Antonio Davis goes into the stands...

[HooverDam]

I shall again come to Ospreys defense. All of you are flat out wrong and being awfully silly. You aren't all Don Quixote's who must save some fair maidens honor as much as you'd like to think you are.

If you look at the video, the arena staff was already handling it. It may have been an usher (Im not sure I was watching it @ a sports bar and didnt have any sound), but it was a man in a suit w/ a walkie talkie.

Some have said Davis wasn't being aggressive, but thats horse crap. Tell me whats not aggressive about a huge athletic man jumping a scorers table, and running up into the stands. A fan couldve easily been afraid and slugged him, pushed him or something.Obviously, a person would be a fool to do this, but I could see it happening. Going into the stands can cause NOTHING but a problem. Lets look at the potential outcomes:

1. He doesnt go into the stands, but rather screams, yells and points, and gets security on the situation. Now, there was already arena staff there, so the situation was well in hand. It was OBVIOUSLY nothing more than a verbal spat anyway. The worst thing that can happen if he does this is MAYBE, (very small chance) someone pushes his wife. No, there is already an arena official there to prevent this so its doubtful.

OR:

2. He does what he did, and either A. What did happen occurs, which is, no big incident, other than probably scaring the hell out of the first 10 rows. or B, someone gets a little trigger happy, shoves him, pours beer on him, etc etc....and now we have a Detroit/Indiana situation on our hands.

Its a cost-benefit analysis, the benefit of going into the stands does not out way the cost.

 

[elindholm]

You aren't all Don Quixote's who must save some fair maidens honor as much as you'd like to think you are.

The fact that you can't identify any middle ground between your position and that of a macho knight gallant shows that you really don't understand the situation.

Tell me whats not aggressive about a huge athletic man jumping a scorers table, and running up into the stands.

He jumped up on the scorer's table because that was simpler than climbing over it. He walked slowly into the stands.

If he's "intimidating" because he's big and athletic, that's the way it goes. It doesn't disqualify him from being a human being. You're getting close to the Bernard Goetz argument of "If I'm scared of this guy, it's his fault."

Is Davis held to a different set of rules because he's big and (gasp) black? If it had been Nash, would that make it okay?

It was OBVIOUSLY nothing more than a verbal spat anyway.

It wasn't obvious to him. You're presupposing that Davis is an unthinking monster, then criticizing him for trying to figure out what was going on.

Again, reports are that his wife is something of a loudmouth, and Davis has been in the league a long time. Why did this never happen before? OBVIOUSLY because Davis thought that this situation was different from the previous thousand times.

2. He does what he did, and either A. What did happen occurs, which is, no big incident, other than probably scaring the hell out of the first 10 rows. or B, someone gets a little trigger happy, shoves him, pours beer on him, etc etc....and now we have a Detroit/Indiana situation on our hands.

A. It wouldn't have bothered me had I been in the first 10 rows. Davis appeared calm, and I'm not afraid of people because they look different from me. I might have been afraid of the drunk guy causing a ruckus behind me, though.

B. Why would Davis have retaliated if someone had shoved him? He was checking on his family. The guy gets shoved for a living; when his mind is focused on his wife and children, he's not going to let some twerp with a beer distract him.

 

[HooverDam]

It has NOTHING to do with the fact that he's black, but nice try! Thanks for playing. I dont care what color he is. I've been to a lot of sporting events, and if a player jumps into the stands, I could see how people would be frightened. Its just not something you expect.

All you people defending him are still missing the point, what GOOD can come from him doing this? Absolutely none. The best that can happen is, he ensures his wife doesn't get hurt, well that couldve been done by pointing, yelling, etc etc. Like I said, there was already someone there taking care of the situation.

I would even be willing to give Davis a chance if he tried ANYTHING first and then did what he did, but he didn't. He just jumped right into the stands. He didnt point, he didnt yell, or anything!

