LOS ANGELES — On Sunday, the NBA announced the suspensions for Brandon Ingram, Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul for their involvement in the Staples Center scuffle that snatched the spotlight from LeBron James’ home debut with the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night. The reaction around the league was that the penalties could have been much worse. Carmelo Anthony, who was suspended 15 games in December 2006 for throwing a punch in a game, said he was happy for Paul but surprised the punishments were not harsher. “I was like, cool, after all of that he’s back in two games,” Anthony told The Undefeated. “I’m sure he thought it was going to be more. I think he thought there would be more — Rondo, Ingram, all of them involved in it. I’m actually surprised [Paul] got two.” Paul received a two-game suspension for poking Rondo in the face and throwing multiple punches. Rondo was punished for three games for spitting and throwing multiple punches. And Ingram received a four-game ban for starting and escalating the fight. One Western Conference team executive believed Ingram would be suspended for at least six games for pushing Houston Rockets guard James Harden and attempting a haymaker on Paul. Another Western Conference team executive thought the league might have given Paul, president of the players union and a nine-time All-Star, a “star call.” And an Eastern Conference team executive added that the punishment would not dissuade players from fighting again. “Players will be more willing to throw hands for three games. It’s not a deterrent,” the executive said. Could it have been in the long-term interest of the league to make the punishments harsher? NBA executive vice president Kiki VanDeWeghe believes the punishment fit the scuffle. “Anytime we do anything like this, we judge each one from the past,” VanDeWeghe said. “The good news is we don’t have too many of these. The NBA doesn’t have this type of stuff too often, so there aren’t a lot of comparables here. But we obviously realize that missing multiple games was very costly to their teams, very costly to them financially. “It’s important that we judge each on their own merit, but we have to judge each one and deter players. This says quite clearly you can’t fight, you can’t throw a punch. And if it lands, it is going to be multiple games.” Perhaps the reason the NBA does not have a lot of comparables is that fear was put into players after fights in the 2000s. One of the greatest black eyes in NBA history was the “Malice in the Palace” on Nov. 19, 2004, when the Indiana Pacers fought Detroit Pistons players and fans at the Palace of Auburn Hills, Michigan. The NBA suspended nine players for 146 games. Ron Artest, now known as Metta World Peace, lost nearly $5 million in salary after being suspended 73 regular-season games and 13 playoff games. Stephen Jackson and Jermaine O’Neal of the Pacers were suspended 30 and 15 games, respectively. Then-NBA commissioner David Stern made a strong statement by issuing such lengthy suspensions. The Pacers had a legitimate chance to compete for an NBA title that season, but the incident destroyed those dreams. In 2006, Anthony, who was starring in Denver at the time, was suspended 15 games for punching New York Knicks guard Mardy Collins at the end of a blowout Nuggets victory. Anthony lost $641,000 in salary. The Knicks and Nuggets were each fined $500,000. Nuggets guard JR Smith and Knicks guard Nate Robinson were suspended 10 games each, Collins was suspended six, Knicks forward Jared Jeffries was suspended four games, and Knicks center Jerome James and Nuggets center Nene were suspended one game each for leaving the bench. “It was a tough time,” Anthony told The Undefeated after his Rockets beat the Lakers 124-115 on Saturday. “You can’t go to the arena. You can’t go to the practice facility. It was a lot to deal with.” Ironically, VanDeWeghe was the general manager of that Nuggets team in 2006. The former NBA forward said the incident was different from Saturday’s Lakers-Rockets fight because it had spilled into the stands. “A dangerous situation for a lot of reasons,” VanDeWeghe told reporters in a conference call. Another reason some expected the NBA to be harsher with the Rockets-Lakers suspensions was that the fight ruined a prime-time game and James’ first home game in Los Angeles. Did you know James had 24 points, five rebounds and five assists in his Staples Center debut? Probably not. The biggest talk regarding James was whether it