The Associated Press reports: On Thursday, Zach Randolph was suspended two games and docked an additionial $100,000 for punching teammate Ruben Patterson in the face during a practice the day before.

His head coach and the GM of the Portlantd Trailblazers velieved the punishment was justified.

"This was pretty serious,''Portland Trail Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks said Thursday.

"There's been heated discussions before, but I've never seen it like this,'' a subdued Cheeks said before the game. "The punishment fit the crime. It's severe, but what happened is severe.''

"While these types of disagreements happen in practice during the course of a season due to the physical and competitive nature of basketball, this instance crossed the line, and this type of behavior will not be tolerated by our organization without the individuals being held accountable for their actions,'' Blazers president and general manager Bob Whitsitt said.