A federal judge ruled on Thursday that previously suspended Indiana Pacers forward Jermaine O'Neal did not have to serve the final 10 games of the suspension handed to him by the league Commissioner David Stern.
This ruling upholds the temporary decision U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels made last week, prior to the Pacers' Christmas Day matchup vs Detroit Pistons.
That decision, in turn, upheld the one made by arbitrator Roger Kaplan, who stated that penalty handed to O'Neal was too harsh, citing the player's "character, community involvement and citizenship." He had cut it to 15 games, down 10 from the one handed out by David Stern.
Kaplan upheld the penalties handed out to Ron Artest (remainder of season), Stephen Jackson (30 games), and Anthony Johnson (5 games) for their involvement in the November 19th brawl at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
The NBA then challenged Kaplan's authority to hear an appeal of Stern's punishment.
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Dec 30, 2004 12:38 AM EST
Jermaine O'Neal played like Wednesday's game might be his last...for 10 games. O'Neal will appear in court on Thursday as a judge will hear the NBA's appeal of his suspension reduction.
O'Neal's suspension was reduced by 10 games and if that decision is overturned, he will have to sit for those 10 games.
On Wednesday night in Charlotte, O'Neal had 24 points and 17 rebounds, as Indiana defeated the Bobcats by a final score of 74-71.
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The boost of Jermaine O'Neal's return to the Pacers' line-up wasn't enough for them to follow their previous victory over the Pistons with one on Christmas Day, losing 98-93.
O'Neal scored 21 points for Indiana.
Rip Hamilton was the high-scorer with 25 points for the Pistons.
``It was just a regular game, everybody playing the way they play,'' Pistons center Ben Wallace said. ``It wasn't like we were out there intimidated, not wanting to touch anybody because it might start a fight. We were out there to play basketball, and that's the way it should be.''
The Pacers fell behind by 8 heading into the 4th quarter and the Detroit lead was too great for Indiana to comeback from.
The game was played without incident, a huge relief to both teams involved, who have already gone through so much, as well as to the league, who have been deeply concerned with their image.
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Pacers Dec 2004 Archive
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Boston Herald | Dec 24, 2004
Sources say that the Hawks are making Antoine Walker available and a host of Eastern Conference teams are interested, including the Sixers, Celtics and Pacers.
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Foxsports.com | Dec 24, 2004
Larry Bird was shocked by the magnitude of the suspensions handed down to his Pacers players after the brawl in Detroit November 19th.
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The Miama Herald | Dec 24, 2004
This Chritmas Day, Kobe Bryant should expect to see a 7-foot-2-inch, 330lb present waiting for him underneath the hoop.
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ESPN | Dec 23, 2004
A judge ruled on Thursday that Jermaine O'Neal can play for the Indiana Pacers on Saturday against the Detroit Pistons.
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NBA.com | Dec 23, 2004
Going into Wednesday night's game against Indiana, Allen Iverson had scored 50+ points for two consecutive games.
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NBA.com | Dec 22, 2004
Arbitrator Roger Kaplan today issued a decision denying a challenge filed by the NBA Players Association to the NBA’s recent suspensions of Indiana’s Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson and Anthony Johnson.
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ESPN | Dec 22, 2004
Jermaine O'Neal's first game back with the Pacers will be on Christmas Day against the Detroit Pistons.
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SportsLine.com | Dec 21, 2004
Arbitrator Roger Kaplan said that he will rule within "the next couple of days" on appeals of suspensions issued to four Indiana Pacers players.
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FoxSports | Dec 21, 2004
Indiana Pacers G/F Jonathan Bender, has been diligent in his rehab from an injured right knee and reckons that he will return by the end of the month.
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Sportsline | Dec 21, 2004
Suits were filed on Monday against the Indiana Pacers and players Jermaine O'Neal and Anthony Johnson by a Detroit fan who was trespassing on the court.
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Indy Star | Dec 14, 2004
Austin Croshere will miss Tuesday's game in Atlanta.
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Pacers Official Website | Dec 13, 2004
Michael Curry, a 6-6 small forward from Georgia Southern University signed with the team today, and Tremaine Fowlkes was waived.
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Indianapolis Star | Dec 10, 2004
According to Mark Montieth of the Indianapolis Star the Pacers will again be without the services of starting point guard Jamaal Tinsley who will be sitting out his second consecutive game with a sprained right ankle.
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Indianapolis Star | Dec 10, 2004
Sekou Smith of the Indianapolis Tribune reports that arbitrator Roger Kaplan heard six hours of closed-door testimony Thursday in Manhattan during a grievance hearing in which the NBA players' union requested specific, "significant" reductions in the suspensions of Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson, Jermaine O'Neal and Anthony Johnson.
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Detroit Free-Press | Dec 9, 2004
Charges against both players and fans were announced on Wednesday, as were charges of who was most responsible for the brawl at the Palace several weeks ago.
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ESPN | Dec 8, 2004
As Artest, Jackson, Harrison, Johnson and O'Neal were charged, Europe was playing a Champions League soccer match in an empty stadium due to fans throwing objects at a referee.
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Indy Star | Dec 7, 2004
Jeff Foster, the Indiana Pacers center, will likely make his season debut on Tuesday, after spending the first 17 games recovering from preseason hip surgery.
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Sportsline | Dec 6, 2004
Jermaine O'Neal returned to Indiana's practice floor for the first time since the Pacers-Pistons brawl on Nov.
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SF Chronicle | Dec 5, 2004
Reggie Miller got off to a great start for the Indiana Pacers, scoring 23 points.
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Fox Sports | Dec 3, 2004
The Indiana Pacers will get one healthy body back in uniform for Saturday night's game at Golden State after activating the franchise's leading scorer Reggie Miller Friday.
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Sportsline | Dec 3, 2004
An arbitrator ruled Friday that he has jurisdiction to decide whether the brawl-related suspensions given to Ron Artest and other NBA players can be appealed to someone other than commissioner David Stern.
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nba.com | Dec 3, 2004
According to the league's official website nba.
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Indy Star | Dec 1, 2004
Marcus Haislip, could be in uniform on Wednesday for the Pacers, while Jamaal Tinsley, Austin Croshere and Scot Pollard are questionable.
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FoxSports.com | Dec 1, 2004
The Palace of Auburn Hills have sent letters to two fans involved in the brawl a few weeks ago during a Friday night game between the Pacers and Pistons.