Finally, DO NOT tell me that if someone threw a beer, shoved him, etc that he wouldnt do anything and he would keep charging towards his wife like a mindless automaton on a mission. First off, you don't know the guy (neither do I obviously), but he was obviously upset and when peoples emotions are going, they are likely to do much of anything. He could've easily flipped out if someone did something to annoy him.

Fans should feel safe at the games, and so should players families. If its been known for a long time that his wife has problems, 1. Davis should talk to her, 2. The team should talk to them as a couple, and if they cant figure something out, maybe they should consider trying to have her only at home games (though I am certainly not advocating this restriction of her freedom as anything but a last resort).

Davis' actions only turned a small every day spat into something much bigger than it needed to be.

Lets put it the other way around. Lets say a WNBA player is on the court, she's a smallish point guard, she gets into a skirmish with a big tough center. Maybe it devolves into a fight (or maybe it doesnt, but it seems like its headed that way), as we've seen in many a sports fight, the refs often lose control and just have to wait these things out. If that WNBA guard has a big protective husband in the first few rows, is it ok for him to hop onto the court and run in and "save" her? After all its his marital duty!

 

[Southpaw]

Davis penalty justified in game of truth, consequences

January 20, 2006

BY JOHN JACKSON SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST
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As a general rule, I'm opposed to zero-tolerance policies and believe they mostly result in zero thought being given to complex issues.

But in the case of New York Knicks forward (and former Bull) Antonio Davis charging into the United Center stands to protect his wife Wednesday night, I believe NBA commissioner David Stern had to confirm the league's zero-tolerance policy concerning players entering the stands.

The league office announced Thursday that Davis has been suspended for five games starting with Thursday night's home game against the Detroit Pistons. Davis, who is making nearly $14 million this season, will lose roughly $845,122 in salary.

A harsh punishment? Absolutely.

A fair penalty? Definitely.

Actually, Davis is fortunate he didn't receive a longer suspension. Had any sort of physical, or even verbal, altercation taken place, he likely would have been looking at a suspension in double digits.

And it wouldn't have taken much for the situation to turn ugly -- which is precisely why the NBA's zero-tolerance policy is justified and necessary.

''We have made it plain to our players and our fans that players may not enter the spectator stands, no matter the provocation, and that violations of this policy will be treated with the utmost seriousness,'' said Stu Jackson, the league's senior vice president of basketball operations.

''We have concluded, however, that Antonio's actions were the result of his belief that his family members required his immediate assistance, and have taken those mitigating circumstances into account in setting the length of the suspension.''

Jackson made it clear that the typical suspension for entering the stands is ''double-digit games.''

''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,'' Jackson said. ''At the end of the day, that was the most important aspect of making that decision.''

Judgment from the league office was swift and that probably is a good thing for Davis -- especially if it turns out that his wife, Kendra, wasn't touched or threatened, as he contends.

I won't pretend to know precisely what happened, but the fan said Thursday that he never touched Kendra Davis and she was the one who provoked the incident.

Michael Axelrod, 22, said he wasn't intoxicated -- as Antonio Davis claimed in a statement immediately after the game -- and was simply booing an official's call when Kendra Davis, sitting two rows in front of him, got up and yelled at him to be quiet. He also contends that the only physical contact between the two came when she put both of her hands on his face.

After security arrived and Davis exited the stands, Axelrod said he was escorted to the concourse by security, but wasn't ejected and stuck around to see Bulls guard Ben Gordon's game-winning shot.

Who's telling the truth? There are conflicting eyewitness accounts, so your guess is as good as mine. Axelrod, though, does sound credible -- even though he and his lawyer (big surprise) threatened to sue Davis and his wife for $1 million.

Axelrod's father, David, is a prominent Democratic political consultant in Chicago who has worked with Mayor Daley, Sen. Barack Obama (D.-Ill.) and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D.-N.Y.).

