Boston rookie Brandon Hunter's bout with infamy ended after just one arm whip and six minutes of Game 1 action.

Hunter's takedown of Jermaine O'Neal during the second quarter of Game 1 was the altercation that brought Indiana Pacers All-Star forward Ron Artest off the bench, resulting in Artest being suspended for Tuesday night's Game 2.

But Hunter, like Artest, didn't play. Hunter was in uniform, while Artest, per NBA rules, was banned from the building.

Celtics captain Paul Pierce sounded off before the game on Hunter and Artest, who was replaced as the chief defender on Pierce by a committee of Pacers that included Al Harrington, Jonathan Bender, Reggie Miller, Fred Jones and even center Jeff Foster.

"He's a beast out there," Pierce said of Hunter. "I mean, shoot, sometimes (a situation like what happened in Game 1) can uplift a guy in the NBA. Look what happened to Dennis Rodman."

"I think every championship team has a guy like that."