UPDATE: MWP suspended 7 games

[BballFanAddict]

since nobody is gonna say it I will, Harden asked for it!

you don't get on anybody's grill like that during a celebration and expect not get hit. yeah yeah it was brutal and MWP should get five games suspension, but come on! take the tampon out and man up.

Nah, while I don't think it was intentional in the slightest, you just can't have guys knocking people out with elbows. If that was done to one of our players, there isn't a single one of us who wouldn't be livid.

Seriously? I have no dog in this fight. I would think you'd have to be a Laker or Artest fan to convince yourself that Artest's elbowing was unintentional. The fact is, no one hits someone as hard as Artest did and then just runs off without even turning around to see who he hit. You cannot deny this simple fact. And, it completely proves it was indeed intentional.

If you struck someone "unintentionally", the first thing you'd do is turn around and face the person you struck - to see what the, or who the, hell you "unintentionally" struck. Its that simple. Instead, Artest runs off and has his eyes instead on the ref to see if it was going to be called...

I do agree that the first round would be a stiff enough penalty. A permanent ban is ridiculous.

[kobeaki]

you know, i do agree with people that say that harden was an idiot for trying to get in MWP's way after he scored. he was clearly trying to be a nuisance. to me though, that merits a nice shove, not an elbow to the back of the head/neck.

That's a great way to put it.

i think thats exactly what he was going for, but already in his chest pounding motions...wrong place , wrong time for both...the asshats on the gb want him hung in a public square for intentional hit...which it isnt...i dont mind the suspension...as long as its fair...

[kobeaki]

It was clearly intentional. See MWP feel Harden before he cocks back and swings? Yeah. He knows Harden is there. Take off your purple and gold-colored glasses and open your eyes.

**** off.

[kobeaki]

if this happened to Kobe, you guys would be asking for the player to be banned from the league

ok, fine, i want dwayne wade banned from the league...so there.

[kobeaki]

since nobody is gonna say it I will, Harden asked for it!

you don't get on anybody's grill like that during a celebration and expect not get hit. yeah yeah it was brutal and MWP should get five games suspension, but come on! take the tampon out and man up.

What exactly did Harden do other than being in front/near of MWP? Did he say something nasty against the latter? Did he attempt to harm him physically?

Assuming he intentionally tried to get under the skin of MWP, was a nasty and downright ferocious elbow really the right thing to do?

Nothing tangible.
these fans are almost as off as Artest. lol

yr a mod? get the hell out of here, instigating, yr as bad as the idiot ballboys...

[BEazy]

I hope Metta comes back and proves all these haters wrong. Never seen so much hate for a person that has never done anything to any of these guys posting hate on here. It's quite entertaining really.

[RamonSessions7]

Ken Berger twitter

Las Vegas oddsmaker Bovada has set the over/under on suspension length for Metta World Peace at 7.5 games.

It's actually an online sportsbook

[NOODLESTYLE]

I've never placed a bet on a sports game. So how does the .5 game work? is he re-instated after half time?

[RamonSessions7]

I've never placed a bet on a sports game. So how does the .5 game work? is he re-instated after half time?

If you bet over, that means he needs to be suspended 8 or more games, under 7 or less. It's just a way of eliminating a Push in the bet.

[dockingsched]

socal23 posted this on the GB:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPTePaIUDOc[/youtube]

easy to not like harden, lol

[Wavy Q]

Max Kellerman is such a homer

[Gek]

trash talking is part of the game. i'd love to have harden on the Lakers.

[Vincent 666]

I wish I could watch the replay with all the people who are calling for Artests head.

Look at Artests face, eyes and body language. He wasnt even looking at Harden and with the way he ran up the court I dont think he even knew he elbowed someone.

It was an inadvertent elbow by two players who got tangled up. Nothing more. Artest went into his chest bump celebration and hit him. Had a Laker been standing there, Artest would have hit him with the elbow.

I think he should get a game or two suspension because throwing elbows even if they are unintentional is wrong. The people who are calling for a 15 game plus suspension are just flat out wrong.

[Father Time]

I wish I could watch the replay with all the people who are calling for Artests head.

Look at Artests face, eyes and body language. He wasnt even looking at Harden and with the way he ran up the court I dont think he even knew he elbowed someone.

It was an inadvertent elbow by two players who got tangled up. Nothing more. Artest went into his chest bump celebration and hit him. Had a Laker been standing there, Artest would have hit him with the elbow.

I think he should get a game or two suspension because throwing elbows even if they are unintentional is wrong. The people who are calling for a 15 game plus suspension are just flat out wrong.

I know, right? A 5-7 game suspension seems reasonable. It really gets on my nerves though when the GB is calling him a sociopathic menace to society who deserves a lifetime ban from the league. The last time Metta did something insane was 8 years ago. Up until yesterday he was a model citizen and now he's the worst person on earth.

[Jetset]

socal23 posted this on the GB:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPTePaIUDOc[/youtube]

easy to not like harden, lol

i didn't even need to see that to tell he's unlikable, just look at this haircut.