As for Kendra Davis, she may have a credibility hurdle to clear. During the 2001 playoffs, she got into a verbal exchange with Latrell Sprewell (who didn't know who she was at that moment) during a game and was caught on camera Wednesday night leaning over to yell at and touch Axelrod.

Also, Antonio Davis' contention that he had to react because there was no time to get security was undercut by teammate Maurice Taylor, who said Davis told him the incident had been going on for ''a trip and a half'' up and down the court.

Oh, really? If that's the case, why didn't Davis immediately alert security as soon as the timeout was called?

If anybody, Davis -- a 12-year veteran and the president of the National Basketball Players Association -- should have learned the lesson from the ugly incident at the Palace of Auburn Hills in November 2004 that players can't enter the stands under any circumstances.

While five games is a stiff sentence, he's lucky it wasn't longer.

[email protected]

 

[boisesuns]

All you people defending him are still missing the point, what GOOD can come from him doing this? Absolutely none. The best that can happen is, he ensures his wife doesn't get hurt,

If his wife doesn't get hurt, then that's sounds like GOOD to me. There could be two sides to this as long as we are speculating. Davis could have gone crazy and hit some fans, but he could have come up there, and stopped his wife from being hit.

I would even be willing to give Davis a chance if he tried ANYTHING first and then did what he did, but he didn't. He just jumped right into the stands. He didnt point, he didnt yell, or anything!

His quote stated that he said secutity wouldn't of had time to get there.

Finally, DO NOT tell me that if someone threw a beer, shoved him, etc that he wouldnt do anything and he would keep charging towards his wife like a mindless automaton on a mission. First off, you don't know the guy (neither do I obviously), but he was obviously upset and when peoples emotions are going, they are likely to do much of anything. He could've easily flipped out if someone did something to annoy him.

I Agree, it defantly could have got worse, but it didn't. I don't know Davis, but he is the president of the NBAPA, and he was right in the middle of the dealing with the Brawl last year. I'm sure that went through his mind when he went up there. I bet he still would have gottent he same suspension if he went in the stands, then turned around right away. It's good that nothing worse happened, and Davis despite going into the stands hadled the situation well. Was it wrong to go in the stands? YES.

Fans should feel safe at the games, and so should players families. If its been known for a long time that his wife has problems, 1. Davis should talk to her, 2. The team should talk to them as a couple, and if they cant figure something out, maybe they should consider trying to have her only at home games (though I am certainly not advocating this restriction of her freedom as anything but a last resort).

I wonder about some of the reports about his wife. I saw another video and she seemed to be pretty confrontational. Whether is was becuase she was messed with, I don't know.

Davis' actions only turned a small every day spat into something much bigger than it needed to be.

It also could have possible prevented something bigger than what happened. You have to look at both sides.

Lets put it the other way around. Lets say a WNBA player is on the court, she's a smallish point guard, she gets into a skirmish with a big tough center. Maybe it devolves into a fight (or maybe it doesnt, but it seems like its headed that way), as we've seen in many a sports fight, the refs often lose control and just have to wait these things out. If that WNBA guard has a big protective husband in the first few rows, is it ok for him to hop onto the court and run in and "save" her? After all its his marital duty!

In this case I say he would have to come save her, becuase there is usually no one at WNBA games

I want to make it clear that i'm not attacking you hoover. I just wanted to respond to your post. If some Old lady was being mugged in the stands, Davis might feel differently about it. But when it's family it's another story. It was poor judgement to go into the stands and it always is, but there wasn't a second thought for Davis about protecting his family. I respect him for that, but he deserves the suspension.

 

[newfan101]

For my two cents, I agree 100% with Eric on this one. I despise the typical "act like a man," macho bravado crap, but that's not what appeared to be driving Davis. I'd explain further but Eric crystallized it perfectly so there's no need to go on.

