Davis, worried for wife, enters seats to confront fanESPN.com news services
CHICAGO -- Antonio Davis thought his wife was in danger, so the New York Knicks forward dashed over the scorer's table and into the stands during a timeout in overtime.
How it might play out
The NBA will announce a penalty for Antonio Davis before the New York Knicks play host to the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night, but not necessarily the whole penalty.
If the league office has not reached a final ruling before the scheduled 8 p.m. tipoff of the New York-Detroit game, one option in such cases is assessing a one-game suspension to prevent Davis from playing for the Knicks while Wednesday night's incident in Chicago is under review. That would give the security staff under NBA vice president Stu Jackson more time to investigate Davis' claim that his wife was "being threatened" by a nearby fan at the United Center.
Davis, meanwhile, initiated contact with the league office on Thursday morning to explain his actions, according to sources close to the 12-year veteran. Davis is president of the NBA Players Association and could meet with commissioner David Stern later Thursday.
For each game Davis is suspended, he would forfeit $126,045.45 in salary.
-- Marc Stein
Just like that, an already heated game between the Knicks and Chicago Bulls evoked memories of last season's brawl between the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers.
One difference, though.
Only words, not punches, were exchanged.
"I witnessed my wife being threatened by a man that I learned later to be intoxicated," Davis said in a statement issued after the game. "I saw him touch her, and I know I should not have acted the way I did, but I would have felt terrible if I didn't react. There was no time to call security. It happened too quickly."
Ben Gordon hit a game-winning jumper at the buzzer and scored 32 points for the Bulls in a 106-104 overtime victory Wednesday, but Davis' dash into the stands became the flash point of the game.
Davis ascended about 10 rows to reach his wife, Kendra, during a timeout with 1:04 left. There was no physical confrontation after he got there, but several people were pointing and shouting for a few moments before security arrived.
No arrests had been made as of early Thursday morning, police said.
The Knicks host the Pistons on Thursday night, and it has not yet been determined if Davis will be available. An NBA spokesman said the league was just beginning to look into the matter, but that any decision on a penalty is usually made before the team plays its next game.
"His wife and kids were up there," Knicks guard Jamal Crawford said. "If you see your family in harm's way, you're going to go protect them. You're the man of the house, and at that point you're thinking like a regular human instead of an athlete."
Davis, president of the NBA players' association, appeared calm throughout and walked away willingly when security arrived. He returned to the bench and took his seat before being ejected. The game resumed after about a five-minute delay.
United Center security remained in the stands for a few more minutes, and other fans appeared to be explaining what they had seen. Guards in suits and yellow jackets then escorted a group of people from the area.
The Bulls said in a statement that the situation was under control.
"At every sporting event in every venue in the world there is banter going back and forth between fans with different rooting interests. What made this a story was Antonio going into the stands. And by the time he got there United Center security was already on the scene taking care of the matter."
Knicks coach Larry Brown said Davis went into the stands because he saw his wife "falling back."
Brown was coaching the Pistons in November 2004 when an ugly fight broke out in the stands between fans and Indiana Pacers players during a Detroit home game. An embarrassment for the NBA, the brawl led to criminal charges and lengthy suspensions for Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson.
But Brown was adamant that this situation should be viewed differently.
"Come on, that's his wife," Brown said. "That's entirely different. I was worried about Kendra. That's why he went in the stands, he saw her falling back.
"That thing that happened in the stands had nothing to do with the two teams. That's a man concerned about his family."
Knicks forward Maurice Taylor added: "His wife was up there with his kids. There were two men up there getting into an altercation with them. It seemed like a no-brainer to me."
