NBA suspends Knicks' Davis five games
Forward entered stands to protect wife; fan plans to sue for $1 million-plus
 Jeff Roberson / AP The Knicks' Antonio Davis enters the stands in Chicago on Wednesday night after believing a fan was harassing his wife Kendra. |
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CHICAGO - Knicks forward Antonio Davis was suspended five games by the NBA on Thursday for entering the stands during a game in Chicago to confront a fan he thought was harassing his wife.
While the penalty showed the NBA accepted Davis’ argument that he believed his wife was in trouble during Wednesday night’s game, it also made clear that entering the stands would not be tolerated, no matter the circumstances.
Especially not after last season’s ugly brawl between fans and players at an Indiana-Detroit game.
“At the end of the day, what we had to decide on was the issue of Antonio breaking the barrier from the court into the stands,” NBA vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson said during a conference call. “At the end of the day, that was the most important aspect of making that decision.”
The trouble for Davis and his wife, however, might not be over.
Michael Axelrod, the 22-year-old fan that Davis confronted, said he did nothing wrong — and he plans to sue the player and his wife. Axelrod said Kendra Davis tried to scratch him after he protested a call. He said he never laid a hand on her and he was not drunk, as the New York forward contended.
“It’s a lie,” Axelrod said.
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Davis’ suspension began with Thursday night’s 105-79 home loss to Detroit. The Knicks, also playing without injured Stephon Marbury, matched their worst defeat of the season.
“I know how much those two guys mean to us but we had some guys that simply didn’t compete,” Knicks coach Larry Brown said.
The players’ union plans to file a grievance to commissioner David Stern. The Pistons were the home team the last time players went into the stands — when Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson fought with fans in November.
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“It’s a totally different situation,” said ex-Pacers star Reggie Miller, Davis’ former teammate. “It was mayhem. He’s coming to defense of a loved one. Ours was craziness.”
The league was not nearly as harsh in this instance.
“Certainly the message was very clear after the Nov. 19 incident in that it was clear to our players that they were not to enter the stands under any circumstances,” Jackson said. “Certainly this suspension is evident to the fact that we’re very serious about that declaration. We realize there were some mitigating circumstances and we did in fact take that into account.”
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“I could understand the league’s point of view, but I’d like to put Stu Jackson or David Stern or one of those guys in that situation and see how they would have reacted,” Brown said. “I’m amazed at the restraint he had.”
Hunter said he thought a fine would have been enough, or at most a two-game ban. Hunter said the five-game penalty would cost Davis “close to $700,000.”
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