That said, I also agree 100% with the NBA's decision to suspend him. It's harsh, it's unfair, and in this specific case, it's wrong. However, they just can't afford to set a precedent that allows a player going into the stands to be an interpretable offense. More often than not, a player going into the stands will result in violence, so by saying it is justified under certain conditions opens up a huge can of worms. Fans who want to provoke a player will seek out the players family members; players who want to get back at a fan will say they saw someone being threatened ... etc. This is also needed to protect the players, as Davis is now likely to be sued by this fan.

The ultimate lesson learned is that Davis should remind his wife to keep to herself during the game, no matter how obnoxious a fan gets. Nothing good can come from choosing to get into it with a fan within eyeshot of your husband.

 

[boisesuns]

A little more on Davis's Wife

Report: Davis' wife says she's glad husband came to her aid BY DAVE GOLDINERNew York Daily NewsNEW YORK -
Kendra Davis stood by her man on Thursday, even as the NBA came down hard on him. The wife of Knicks forward Antonio Davis said he was 100 percent right to rush into the stands to defend her against what she called foulmouthed, drunken fans during a game with the Chicago Bulls.

"It was probably good that he came up," Kendra Davis, 35, told the New York Daily News at the family's suburban home outside Chicago. "People around us didn't like to hear that kind of language." Davis was suspended for five games for violating strict league rules against entering the stands. "We knew there would be some consequences to his actions, whether he deserved them or not," Kendra Davis said.

Accounts differ over what precipitated the fracas Wednesday night at Chicago's United Center; one of the Bulls fans involved so vehemently disputed Davis' account that he announced plans to sue the Davises for $1 million.

The former beauty queen - who is no stranger to controversy - says the fans cursed her out and even grabbed her wrist in front of their 10-year-old twins, Kaela and Antonio Jr. (A.J.).

"There was a lot of finger-pointing," she said. "Maybe he thought I was going to slap him because he knew that's the kind of language you get slapped for."

"At one point, they grabbed my mom," said Kaela Davis, 10, at their home.

Antonio Davis, 37, a soft-spoken power forward who is president of the NBA players' union, was kicked out of the game. The suspension was announced before Thursday night's home game against the Detroit Pistons.
But Bulls fan Michael Axelrod, 22, emphatically disputed Kendra Davis' account and said she scratched his face after he loudly protested a referee's call.

Chicago cops said they didn't take any action against either Davis or Axelrod, the son of prominent Democratic strategist David Axelrod.

"I don't think there was anything criminal here at all," said police spokesman Pat Camden.

It was the first time an NBA player has entered the stands during a game since the infamous brawl between members of the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons fans on Nov. 19, 2004.

Kendra Davis said she went to the game with her children and at least 10 members of her daughter's basketball team, which Antonio Davis coaches.
The kids were standing late in the game when a fan yelled at them to sit down. Another fan yelled a vulgar reference to the female anatomy at Kendra Davis, sparking the standoff, she said.

"You see a lot and you hear a lot from the fans," said Kendra Davis, a slender woman who wore jeans and a lime-green shirt on Thursday. "But I don't think it needs to get personal and name-calling when my kids are right there.
"There are just a few knuckleheads out there, like anywhere," she added.

Kendra Davis said it was ironic that her husband was punished for the incident because he was only trying to be a peacemaker.
"If you're at work in an office and see your husband or wife in an altercation, you get out of your desk and go help," she said. "That's what happened."

Even though she is beautiful, smart and outspoken, Kendra Davis has certainly courted controversy. Unlike most players' wives, she has played an unusually prominent role in Davis' hoops career and once raised hackles in Toronto when she suggested that the couple's twin children should grow up "in America."

During a playoff game while Davis played for the Toronto Raptors, she got into an angry shouting match with Latrell Sprewell.
She pushed for her husband to sign with her hometown Bulls and returned to Chicago with the twins because she wasn't happy with the children going to Canadian schools.

