on it say "get real, it's not that big a deal - he definitely f*cked up, but he should only get a couple/few games, which would be consistent with what the punishment has been for this type of thing every other time it's happened."

And then people act as though we're defending him. No, we're just bringing reality into the indignation party. No, people don't get to make stupid comparisons like "if I did that on the bus, I'd be arrested!" No, people don't get to act like this was the worst foul ever.

It's not defending him - it's defending reality.

guestguy: Ah, I see...so it was the lounging on the scorer's table pretending to give an interview that had him in such a justifiably delicate state of mind?

He's clearly insane, as evidenced by where he was even before the drink was thrown. But there's a difference between having stuff thrown at you while you're being herded into the locker room by a bunch of security for safety and having stuff thrown at you when it's really only you out there - it's clear you're the target, it actually hits you, and you get a pretty decent bead on where it came from (he didn't get the right guy, but he was close to where it actually came from).

It was really a perfect storm for that to take place.

TheShavingofOccam123: If he's a Suns fan he should spend his time biatching about corrupt refs giving the Western Championship to the Lakers every other season or so.

I do. But well, I'm more pissed at the Spurs getting awarded it the other years, since the Suns didn't really have that much of a problem with the Lakers in the postseason. Just the Spurs.

/and yes, of course I'm pissed that Diaw got suspended for CHECKING TO SEE IF HIS TEAMMATE WAS OKAY

TheShavingofOccam123: Reality is Artest has displayed repeated violent behavior on the court for years.

Reality is he's been no more violent than anyone else since the incident at the Palace, but because of that, every one of his actions will be treated with a ton more severity than it ordinarily would have by the media.

Kevin Love stomped on Luis Scola's neck/chest area while Scola was on the ground (after he fouled him and THAT went uncalled, frankly) - even though Scola's a whiny, flopping b*tch, that was only worth 2 games earlier this season.