Thoughts on the Pistons-Pacers Brawl: I plan to think about this more in the next few days, but I wanted to put in some initial thoughts on the despicable scene that happened last night at the end of the Pistons-Pacers game in Detroit. You can watch the video on ESPN Motion or one of the countless times it will be shown on TV today.



To summarize, in the game's final minute and with Indiana holding a big lead, Ron Artest fouled Ben Wallace as he went in for a basket. The foul did not appear to be overly flagrant, but it was from behind and came with the Pacers holding an insurmountable lead. Wallace, obviously angry, responded by shoving Artest in the face. And while Artest initially walked away, this led to a fight between the teams, with benches clearing and fists flying.



This part of the altercation should result in no legal liability. This was part of the game and involved only players of the two teams. I am certain that NBA sanctions will be handed down, especially for the players that (1) left the bench and (2) threw punches. This scene hearkened back to the days of the 1970s, when the 'B' in NBA stood for brawl and fights among entire teams were common. The NBA cracked down hard after the horrific Rudy T incident (for those interested in learning more, I recommend John Feinstein's The Punch). Ever since, the NBA has leveled serious fines and suspensions for fighting, including mandatory suspensions for players leaving the bench.



But what happened next was even uglier. The brawl between the players died down and the teams looked ready to go back in and finish the last 45 seconds of the game. But, as Artest was lying on the scorer's table waiting for the action to resume, he was hit by a cup of beer thrown from the stands. He immediately leapt up and into the stands, throwing punches as he went. His teammate Stephen Jackson followed, also throwing punches. A number of other players leapt into the stands, most trying to break up the fight. After the players returned to the court, a fan came up to Artest, screaming at him. Artest punched the man in the face, knocking him down. When the man got up and charged at Artest, Pacer teammate Jermaine O'Neal punched the man again. Finally, as the Pacers left the floor, they were belted with beer, ice, popcorn and a chair.



Unreal. I don't even know where to begin.



I think I will start with the ESPN NBA announcers, including John Saunders, a man I have a good deal of respect for. I believe that their reaction to this situation, summarized here by Tim Legler, was repugnant. They immediately blamed the fans, calling them "punks" on multiple occasions. Yes, I agree that the behavior of fans was despicable and should lead, where applicable, to criminal charges and loss of season tickets. But not once did I hear the cardinal rule of professional sports: PLAYERS DO NOT GO INTO THE STANDS. There is a line between these million-dollar athletes and the fans that pay their salaries, and this line should never be crossed. It was juvenile and even dangerous for the fan to throw a cup at Ron Artest. And he had every right to be livid. But he had no right to go into the stands. Move to the center of the court to avoid getting hit. Call over the arena security and have the man arrested. Yell at him and say some choice words about his mother. But DO NOT go into the stands.



The reasons for this are almost too many to name. NBA players are some of the biggest and strongest men in the world -- they could do some serious damage to the person responsible, or more likely, an innocent bystander. That is what happened to Rudy T -- he was running in to break up the fight and he ended up paying for it with his career. From the other angle, security at arenas is incredibly lax. Who knows what weapon -- a switchblade or even a gun -- some drunk fan has in the stands? Players are safe on the court; they are not safe surrounded by a bunch of drunk fans not in their right state of mind. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the line between player and fan must not be crossed. Fans must remain in the stands, players must remain on the court. And heavy punishments is the only way to ensure that this happens.



For Artest, Jackson and any other player who went into the stands and threw a punch, the league suspension should be among the longest in history. The suspensions should be unpaid. And the league should make perfectly clear that any other player who goes into the stands will be suspended for at least a month, if not longer. Send a message.



The league must act now, or it runs the great risk of an even more horrible situation occurring. If the only response is a slap on the wrist, this will happen again. And the next time, a fan could be crippled. Or a player could be stabbed. Someone could even be killed. Sadly, in many instances it takes a major injury of some sort for changes to be made -- again, see the Rudy T tragedy. But the league should know better, and should act now so that this never happens again. Other leagues should issue similar statements, especially baseball, which recently faced the Frank Francisco incident and is the only other professional sport where fans are so close to players.



From the team side, the Pistons should follow the example of the New York Giants a few years back. In what became a famous game, Giants fans responded to bad calls and some questionable hits by throwing snowballs, some containing rocks or batteries, down on the field at the opposing team. The team not only had fans arrested, but cancelled the season tickets of any fan caught on camera throwing a snow ball. With the lengthy waiting list for Giants season tickets, this proved to be a tough, and appropriate, punishment. The Pistons front office should do the same. Any fan caught on camera throwing something at a player or any fan that came onto the court should have their season tickets cancelled and, if possible, should be banned from the arena for the rest of the year. And, of course, the Pistons should step up their security at all future games.



So what about legal liability? I plan to look further into past cases of fan vs. player. In the most recent case, charges were not pressed against Rangers pitcher Frank Francisco, who threw a chair at an Oakland fan. But this does not mean that they could not have and I believe the civil lawsuit is still ongoing.



The players have the most to lose. As fellow NBA player Quentin Richardson said, "Man there are going to be some lawsuits. You don't think some of those fans aren't going to want some NBA money?" I expect civil lawsuits to be filed against any fan that was struck in the melee. And these cases have some merit, especially for those fans in the stands. You cannot punch another person merely for throwing a cup of beer at you. There was no way Artest was in any danger on the court or had to act in self-defense. Obviously, the judge or jury will look to laws of contributory or comparative negligence (I will check on Michigan tort law) when assessing liability, but some fans may have a case.