Toronto Sun columnist Steve Simmons said Kendra Davis left rambling, obscenity-peppered voice mails when she disliked his stories.
"It's not totally surprising she was involved in this kind of incident," Simmons said.

 

[Southpaw]

kENDRA has issues and a history. She just cost her husband about $ 2 million . An anger management session and a skybox would be a lot cheaper.

Divorce court.

 

[MigratingOsprey]

i agree wally

i still like how everyone falls back to "davis said there wasn't enough time" or "davis said she was getting pushed around" "or security couldn't get there"

what do you expect him to say?!?!

the fact is that security was there, his own teamates have spoken that he knew about this situation going into the timeout and didn't even attempt to let security do their job and when the situation broke out security was waiting for him at the scene

people over reacting and not being able to accurately read a situation cause a ton of problems in this world and the bottom line remains that there was no possible positive outcome

 

[Yuma]

people over reacting and not being able to accurately read a situation cause a ton of problems in this world and the bottom line remains that there was no possible positive outcome

That's the only part of your comment I disagree with. Everything turned out with a peaceful outcome. She wasn't beat down. There's no riot as you and others said could happen. Noone hit Antonio, Antonio didn't hit anyone. The incident reinforced to other players not to leave the court, although I still continue to see it happen in games without guys getting fined. (On the way to locker rooms I've seen guys go up in the stands to talk to people, I've seen guys run up the steps to give souveneirs to kids and other fans, I've seen guys go after a ball, then wander around high fiving and shaking hands with fans, etc.) So in essence there WAS a positive outcome. So obviously there was a possible positive outcome.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Wow, yesterday this was a pretty meaningless thread, today it is just booming, I missed some pretty good arguments.

you don't go into the stands, especially under that circumstance

the fact that it wasn't confrontational shows further there was no need for him to be there

i'm also secure enough that I don't feel the need to go running into bad situations

I would of ran in front of the section, yelled for security, yelled at the guy and given security a chance to do their jobs

Davis can't quite do that, can he?


This the one that cracked me up the most:

once again I am married and I'd go to protect about anyone in real danger (not just my wife).

Just not in this case, right?


I do not necessarily think that he does not deserve to be suspended, however, leaving the bench area usually is a one game suspension and would have been, if the Detroit brawl would have happened?

What if Davis saw his wife, or anyone else for that matter in the stands choking and gave them the heimlich or performed CPR on someone? Should he still get a 5 game suspension? I say no, while others and David Stern says yes.

 

[elindholm]

I guess the 10-year-old girl is lying, since it's "obvious" that no one touched Davis's wife.

It all boils down to what our experiences are with people whose job it is to protect us. I would guess that Osprey and Hoover have good faith in law enforcement. I personally don't. I've never been in trouble with the law, but I don't trust policemen. Their judgment is poor, they never seem to be in the right place at the right time, and they're dangerous.

Many years ago I was in the lobby of a large airport somewhere, maybe Chicago, and some maniac entered the terminal shouting and waving a gun around. Most of the passengers took note of him immediately, got the hell away, and tried to figure out what he was going to do next. But it was 30 seconds, maybe more, before any of the security people in the same room bothered to go over and calm the guy down.

On the Los Angeles freeways, people drive like idiots, increasing the risk for everyone on the road. Sometimes they swerve directly around police cars at 80 miles an hour. The highway patrolmen ignore them.

Oh, but I can tell you what security personnel are good at. They're good at preventing me from slowing down at the airport curbside long enough to figure out whether the person I'm picking up is there. The rule is that we're permitted to stop to pick up a passenger, but no, that's not good enough for them. I have to go at least five miles an hour and hope to spot my target between the throngs of people.

Now, I'm a white male who has lived in upper middle class suburbs his whole life. I think it's safe to say that, as skeptical as I am about whether security personnel are interested in helping me -- or even qualified to do so -- Davis's experiences have probably been much worse.

