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Carmelo Anthony to appeal $176K in lost wages from suspension

Carmelo Anthony will appeal the $176,000 he lost from a one-game suspension. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Carmelo Anthony will appeal the $176,000 he lost from a one-game suspension. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Carmelo Anthony is appealing the $176,000 in lost wages that resulted from his suspension earlier in January following his skirmish with Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett, according to a report Thursday from Marc Berman of The New York Post.

The New York Knicks All Star forward spoke with his agent, Leon Rose, and the NBA Players Association before deciding to move forward with the appeal. Players have 20 days to file an appeal following a suspension. Anthony contends that the on-court confrontation with Garnett on Jan. 7 was merely a verbal skirmish and nothing more.

Ron Klempner, the lead attorney for the NBPA, said the one-game suspension was too harsh:

"In light of the circumstances, in light of the circumstances that it was not a physical confrontation, the suspension seemed excessive."

Garnett and Anthony had been jawing at each other throughout the game. After the Knicks loss, Anthony waited inside the tunnel at Madison Square Garden and later outside the Celtics team bus to confront Garnett. Anthony maintains he merely wanted to talk with him.

The $176,000 was calculated according to standard league policy, under the new CBA rules for one-game suspensions. Accordingly, he lost 1/110th of his $19.5M salary.

NBA executive Stu Jackson said that Anthony's actions after the game were unacceptable and that it wasn't necessarily their on-court confrontation that prompted the fine:

"There are no circumstances in which it is acceptable for a player to confront an opponent after a game. Carmelo Anthony attempted to engage with Kevin Garnett multiple times after Monday's game and therefore a suspension was warranted."

Garnett did not try to make contact with Anthony after the game and thus was not fined or suspended by the league.