Carmelo Anthony Will Not Be Suspended By The NBA After Sunday Night's Altercation

New York Knicks small forward, Carmelo Anthony will not be suspended by the NBA following a quarrel on the court Sunday night with Spencer Hawes.

After investigating and reviewing the matter, the league decided not to pursue disciplinary action against Anthony and reported this afternoon that Anthony is not suspended from playing as a result of the incident.

In the third quarter of the match-up between the Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers Sunday night, Anthony hit the back of Hawes's head while the two were trying to get in position for a rebound.  Hawes, center for the 76ers, then aggressively approached Anthony, but was interrupted and pushed back by Anthony's teammate Tyson Chandler.  

As a result of the scuffle, Hawes and Chandler both received technical fouls.  Anthony was called for a flagrant foul.  

After the game, Anthony reported that before the incident occurred Hawes had elbowed him.

Knicks coach Mike Woodson said that he would like Anthony to watch his temper.  

"He's just got to control his emotions," Woodson said following Sunday night's game. "Melo is a physical player and he likes contact, which is great. He doesn't back away from contact. We had the altercation and we were able to pull away from it." 

Carmelo Anthony has been the center of a several conflicts on the court this season, both with other players and officials.   Last month he was suspended for one game without pay after a confrontation with Boston Celtics center and power forward Kevin Garnett on January 7.  And in December Anthony was ejected from a game against the Chicago Bulls for receiving two technicals.

Having Anthony not suspended is welcomed news for the Knicks, especially considering the team has lost five of its last ten games and have dropped to number three in their conference.  If New York hopes to regain the No. 2 slot again, they need to outperform the Indiana Pacers. With Carmelo Anthony not getting suspended, the team is in a good position to do exactly that.