So now we have a guy with a wife who's a loose cannon, and she seems to have gotten herself into trouble to a degree that has never happened before in his long career. Maybe it's her fault and maybe it's someone else's, but the bottom line is the situation looks bad. To ask him to think, "Hmm, I guess I'll trust security this time, even though no white dude with a badge has ever helped me before in my life" is preposterous.

 

[MigratingOsprey]

huh?!

it's a timeout and yes he could of went down the sideline and pointed it out

he could of broken play when he first say it happening and pointed it out

you only get a suspension for leaving the bench area if there is an on court altercation going on

 

[MigratingOsprey]

actually I really don't like or trust policemen ... i think 85% of them are hypocritical AHoles

and as I continue to say - i can understand why he did it - i'm just saying in this instance it wasn't necessary and he should be suspended for it - all he did was make the situation potentially worse

and although no physical harm came to anyone it has had a bad impact - it's a national story, his wife is being portrayed in a negative light, he may have to deal with a nuisance law suit and he'll be forever known for this incident

all of which easily could of been avoided

 

[Yuma]

WARNING:

Watching those replays, Kendra Davis has one rockin' booty! Way to go Antonio! I'd go up in the stands for that!

 

[Chaplin]

actually I really don't like or trust policemen ... i think 85% of them are hypocritical AHoles

and as I continue to say - i can understand why he did it - i'm just saying in this instance it wasn't necessary and he should be suspended for it - all he did was make the situation potentially worse

and although no physical harm came to anyone it has had a bad impact - it's a national story, his wife is being portrayed in a negative light, he may have to deal with a nuisance law suit and he'll be forever known for this incident

all of which easily could of been avoided

Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong!

It's only people like you, that don't understand the concept of assisting your family that will attribute this incident to Antonio Davis. He didn't do anything except attempt to determine what the problem was with his wife. Nothing else. He was at his place of employment, no more, no less, and did what any normal sane human being (except you and Hoover it would appear) would do.

And yet you both have consistently degraded everything and everybody that has said anything about this--including Davis' own 10-year-old daughter and those of us on here that think Davis had the right to do what he did.

And now comes the rich part--you distrust 85% of the police establishment, yet you trust 100% the 65-year-old security guards at a basketball arena? That makes a lot of sense.

 

[Yuma]

Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong!

It's only people like you, that don't understand the concept of assisting your family that will attribute this incident to Antonio Davis. He didn't do anything except attempt to determine what the problem was with his wife. Nothing else. He was at his place of employment, no more, no less, and did what any normal sane human being (except you and Hoover it would appear) would do.

And yet you both have consistently degraded everything and everybody that has said anything about this--including Davis' own 10-year-old daughter and those of us on here that think Davis had the right to do what he did.

And now comes the rich part--you distrust 85% of the police establishment, yet you trust 100% the 65-year-old security guards at a basketball arena? That makes a lot of sense.

Good post Chap!

 

[MigratingOsprey]

i don't always trust them to do the right thing, however they are better qualified for me in most instances

i'd always give them a chance first if it is reasonable and in this case it is

and for what it's worth I haven't made a single attack against anyone or their thought process

i've been very consistent in my view

The situation was of a sort that security can handle - they are trained to take care of such things - and such altercation happen all the time

Davis was in a position to check out what was going on from the court and security was in a position to respond quicker than he was

since this was the case, there was no need to go running into the crowd

however, since he went in to the crowd he now must face a series of negative consequences

all these consequences could of been prevented

however, because some of believe this action was not necessary - you now assume that we do not understand the concept of assisting our families

that is a pretty personal remark to make and i personally take offense to it

 

[boisesuns]

 

[boisesuns]

Another Opinion

Stern, burned by Malice at Palace, lacked logic on Davis rulingBY MITCH LAWRENCENew York Daily NewsNEW YORK -

Antonio Davis didn't throw a punch the other night in Chicago. He didn't even join a fight, because there was none. He did what all fathers and husbands would have done in his shoes. He saw his wife and family in some sort of distress in the United Center stands and immediately went to their aid.

