Pacers-Pistons Brawl (aka The Malice at the Palace)

I'm not defending Artest, but for almost the entire episode on Friday, Artest was a model of restraint; for Artest anyway. After being shoved in the neck and face by Ben Wallace, he resisted the urge to retaliate. The old, out-of-control Artest I've seen in the past would've lost it right there and went toe-to-toe with Wallace. Instead, he retreated to the scorer's table, laid down and waited for the refs to work things out. When Wallace later threw a towel his direction, clearly trying to provoke Artest, he didn't flinch.

It wasn't until a cup landed on his chest that Artest lost it. By now you've seen the video a hundred times. Artest bolted off the scorer's table and headed into the stands. Pacers sources claim Artest saw the fan throw the cup. Pistons sources say the tape clearly shows Artest actually got the wrong guy.

Artest didn't punch the fan or pummel him into a bloody pulp, as more creative columnists have suggested. He grabbed Ryan, manhandled him and asked him if he did it. The fan, in his own words, corroborates this.

"He asked me, 'Did you do it?' " the fan, Mike Ryan of Clarkston, Mich., told the Associated Press. "I said, 'No, man. No!' "

And it appears that after a few seconds, Artest let go and moved on to confront a number of other fans that were now taking their own shots at him. That doesn't sound like a guy totally out-of-control.

The next time the video gives us a good look at Artest, he's back on the court, trying to make his way to the locker room. Another fan moves onto the court and makes a threatening move toward Artest. Ron throws a haymaker at the guy before backing off. Again, Artest didn't beat him to a pulp. His teammates did that for him.

In fact, you can argue what O'Neal and Jackson did was worse. Though each claims they were coming to the defense of their teammate, both were clearly out of control. Jackson was swinging wildly at everyone. O'Neal cold-cocked a guy in the jaw who already was getting off his knees and looking the other way. I don't know how you call what they did "defense."

The argument that the fan was on the court and thus had it coming won't hold up so well in court. Only Artest really had the right to defend himself against that person.

However, you also could argue that O'Neal did less than Artest. He didn't leave the court. The only fan he hit was a guy who was on the court, messing with a teammate. Anthony Johnson hit the same fan in the face before O'Neal did. Johnson got five games. O'Neal got 25.

Still, Artest paid the ultimate price, primarily because he's Ron Artest. Stern admitted on Sunday that Artest's history played a part in the decision to suspend him for the season.

Artest has proven too many times his judgment is poor. In this case, his decision to run into the stands, no matter how much he was provoked, incited a riot. It was a stupid, stupid decision. Nothing good can ever come from a player running into the stands.

But suspended for the season? I'm all for tough love. But the time doesn't fit the crime; this time.

Look in the mirror this morning and ask yourself if there isn't a little bit of Ron Artest in all of us? On many nights, the crowds behind the visiting team's bench resemble the studio audience at the Jerry Springer show.

Wikipedia Pacers-Pistons Brawl Link