Peace vs. Love: Which Player's Act of Violence Was Worse?

The NBA formally handed down a seven-game suspension for Metta World Peace's concussion-inducing elbow to the head of Oklahoma City Thunder guard James Harden, but does the punishment fit the crime?

Maybe not when compared to Minnesota's Kevin Love's face-stomp on Houston Rockets forward Luis Scola.

Love's act of violence was every bit as egregious as the player formerly known as Ron Artest, but Love only received a two-game suspension, which is a pittance when you consider intent.

By definition a flagrant-1 foul is a hard foul which is committed while making a play on the basketball, but the more severe flagrant-2 foul is one that is committed with little thought of an opponent's safety.

Love and Artest's indiscretions clearly fall in the latter category, but why did Artest receive a ban that was five games longer than Love's when both player's mental lapses exist on the same plane?

Intent should not be an issue since Artest's elbow was unquestionably delivered on purpose, and how could Love ever say he stomped on Scola's face by mistake?

Premeditation was established in both instances, so the next place to look when trying to explain the NBA's reasoning in meting out punishment would have to be reputation.

And Artest certainly loses in that debate.

Until this recent transgression, Artest's journey has been a feel-good story which culminated in his first NBA championship ring, which he promptly donated to charity.

Artest had become a testament of how a player could turn his career around after being accused of inciting what may be the most shameful act in NBA history.

The elbow to Harden's head is what most observers have come to ultimately expect from Artest, and the NBA's brand of justice seems to consider it an act they have seen before.

However Love's stomp is a little harder to explain since it resides outside of the box and image that Love has perpetuated.

Love definitely carries none of Artest's baggage, and the fact that his face plant on Scola was the first time Love has ever crossed the NBA's invisible line probably had something to do with the league's final judgement.

But just because you only do something once doesn't diminish the severity of the crime.

The NBA is often accused of bias and inconsistency but in my opinion this discrepency takes the cake.

Artest's elbow could have caused much more than a concussion if it wold have caught Harden on the temple instead of the side of his head. But Love's foot could have also crushed Scola's wind-pipe.

Don't get me wrong. I believe Artest deserves every bit of his seven-game suspension, and I may have even thrown in a couple of more games for good measure.

However, Love's act of violence proves reputation has nothing to do with acts of stupidity, and the NBA should dole out their justice based on relevance, not what has transpired in the past.