It doesn't matter who started what up in the stands. Davis did the right thing. So what does the NBA do? Use some common sense and say, here's a player who, in the heat of the moment, made a wise decision and should be commended? The league is always trying to tell kids what to do. Well, this was the perfect time to say that one of its players got it right, even if he broke one of its hallowed rules.

But David Stern doesn't use common sense anymore when it involves players venturing into the crowd. He's got a bad case of post-Auburn Hills trauma. Fourteen months ago, his league took a massive beating when the Pistons and Pacers engaged in a full-scale riot, featuring Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson wailing on the paying customers.

"But this was nowhere near what happened at our place," Detroit's Chauncey Billups said Thursday night before his Pistons took on the Knicks at the Garden.

But Stern can't be helped. He sees everything now through an Auburn Hills prism and it produces the kind of cockeyed rulings we got Thursday night.
Davis got five games for protecting his family. Nice message, Mr. Commissioner.

You want to teach people what to do? Here's the latest life lesson, courtesy of the NBA: Don't go help your family if you think it's in trouble.
Davis doesn't deserve a medal here, either. He merely did what he is supposed to do.

How could the league mess up something so basic? Because it is allowing the riot in Auburn Hills to cloud its judgment. Considering Davis' intent, the case can be made that he should have been fined $25,000, with no suspension.

"He'd be in a lot more trouble when he got at home if he didn't do what he did," Larry Brown said.

The league, however, is so image-conscious that it doesn't act rationally anymore. You can thank Artest, Jackson, Stern, lax security at Auburn Hills and a few drunken idiots for that. Because of one night in Auburn Hills, the league outlawed players from entering the stands, regardless of their motivation. Then the loophole to their new law suddenly appeared right down Madison from the Loop.

Knowing what the NBA knows now, it's stupid for the league to punish Davis. Watch the replay and you see him leave the Knicks' huddle, jump on the scorer's table and then walk - not run - up the steps to the seats where his wife, Kendra, his son and daughter were in some sort of altercation with other fans. Davis didn't make any threatening gestures. He didn't lay a finger on anyone. He appeared to make sure his family was out of harm's way and then willingly went back to the court with a security guard and referee Ron Garretson.

The league tried to say it cut Davis some slack because of mitigating circumstances. But it all goes back to Auburn Hills on Nov. 19, 2004, as if what happened in Chicago bore the slightest resemblance.

"Certainly the message was very clear after the Nov. 19 incident. . . . We made it very clear that players could not enter the stands, under any circumstances," said NBA VP Stu Jackson. "Certainly this suspension is evidence of the fact that we're very serious about that declaration."
They're overboard, that's what they are. Get this: Jackson said he prefers that a player in Davis' position would have gone to his team security official and pointed out the trouble. Let's get in the real world. Nobody is going to waste a second looking for a security official when they see their own flesh and blood in danger.

For the record, the Knicks' security director, John Donohue, had just returned to the bench after escorting Maurice Taylor to the locker room after his ejection. Who knows if Davis saw Donohue or not. But really, who cares? A good husband and parent takes care of his wife and kids, first. It's not an option, Mr. Commissioner. It's a duty.

"I'd like to put Stu Jackson and David Stern and some of those guys in that same situation and see how they would have reacted," Larry Brown said. "He helped get things under control."

 

[Chaplin]

i don't always trust them to do the right thing, however they are better qualified for me in most instances

i'd always give them a chance first if it is reasonable and in this case it is

and for what it's worth I haven't made a single attack against anyone or their thought process

i've been very consistent in my view

The situation was of a sort that security can handle - they are trained to take care of such things - and such altercation happen all the time

Davis was in a position to check out what was going on from the court and security was in a position to respond quicker than he was

since this was the case, there was no need to go running into the crowd

however, since he went in to the crowd he now must face a series of negative consequences

all these consequences could of been prevented

however, because some of believe this action was not necessary - you now assume that we do not understand the concept of assisting our families

that is a pretty personal remark to make and i personally take offense to it

He claims that he saw his wife falling back. Now, I'm not sure to what extent that means, but if he actually believed that she was physically being touched, assaulted, attacked, whatever... he is within his rights to do what he did because security WAS NOT THERE at that time. If security was there, Davis OBVIOUSLY wouldn't have needed to go to the stands.

