The NBA sanctions (or, at least, the first part) are in. They’re pretty harsh to the Pacers, and considerably less so to the Pistons. My co-worker Darrin says that they were unjust. I’m not sure I’d go that far, though I do think that gutting the playoff chances of the Pacers, while doing relatively little to the Pistons, ignores the responsibility the Detroit fans face.
Eugene Volokh notes that soccer authorities will ban fans from games in some circumstances. Perhaps it would be appropriate to issue a suspension to the Detroit fans for their part in this mess.
But the best article yet comes from Dan Le Batard, a sports columnist (via Volokh’s post). It might be a little one-sided against the fans; I am hesitant to defend the kind of brutality Artest showed under any circumstances. But it highlights how fan problems are much harder to deal with, even as they become more important.
UPDATE: Changed link for the Le Batard column from the San Jose Mercury News (which requires registration) to the Duluth News-Tribune (which does not). I don’t know how I got through to the Mercury News without registering.
A great sanction I heard proposed, is to ‘suspend’ X number of front row seats in the Palace, not only creating a cushion for players from the fans, but rightly penalizing Detroit owners where it hurts most… not to mention the fans who tend to sit in those seats. Can you imagine the peer-group pressure that would be exerted by the ‘good’ fans?
And suspending beer-sales for X number of games would be frosting on the cake!