The Associated Press is reporting that John Green, the man accused of sparking the brawl in the Pacers-Pistons game in November 2004, was convicted of assault Monday for punching Ron Artest.  

He faces up to 93 days in jail and a $500 fine. Sentencing was scheduled for May 1.

The 41-year-old contractor chewed gum and showed no emotion as the verdicts were read. Green and his attorney, Shawn Patrick Smith, said afterward that they would appeal on grounds that Artest was not present for the trial.

"[That] he didn't show up is a violation of my Sixth Amendment constitutional right to have him here," Green said of Artest, traded by Indiana to the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 25.

"The judge wouldn't force [prosecutors] to bring him here," said Smith, who did not call any witnesses.

Assistant Prosecutor John Pietrofesa said Artest's testimony wasn't needed.

"Mr. Artest's presence was going to do nothing but add a travel bill for Oakland County," he said.

Could Grant Hill return to Detroit for the 2007-2008 season?

"I've thought about that," admitted Hill, who expected to be in Chicago, albeit not playing, Tuesday when the Orlando Magic meets the Bulls. "I'm human. I want to win. When you play, you want to be a part of a winning team. But my hope is to try to turn that around and have that here (with Orlando). Ideally, that would be the highlight of my career."

"San Antonio, Detroit, Miami maybe," Hill mused in a conversation last week, "teams that realistically have a chance to win it all. Everyone is not that fortunate. Maybe the opportunity will be there in two years, maybe not. But I don't look down the road after all this. Every day is a challenge and an obstacle and hurdle to get through. Tomorrow is not promised. If I don't get back to a championship, I'm not going to feel my life is incomplete. It's fun, but I don't need that for validation."

Detroit Pistons forward Rasheed Wallace received his 16th and 17th technical fouls of the season Friday night in a loss to the New York Knicks, but he is still two technicals short of a one-game suspension.
   
A new rule says players are suspended for a game for their 16th technical and each one thereafter, but Wallace has had two reversed on appeal -- one for laughing at Cleveland Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas and another when referee Bennett Salvatore decided Wallace intended to throw an elbow but didn't.
   
A third Wallace technical, for hanging on the rim after a dunk, never counted toward his suspension total.

The Detroit Pistons Monday clinched the Central Division title when they defeated the Atlanta Hawks 91-84.

The Pistons (53-13) also reduced their magic number to clinch the Eastern Conference's best record to nine over Miami.

Detroit Pistons guard Richard Hamilton was fined $5,000 by the NBA on Sunday for throwing a ball into the stands during a game.

Hamilton was ejected in the third quarter of the Pistons' 105-103 loss to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. He reacted harshly to an offensive foul by firing the ball to the other end of the court, with it hitting off the top of the shot clock.

With last night's loss to the Knicks, their 14th of the season, the Detroit Pistons drive for a 70 win season officially ended, leaving the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls as the only team in NBA history to eclipse the mark.

The Bulls finished with a league record 72-10.

The Pistons, however, remain the sole team in the Eastern Conference to already secure a playoff berth, joining the Western Conference's San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks.

Rasheed Wallace and Richard Hamilton were both ejected in the third quarter of Detroit's game against the New York Knicks on Friday night.

Wallace was tossed early in the period. He was hit with one technical for questioning a call, then was called for another after he had taken a seat on the bench.

Chris McCosky of The Detroit News doesn't believe the Pistons will sign Fred Hoiberg?

"I don't think they ever intended to -- not this season. They brought him in as a favor to Flip Saunders, and they might try to sign him this summer. But as good a role player as Hoiberg has been, and as comfortable as he may be with Saunders' system, it would be a risk bringing him in now."

Fred Hoiberg continued his mild workouts on Thursday with Detroit.

Saunders said no decision has been reached by either side, and he wasn't anticipating anything happening until next week.

He has been out all season, recovering from last summer's open-heart surgery.

Saunders said he still wasn't sure if Hoiberg wants to come back this year.

"I think we're in a situation until the end of this week and through the weekend, everybody is just gathering information and really thinking about things," Saunders said. "So he really hasn't made a decision one way or another."

Orlando's Darko Milicic recently had an interview with HoopsHype.com.

"(Playing in Detroit) was literally a nightmare before I heard that I was traded. That situation really started getting to me mentally this season.

"No, there?s no point in that," said Darko when asked if holds a grudge against the Pistons. "But I am disappointed with numerous promises they made ? especially before the start of this regular season. I think that I didn?t quite shine during the preseason, but I think I played solid basketball and that I deserved to get some kind of chance at the beginning of the regular season. They basically turned the lights off me after the preseason. No explanation, no nothing."