[Sedale Threatt]

Seriously? I have no dog in this fight. I would think you'd have to be a Laker or Artest fan to convince yourself that Artest's elbowing was unintentional. The fact is, no one hits someone as hard as Artest did and then just runs off without even turning around to see who he hit. You cannot deny this simple fact. And, it completely proves it was indeed intentional.

I'm not going to debate this too strenuously as, intentional or not, the end result was bad enough.

But I don't think it was intentional in the sense that Artest purposely sought Harden out to deliver a knock-out blow. I think he got caught up in the moment, felt some contact, and hit James way, way harder than he was expecting to. Roy Keane, former Manchester United star, used to refer to this as "the red mist descending." I.E., you get caught up in the moment and you lose control of yourself.

I recognize that's giving Ron a lot of benefit of the doubt, especially given his past. But I reserve that right as a Laker fan and somebody that likes Ron. I think it's pretty clear that I'm not condoning what he did. I just don't think it was a situation like, say, J.R. Reid some years back, where you could clearly see him lining up A.C. Green for a shot to the face and ended up knocking some teeth out.

That said, it's an unfortunate situation for all involved. I wish Ron had more self control, but as we've seen countless times over the years, that's not his strong suit.

[Sedale Threatt]

I know, right? A 5-7 game suspension seems reasonable.

I'm thinking the last regular season game and the duration of the first round, however many games that lasts, would be fair.

[Sedale Threatt]

Either that or ritual Japanese suicide on live TV. Just think of the ratings...

[sweet daddy]

Seriously? I have no dog in this fight. I would think you'd have to be a Laker or Artest fan to convince yourself that Artest's elbowing was unintentional. The fact is, no one hits someone as hard as Artest did and then just runs off without even turning around to see who he hit. You cannot deny this simple fact. And, it completely proves it was indeed intentional.

I'm not going to debate this too strenuously as, intentional or not, the end result was bad enough.

But I don't think it was intentional in the sense that Artest purposely sought Harden out to deliver a knock-out blow. I think he got caught up in the moment, felt some contact, and hit James way, way harder than he was expecting to. Roy Keane, former Manchester United star, used to refer to this as "the red mist descending." I.E., you get caught up in the moment and you lose control of yourself.

I recognize that's giving Ron a lot of benefit of the doubt, especially given his past. But I reserve that right as a Laker fan and somebody that likes Ron. I think it's pretty clear that I'm not condoning what he did. I just don't think it was a situation like, say, J.R. Reid some years back, where you could clearly see him lining up A.C. Green for a shot to the face and ended up knocking some teeth out.

That said, it's an unfortunate situation for all involved. I wish Ron had more self control, but as we've seen countless times over the years, that's not his strong suit.

Sorry, but it's not at all clear that you aren't condoning it. There is no excuse for what he did. The end. You come back and say 'there's no excuse for what he did' without any other comments about how he didn't really mean to hurt anybody, or anything else, and it'll be clear that you aren't condoning it. Otherwise, with all due respect to your Laker's allegiance, or your longevity on the board, you're just condoning really bad and dangerous behavior.

[BballFanAddict]

Seriously? I have no dog in this fight. I would think you'd have to be a Laker or Artest fan to convince yourself that Artest's elbowing was unintentional. The fact is, no one hits someone as hard as Artest did and then just runs off without even turning around to see who he hit. You cannot deny this simple fact. And, it completely proves it was indeed intentional.

I'm not going to debate this too strenuously as, intentional or not, the end result was bad enough.

But I don't think it was intentional in the sense that Artest purposely sought Harden out to deliver a knock-out blow. I think he got caught up in the moment, felt some contact, and hit James way, way harder than he was expecting to. Roy Keane, former Manchester United star, used to refer to this as "the red mist descending." I.E., you get caught up in the moment and you lose control of yourself.

I recognize that's giving Ron a lot of benefit of the doubt, especially given his past. But I reserve that right as a Laker fan and somebody that likes Ron. I think it's pretty clear that I'm not condoning what he did. I just don't think it was a situation like, say, J.R. Reid some years back, where you could clearly see him lining up A.C. Green for a shot to the face and ended up knocking some teeth out.

That said, it's an unfortunate situation for all involved. I wish Ron had more self control, but as we've seen countless times over the years, that's not his strong suit.

I agree that Artest did not seek out Harden or anyone else with the intention of getting off a blow of the magnitude he did get off on Harden. With that said, it was indeed an intentional and deliberate swing of the elbow to "separate" himself from Harden. Moreover, the second he struck Harden he knew very well what just happened; you cannot connect that hard to a head with an elbow and not instantly know how hard that connection was. The replay did not show Artest lift his arms / elbows for separation, which is a normal action in that situation, it showed the deliberate and forceful cocking back of the elbow.

Of course, as mentioned prior, the most guilty part of Artest's action, with regards to intention, is the fact he never turned around and instead kept running.

I do again agree that it was an impulsive thing and not a premeditated one. I would compare it to Murder 1 or Murder 2 comparison. One is premeditated and the other is emotionally impulsive. Its also why I do not think Artest deserves a banning or a suspension greater than 5 games or so.