Dennis Rodman of the Chicago Bulls was suspended today without pay for at least 11 games and fined $25,000 for kicking a courtside photographer during a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
It is the second-longest suspension in league history.The longest was a 26-game suspension given to Kermit Washington of the Los Angeles Lakers for punching Houston's Rudy Tomjanovich, now the Rockets' coach, during a 1977 game.
The Rodman incident occurred during the Bulls' 112-102 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday night.
During the period of Rodman's suspension, he will be required to meet with a counselor designated by the NBA. A decision then will be made as to whether he can return to active status following the All-Star break.
"Until Dennis can provide meaningful assurances that he will conform his conduct on the playing court to acceptable standards - including not placing others at physical risk - his suspension will continue," NBA commissioner David Stern said.
Rodman also could face assault charges from the incident.
"He wants to say that it's not OK for (Rodman) to do that," Gale Pearson, the lawyer for cameraman Eugene Amos, said Thursday. "If we were on the streets, it would not be OK. You've got to call it what it is, and that's an assault."
This is the second suspension of the season for Rodman.
Although the extent of Amos' injuries weren't known, they weren't believed to be serious. He was treated and released at the hospital Wednesday night.
Clair Cole of the Minneapolis city attorney's office said charges wouldn't be filed before next week. Pearson said she and Amos planned to meet with prosecutors today.
Rodman was unavailable for comment Thursday after practice in Deerfield, Ill. He said after the game that he was kicking at a camera and complained that photographers sit too close to the court along the baseline, endangering players' safety.
Rodman said he didn't intend to hurt Amos, but doubted the severity of the injuries.
"I thought I hit him in the thigh, then all of a sudden he went back," he said. "I said, `What's wrong with you? I'm sorry I hit you.' Then all of a sudden he says, `Get away from me.' All of a sudden he passed out. I'm like, `Yeah, right."'
The incident was the latest in a growing list of transgressions and erratic behavior by Rodman. Pearson said she was receiving calls from media nationwide Thursday, including representatives of Geraldo Rivera.
Amos, described by Pearson as a Chicago native and lifelong Bulls fan, is an in-house cameraman who was working on a freelance basis at the Target Center.
"He just couldn't believe his luck to work at this game," Pearson said.
Amos filed an assault report Wednesday night after talking to police at the Hennepin County Medical Center, where he was taken for an examination after being carried off the arena floor on a stretcher.
If a charge is filed, it most likely will be fifth-degree assault, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $3,000 fine. Cases resulting in serious injuries can be upgraded to third-degree assault, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years and $10,000.