BREAKING NEWS: The Los Angeles Lakers' Metta World Peace has been suspended for seven games without pay for hitting the Oklahoma City Thunder's James Harden in the head with his elbow, the NBA announced.

The suspension will begin with the Lakers' next game against the Sacramento Kings on April 26.

This is one of the reasons I don't watch professional sports because they are hardly role models. You can see it close up at the 1:05 mark:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjCGlsoRMAo

For whatever reason, Harden took it on himself to run up and crowd Artest after the play was over & while Artest was celebrating a diifficult play. He got a particularly enthusiastic "get off me" elbow from Artest. SOP in the NBA if the play is still going on.

Standard penalty (if observed) = technical or flagrant technical

Given Artest's reputation, one has to consider the possibility it was Harden's intention to draw just such a foul, grab a couple of easy points with the possible bonus of irritating Artest into sub par play for the rest of the game.

Such gamesmanship does go on in the NBA. I doubt Artest intended Harden to wind up with a concussion any more than Harden did.

Suspension for some games? Yes but that's because of how it looks on thousands of replays.

And the post above is exactly why I hate professional sports. It's not about sportsmanship. It's about the money and oneupsmandship.

Compared to football, basketball is soft.

Yes it's brutal; and yes, it's about the money. Most of these guys are making in a year more than they would make in a lifetime doing anything else. And few are on guaranteed multiyear contracts. For them it's perform right now or go sell used cars somewhere. Bye, it's been nice, next man up.

That said, the best athletes in America play pro sports. Maybe once a quarter, someone does something extraordinary and, not every game, but every once in a while, someone does something so superbly athletic it takes your breath away.

And that's why I watch pro sports. And put up with all the crap along the way. It's for those moments when does something that is so compelling I remember it for more than a minute or two.