Try to remember, this is a basketball game. It's not like if he goes to assist his family, the nuclear power plant will melt down. The visiting team's family has just as much right to feeling safe, especially when his wife is escorting 10 little girls to a visiting arena. Playing basketball in the NBA is still a job, an entertaining job to be sure, but it's still just a job.

I hope he appeals the fine, because if my job decided to take 5 days out of pay for going to help my family, there would be a lawsuit.

 

[elindholm]

Hoopshype has links to some more information this morning.

The question of who was the instigator in the verbal altercation is going to come down to he-said/she-said. That's going nowhere. This Axelrod dude is getting awfully carried away playing the part of the victim, but it's his moment in the spotlight and he wants the attention.

However, I have been wrong on two points:

1. This has happened before. Davis went into the stands in a May 2002 game in Detroit in a similar incident.

2. Davis admits that he had been aware of the developing situation for several minutes and was monitoring it as he made his trips up and down the floor.

So the argument I have been making that this was a uniquely threatening case, and that Davis felt that he had to do something quickly, doesn't stand up. Given all of that, I think it was a mistake for him to leave the floor.

I maintain, however, that based on the information we had yesterday, he made the right decision.

 

[Chaplin]

For the record, the Knicks' security director, John Donohue, had just returned to the bench after escorting Maurice Taylor to the locker room after his ejection. Who knows if Davis saw Donohue or not. But really, who cares? A good husband and parent takes care of his wife and kids, first. It's not an option, Mr. Commissioner. It's a duty.

That's a great point--taken in context, a fight had just happened so the crowd was probably really riled up. And if the Knicks security officer was there, perhaps the players didn't know it yet.

 

[Chaplin]

Hoopshype has links to some more information this morning.

The question of who was the instigator in the verbal altercation is going to come down to he-said/she-said. That's going nowhere. This Axelrod dude is getting awfully carried away playing the part of the victim, but it's his moment in the spotlight and he wants the attention.

However, I have been wrong on two points:

1. This has happened before. Davis went into the stands in a May 2002 game in Detroit in a similar incident.

2. Davis admits that he had been aware of the developing situation for several minutes and was monitoring it as he made his trips up and down the floor.

So the argument I have been making that this was a uniquely threatening case, and that Davis felt that he had to do something quickly, doesn't stand up. Given all of that, I think it was a mistake for him to leave the floor.

I maintain, however, that based on the information we had yesterday, he made the right decision.

I agree with you Eric, except I have one question... You say you think it was a mistake for him to leave the floor, but he made the right decision to do it. That sounds contradictory to me.

 

[Yuma]

I am not sure what goes on with security at Suns games because I haven't been near any incidents in Phoenix.

I have been around a bunch at Chargers games. I see security consistently escort out the person who was NOT the aggressor in games. One game it made me so mad, I went to security and pointed out how everyone was telling security who should have been thrown out, and they took the wrong person. I was told, the security people at games are not police and if there's a situation between a couple people, escort the person away you feel you can control. WTF? Their reasoning is that you nuetralize the situation and worry about who started what at a latter time. Even if it possibly leaves a dunken menace in the stands.

Later on I met someone who's kid was working security at Chargers games and he told me that is exactly what his son told him they do.

The only reason I bring up this point is to refute the angle Osprey says that they are well trained. They are trained to do the least potential lawsuit to the security company and not necessarily what is the correct security issue at that moment.