Even the fan that was punched on the court might have a case. His is tougher because (1) he was criminally trespassing and (2) he was going after Artest. But Artest will have a tough time claiming self-defense. From all reports, the man was not running at Artest, brandishing any type of weapon or physically threatening the player. Artest is 6' 7" and weighs 250 pounds -- he will have trouble convincing many that he was fearful of bodily injury. The fan may have a tougher case against O'Neal, who seems to have been protecting his teammate from the now charging fan. But again, the fact that the fan was on the court will severely hurt his case.



Criminally, this fan should be charged with trespassing. Just as the league must keep players out of the stands, fans must remain off the court. Criminal charges could also be filed against the fans throwing objects or throwing punches. But, if any fans are charged for their participation in the brawl, so too should the players. They are just as culpable and were just as involved. If this was a bar, citations would have been handed out. I see no reason why they should not be handed out here.



I think I have covered most of the legal bases -- but I will be thinking about this more and possibly adding more thoughts.



There are a number of different avenues the league, the team and the arena can take in this matter -- both legally and internally. Unlike in the past, I hope that all act with extreme prejudice and hand out punishments that will deter anything like this from happening ever again. Because the next fight could have results much more tragic than just a few black eyes.

Maybe Murray Chass reads this blog... ...or maybe it's just that great minds think alike.

This is what Canadians do when there is no hockey: Distraught Saskatchewan Roughrider fans vandalized the house of the team's kicker after he missed an 18-yard field goal that would have won the game. Instead, his team lost the conference final and is done for the year.



If hockey was going on, would anyone have even been watching this game?



His excuse: the laces were in!

Baseball in DC: An Update: An arbitration panel has ruled against 14 former limited partners of the Expos baseball team, paving the way for the team to move to Washington, DC.



But what about the stadium? The move is contingent upon the District approving a stadium financing plan by December 31. After initial good news, the DC Council has since balked at the rising cost estimates, and public opposition to public funding. The Council has also refused to endorse a private financing plan, because it would require the District to re-open negotiations with Major League Baseball.



Do ballparks reinvigorate the area, leading to the economic boom often used to justify the use of public funds? The results are at best unclear. In New York, this columnist takes issue with "greedy billionaires" asking for hand-outs when schoolchildren have no gyms. But, as the new Clinton library in Little Rock shows, publicly-built structures can breathe life and pride into a community.



Where does this leave DC? In a fight that may take several months to resolve. Where does this leave the Expos? In limbo, but sadly, this is nothing new for the red-headed step child of baseball franchises.

Member of OU Spirit Group 'Attacked' by Husker Player: A member of the Ruf/Nek spirit group at Oklahoma claims that a Husker player charged him and hit him with his helmet before Saturday's game. His injuries were extensive, including losing teeth and requiring oral surgery, and so he has decided to press charges against the player.



Nebraska coach Bill Callahan issued a statement apologizing for the incident, but wondering why the spirit group was so close to the players to begin with. Perhaps Callahan should worry more about his team's woeful play and the fact that his lineman are attacking the opposing fans with more fury than the opposing players.

ABC Criticized over 'Desperate' Lead-In: The NFL issued a public criticism of ABC today for its lead-in to last night's Monday Night Football telecast. The intro featured a star of Desperate Housewives, the network's new prime-time soap opera. The woman, who was wearing only a towel, attempted to seduce Eagles' star Terrell Owens. When unsuccessful, she dropped the towel and T.O. agreed to stay put. Of course, nothing was shown but the implication was clear.



To be honest, I don't know what the NFL was so concerned with. The lead-in took place at 9:01 pm EST. There wasn't anyone under the age of 10 up to see it (or any other part of the game) anyway.

Two Doping Articles: One is funny and the other is not. From the Wall Street Journal (sorry, no link available, but it is from the November 11 paper):

CHELTENHAM, England -- After rocking the worlds of cycling and track and field, the scourge of doping is ruffling feathers in another athletic endeavor: pigeon racing. Gifted with uncanny navigation skills, pigeons have been used to carry messages for centuries. In the early 1800s, people in northern France started racing them. Half a century later, pigeon contests took off in Britain and became the poor man's horse racing. Today the country boasts 50,000 "fanciers," as pigeon trainers are called, and some three million specially bred racing pigeons.



But a pall has been cast on the venerable sport. In Belgium, where the pastime is also popular, scores of pigeons have tested positive for steroids. A number of fanciers have been suspended since the Ministry of Health imposed drug testing in 1995 out of concern for the birds' welfare. In 2001, Belgian police raided 80 homes of breeders and feed-and-medicine suppliers, confiscating large quantities of illegal products that were being used to goose performances.



Until recently, no one had raised questions about the sport in Britain. But a series of sensational race results by fanciers here has sparked grousing that some are feeding their pigeons more than grain.



The 107-year-old Royal Pigeon Racing Association, which is based in this scenic region of western England and counts Queen Elizabeth II among its members, instituted random drug testing in July. The substances banned in the RPRA's 2004 rulebook read like a list of drugs outlawed at the Olympic Games: anabolic steroids, beta-agonists, corticosteroids, opiates, analgesics and synthetic hormones, among others.



So far, the RPRA's 40 tests have all come back negative. But some of the country's top fanciers nevertheless remain under a cloud of suspicion. Among the rumors flying: They are using new drugs that can't be detected, or the drugs have left the pigeons' systems by the time tests are administered. The successful fanciers reply that the doping allegations are sour grapes from jealous rivals.

The other article, sadly, is about Jerome Young, an American sprinter who was banned for life from competition after his second positive test for a banned substance. The ban could also have an affect on the gold medal won by the Young's relay team in Sydney.