I'm not really an NBA fan. If anything, though, I'm a Pistons fan. By now we've probably all seen the melee Friday night over and over. Commissioner David Stern will hand out his final verdict today and his reaction needs to be far-reaching and emphatic.

Ron Artest backed away from a confrontation with Ben Wallace because, well, he's a big, scary fella. He didn't, however, seem to think twice about climbing into the stands to punch a fan who threw a beer at him. He likewise didn't think twice about punching a different fan who found his way to the court floor. The fans' behavior was embarrassing and wrong. Artest's behavior was dangerous, barbaric and inexcusable. If he's allowed to play another game in the 2004-05 season David Stern and, by extension, the NBA has no integrity.