New York Knicks forward made headlines for a hard foul he issued on Philadelphia 76ers center Spencer Hawes in a game on Sunday. Many people, including players of the 76ers, believed Anthony should receive disciplinary actions for NBA league officials. However, it was announced Tuesday that Anthony will not be suspended over the foul and altercation.
In the third quarter of the Knicks' 99-93 victory, Anthony hit Hawes on the back of the head as the two were fighting for position on a rebound. Hawes reacted with anger towards Anthony and then receiver a solid shove from Knicks center Tyson Chandler. A fracas ensued. At the time, both Hawes and Chandler were given double technicals for the play and Anthony also received a flagrant foul. Had Anthony received a flagrant 2 foul, he would have been ejected from the game. He later said that Hawes had elbowed him prior to the incident.
"I didn't mean to hit him in the head. It was just one of them plays," Anthony said.
Evan Turner believed the incident required more than just the technical foul. Hawes was upset after the game, feeling like Anthony got physical on purpose.
"You watched the tape, you saw what happened. I don't usually get upset like that, go off like that, so video doesn't lie...That kind of [expletive] gets me going. That's what I like. But it's part of basketball. It's part of the game. It gets like that sometimes," Hawes said.
Anthony is known to be a physical player that has had a history with suspension. Earlier this season the was suspended for a game after confronting Boston forward Kevin Garnett near the Celtics' team bus in January. He also received two technicals and was ejected from a game against Chicago in December.
"He's just got to control his emotions. Melo is a physical player and he likes contact which is great. He doesn't back away from contact. We had an altercation and we were able to pull away from it. No punches were thrown. They assessed the technicals and the flagrants they way they saw it and we moved on," head coach Mike Woodson said.
