Artest's Suspension Upheld in NBA Brawl

NEW YORK – Jermaine O'Neal (search) won a 10-game reduction Wednesday in his suspension for fighting with fans during the Nov. 19 Pacers-Pistons brawl, but an arbitrator upheld NBA (search) commissioner David Stern's bans on Ron Artest (search) and two other Indiana players.

Arbitrator Roger Kaplan's decision makes O'Neal eligible to return Saturday, when the Pacers host the Pistons in the teams' first matchup since one of the most violent melees in NBA history.

It was unclear whether the NBA would recognize Kaplan's authority to intervene. The league refused to participate in the arbitration hearing Kaplan conducted Dec. 9.

The NBA had no immediate comment.