NBA

Stackhouse suspended; Mavs mad

By TIMES WIRES
Published June 17, 2006

MIAMI - Shaquille O'Neal mocked his collision with Jerry Stackhouse as being less vicious than a love tap from his daughters. The NBA declared it worthy of a one-game suspension.

The Dallas Mavericks are calling it a crock.

The league said Friday that Stackhouse must miss Game 5 of the Finals for his hard foul on O'Neal in the third quarter of Game 4. The top three Mavericks officials all lambasted the punishment.

"It makes no sense at all," owner Mark Cuban wrote in an e-mail. "There have been more "accidental' elbows to Mavs players' heads this series than is statistically possible. (Wasn't it (Heat coach Pat) Riley who said that there is no such thing as an accidental elbow?)"

Stackhouse was called for a flagrant foul when it happened. League vice president Stu Jackson added to the punishment.

"It's just a bunch of baloney," Mavs coach Avery Johnson said on his weekly Dallas radio show. "For lack of a better word, it's sickening. Our fans should be upset, our players will be."

"We're really surprised and appalled," said Donnie Nelson, the team's president of basketball operations.

Stackhouse is averaging 13.8 points this postseason.

[Last modified June 17, 2006, 00:50:09]