was appropriate for him to grab Paul, his close friend, to calm him down during the fight instead of grabbing his own teammate. The Rockets-Lakers game drew a 2.5 rating, the highest-rated game since the Golden State Warriors won their record 73rd regular-season game of the 2015-16 season in April 2016. But instead of watching James attempt a comeback win, fans saw punches typically reserved for pay-per-view. Meanwhile, boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jr. enjoyed it all with a smile courtside. According to ESPN.com’s Bobby Marks, Paul will lose $491,782 in salary before returning to action Friday against the visiting Los Angeles Clippers. Rondo will lose $186,207 in salary, while Ingram will lose $158,816. Paul already began his suspension by sitting out the Rockets’ 115-111 loss on Sunday to his former team, the Clippers. “[Paul] apologized to the team,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said before Sunday’s loss. “He didn’t want it to happen. In the heat of the moment, somebody does that, that’s tough. I don’t know what they expected him to do. If you want to suspend him one, I get it just to make a statement. When you talk monetarily, he’s paying [the price] three or four times [more than] the other guys are for missing games.” The NBA is in a tough spot where decisions on suspensions for fighting will never make everyone happy. “We didn’t much sleep [Saturday] night,” VanDeWeghe told The Undefeated. “These things are important and delicate. You try to have the right balance and the right tone. You spend a lot of time on these things. But these are for the players and teams to send a message that fighting is not acceptable. It doesn’t happen often, but it is not acceptable.” But the question remains: Will NBA players get the message? Or did the millionaire ballers find the Rockets-Lakers punishment laughable and worth the risk?<doc-sep>As the dust settles after the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets brawl, reports are noting that Rajon Rondo, Chris Paul and Brandon Ingram are now facing suspensions for their part in the fight. According to tweets from ESPN Senior NBA Insider, Adrian Wojnarowski, Ingram has been suspended four games, Rondo has been suspended three games and Paul will be out for two games. Although none of these suspensions have been officially launched, it is assumed that all players will receive a penalty despite claims that Rondo provoked Paul by spitting at him. The league is currently reviewing courtside video that will be key in determining the events that occurred in lead up to the all-out brawl, which will help determine who provoked who, so that accurate suspensions can be set. Catch the series of tweets below and stay tuned for more information as the story develops. For more NBA news, the association recently forced Lonzo Ball to cover up his Big Baller Brand tattoo. Sources: NBA suspensions – Brandon Ingram 4 games; Rajon Rondo 3 games; Chris Paul 2 games. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 21, 2018 Whatever case Rondo’s making, NBA is evaluating a video clip captured courtside that shows saliva/spit shooting from Rondo’s mouth onto Chris Paul’s face. It appears Rondo will have to sell league on fact that it was unintentional — and that appears to be a tough case to make. https://t.co/ddrhhHuxnN — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 21, 2018 Sources: NBA’s expected to learn two things on case Lakers/Rajon Rondo will make to league: Rondo suffered a cut/scratch under right eye from Chris Paul, which Rondo contends provoked him. Also, Rondo used a mouthguard, which presumably would complicate alleged act of spitting. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 21, 2018<doc-sep>Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis was escorted away by security following an on-court melee between players for the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets during last night’s game in Los Angeles. Video shared on social media shows Kiedis flipping the bird and shouting some heated words at Rockets point guard Chris Paul and the Rockets’ staff as Paul was led off the court following his skirmish with Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo. AK (Anthony Kiedis) from Red Hot Chilie Peppers should of gotten kicked out the game for yelling profanities and flipping the bird to Chris Paul and the #Rockets staff. This is unacceptable @Lakers if this was a regular joe/fan he would of got kicked out the building. #NBA pic.twitter.com/ntSAGhlNku — deх (вall dnт lιe)🎙 (@balldntlie) October 21, 2018 TMZ has video of Kiedis getting escorted away from the court by security, but it’s unclear if he actually got ejected, as some viewers claim to have spotted the “Under the Bridge” singer seated courtside next to Flea later in the game. It’s possible he was ushered away somewhere to chill for a few minutes, like the adult version of a toddler’s time out. We reached out to Kiedis’s rep for comment and will update if we hear back. *Extremely Anthony Kiedis getting led out of the Lakers game voice* I DON’T EVER WANT TO FEEL, LIKE I DID THAT DAY pic.twitter.com/ABIpnZRAFe — Jace Evans (@JaceTEvans) October 21, 2018 After the game, Flea posted a statement on Instagram. “At the lakers game last night with my dear brother,” Flea wrote. “It Got crazy at the end, but man I get so satisfied, deeply drinking in the depth and beauty of the game. People operating at a high level in so many dimensions. Cerebral, physical, spiritual, emotional, unspoken and telepathic communication.” Sure, that sounds like an accurate summation of the evening’s events. Kiedis and Flea regularly occupy courtside Lakers seats and have for decades. In 1989, the Chili Peppers released “Magic Johnson,” the unintentionally hilarious love song to their team on the album Mother’s Milk. UPDATE 2:56 pm EST: Sources speaking to TMZ said that Kiedis “was NOT ejected from the arena. He was allowed to calm down and then returned to his seat.”<doc-sep>
UPDATE: The NBA has suspended Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram four games, Lakers guard Rajon Rondo three games, and Houston Rockets guard Chris Paul two games without pay after a fight in Saturday’s game. The suspensions begin immediately. Paul will miss Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Lakers play San Antonio on Monday. Ingram was suspended for “aggressively returning to and escalating the altercation and throwing a punch in the direction of Paul, confronting a game official in a hostile manner, and instigating the overall incident by shoving Rockets guard James Harden.” The NBA confirmed that Rondo spit in Paul’s face and was suspended for “instigating a physical altercation with, and spitting and throwing multiple punches at Paul.” Related Story Dodgers Going Back To World Series, Beat Brewers In Game 7 Showdown Paul wil be out for “poking at and making contact with the face of Rondo, and throwing multiple punches at him.” Paul will forfeit $491,781 in salary, Rondo $186,206, and Ingram $158,817. EARLIER: LeBron James’ home debut with the Los Angeles Lakers ended up being a memorable one Saturday, and not just because of King James. An on-court brawl in the pivotal final minutes of a close game between the Lakers and the Houston Rockets all but marred James’ debut, though ESPN won’t complain as the primetime game gave the network its best rating for an opening-week NBA matchup since 2014. The game, which the Rockets eventually pulled away to win 124-115, scored a 2.5 metered market rating for ESPN, the highest-rated NBA regular season game on the network since April 2016 and its best early number for a Saturday game ever. It drew a stellar 3.7 rating in the Los Angeles market a.nd a 4.8 rating in Houston; the game spiked with a 2.9 during crunch time. Three players were ejected in the brawl, which began when the Lakers’ Brandon Ingram shoved the Rockets’ James Harden. Houston’s Chris Paul and the Lakers’ Rajon Rondo soon traded swings; Ingram, Rondo and Paul were eventually tossed when order was restored. James, meanwhile, finished with 24 points, five rebounds and five assists as the Lakers are now 0-2 on the young season. ESPN’s start to the NBA season has been solid, with its opening doubleheader Friday seeing gains year-over-year. Toronto’s victory over Boston drew a 1.5 metered market rating, while Golden State’s victory over Utah in the nightcap hit a 1.8. James settling in Los Angeles has been the big story of the NBA season, and has translated into strong ratings already. The Lakers’ opening game Thursday — a loss at Portland — drew a 2.6 rating on TNT, up 63% in metered markets compared with the same game a year ago, when the Lakers faced the rival Clippers. The Lakers resume play Monday but are off Tuesday, when the Los Angeles Dodgers open the World Series with Game 1 in Boston. The Dodgers clinched the spot in the Fall Classic for a second straight year with a 5-1 victory in Milwaukee on Saturday in a matchup that overlapped the Lakers-Rockets showdown.