A federal judge ruled on Thursday that previously suspended Indiana Pacers forward Jermaine O'Neal did not have to serve the final 10 games of the suspension handed to him by the league Commissioner David Stern.

This ruling upholds the temporary decision U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels made last week, prior to the Pacers' Christmas Day matchup vs Detroit Pistons.

That decision, in turn, upheld the one made by arbitrator Roger Kaplan, who stated that penalty handed to O'Neal was too harsh, citing the player's "character, community involvement and citizenship." He had cut it to 15 games, down 10 from the one handed out by David Stern.

Kaplan upheld the penalties handed out to Ron Artest (remainder of season), Stephen Jackson (30 games), and Anthony Johnson (5 games) for their involvement in the November 19th brawl at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

The NBA then challenged Kaplan's authority to hear an appeal of Stern's punishment.

Jermaine O'Neal played like Wednesday's game might be his last...for 10 games.  O'Neal will appear in court on Thursday as a judge will hear the NBA's appeal of his suspension reduction.

O'Neal's suspension was reduced by 10 games and if that decision is overturned, he will have to sit for those 10 games.

On Wednesday night in Charlotte, O'Neal had 24 points and 17 rebounds, as Indiana defeated the Bobcats by a final score of 74-71.

The boost of Jermaine O'Neal's return to the Pacers' line-up wasn't enough for them to follow their previous victory over the Pistons with one on Christmas Day, losing 98-93.

O'Neal scored 21 points for Indiana.

Rip Hamilton was the high-scorer with 25 points for the Pistons.

``It was just a regular game, everybody playing the way they play,'' Pistons center Ben Wallace said. ``It wasn't like we were out there intimidated, not wanting to touch anybody because it might start a fight. We were out there to play basketball, and that's the way it should be.''

The Pacers fell behind by 8 heading into the 4th quarter and the Detroit lead was too great for Indiana to comeback from.

The game was played without incident, a huge relief to both teams involved, who have already gone through so much, as well as to the league, who have been deeply concerned with their image.

Sources say that the Hawks are making Antoine Walker available and a host of Eastern Conference teams are interested, including the Sixers, Celtics and Pacers.

Sixers coach Jim O'Brien coached Walker when both parties were in Boston.

As strange as it might sound, Boston is a viable option for Walker.  Walker was upset when he was traded, but would welcome a return to Boston. "Antoine would be on a bus tonight. He'd walk here," said the source. "Boston has a chance to make the playoffs. Atlanta (5-20) has virtually none."

The Pacers are also interested, as they will play the remainder of the season without Ron Artest

Larry Bird was shocked by the magnitude of the suspensions handed down to his Pacers players after the brawl in Detroit November 19th.  

Granted, Bird has a lot to lose by his players being suspended, but he also comes from a different time, an era where rivalries were fierce and encouraged.

"There was a rumor going around that it was 30-20-20 or 30-20-15, and I said, 'Wow man, he's really hitting these guys hard,"' Bird said. "That's excessive. But this? This is off the charts. This is a shocker.

"We all thought they were so excessive, but especially Ronnie's," Bird said. "We're talking about 70 games."
As much as Bird may disagree with the ruling, he does agree that players should never bolt into the stands.

"You can't blame Stern for that, we got to blame ourselves somewhat," Bird said. "Guys did what they did."

Pick your poison for this Christmas day.  This year, both of the games in the NBA Christmas Classic will provide a bit more excitment to the viewer than mere athletic competition.

This Christmas, fans will be subject to the much anticipated rematch pitting The Indiana Pacers versus The Detroit Pistons and the long awaited match up between the feuding Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O?Neal.  

The Pacers-Pistons will play each other at 12:30 p.m. EST for the first time since the infamous brawl in Detroit that left many players involved trading in their uniforms for suits.

If that is not enough, the eager viewer may also tune into the 3:30 p.m. EST game pitting the Los Angeles Lakers versus the Miami Heat.  Many viewers are looking for something to happen between Shaq and Kobe.  The two have developed a feud that is one step from becoming a pay-per-view event at the Mirage Casino.  Never known as a big fan of television, former Lakers Coach Phil Jackson is even thinking about tuning in to this game.

"That's going to be interesting to see what Shaq does when Kobe tries to go to him more than anything else," Jackson said. "How is he going to defend the post if Kobe wants to drive it? Kobe likes to go in there and take contact. It will be interesting to see how that goes.

In a society in which many television viewers cannot get enough of watching other people?s problems, tomorrows games should provide them with a healthy dose of that good-old-fashioned drama.

A judge ruled on Thursday that Jermaine O'Neal can play for the Indiana Pacers on Saturday against the Detroit Pistons.

The NBA had appealed an arbitrator's decision to shorten by 10 games O'Neal's suspension for his part in a brawl Nov. 19 at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

O'Neal had been suspended for 25 games by David Stern.

"We have consistently maintained that the arbitrator has no legitimate role in this matter," NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik said. "While we obviously agree with Mr. Kaplan's decision upholding virtually all of the suspensions, we don't agree with his conclusion that the conduct did not occur on the playing court, and we have no choice other than to challenge it in federal court."

Going into Wednesday night's game against Indiana, Allen Iverson had scored 50+ points for two consecutive games.  That streak ended at Conseco Fieldhouse, as he scored 40 points in a 102-90 victory over the Pacers

"I'm glad it didn't take that (scoring 50) to win," said Iverson, whose three-game total of 145 points is a career high. "I felt good, and I hope it would have been there if we had needed it. But a lot of guys did things to help us win, especially Kevin Ollie. I think he won the game for us tonight."

Arbitrator Roger Kaplan today issued a decision denying a challenge filed by the NBA Players Association to the NBA?s recent suspensions of Indiana?s Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson and Anthony Johnson.

Mr. Kaplan also ruled that the 25-game suspension imposed on Jermaine O'Neal should be shortened to 15 games. Mr. Kaplan concluded that he, rather than the NBA Commissioner, had the power to review these suspensions.

NBA Deputy Commissioner Russ Granik issued the following statement: ?The operative language of our collective bargaining agreement provides that any dispute involving a suspension imposed upon a player ?for conduct on the playing court? may be appealed only to the Commissioner and not to an arbitrator. As a result, we have consistently maintained that the arbitrator has no legitimate role in this matter. While we obviously agree with Mr. Kaplan?s decision upholding virtually all of the suspensions, we don?t agree with his conclusion that the conduct did not occur on the playing court, and we have no choice other than to challenge it in federal court.?

Jermaine O'Neal was awarded a 10-game reduction on Wednesday in his suspension for fighting with fans during the Nov. 19 Pacers-Pistons brawl, but an arbitrator upheld NBA commissioner David Stern's bans on Ron Artest and two other Indiana players.

Arbitrator Roger Kaplan's decision makes O'Neal eligible to return on Christmas Day, when the Pacers host the Pistons in the teams' first matchup since one of the most violent melees in NBA history.

"We're extremely pleased that Jermaine will have the opportunity to play, although we respectfully disagree with the decision on the other three players," players' union director Billy Hunter said. "We are also pleased that the arbitrator has affirmed the right of players to appeal disciplinary measures."

Kaplan upheld Artest's season-long suspension and the penalties given to Stephen Jackson (30 games) and Anthony Johnson (six games). O'Neal's ban was reduced from 25 games to 15 in the 28-page report.