It looked to me like the fans were closing in and getting belligerent, and then the debris started flying. Artest is a crazy hothead, and people need to remember that some folks will fight back. The fans need to check their crazyness at the door too, or they may get slapped around.
Artest will get 5-10 along with Jackson. Wallace should get the same.
Doesn't matter if they throw horse manure at you.
This was a situation which escalated precisely because each individual considered that the previous insult deserved a stronger response. A foul provoked a big shove and a some verbals. A cup of beer provoked a charge into the crowd and a series of haymakers.
Considering that this was in Detroit, I'm amazed that a) the arena was not razed to the ground and b) Artest was able to walk out of the arena with nothing more than beer and food on him. Once a player enters the crowd on hostile turf and starts throwing punches, all bets are off. This could have been a full scale riot and Indiana players could have been seriously if not fatally injured.
Artest and Jackson should sit out the rest of the season, O'Neal and Wallace should be out until the New Year.
There should also be criminal proceedings arising out of this for both the players and those in the crowd who threw objects and beer.