The Seattle SuperSonics finally took a stand -- for a few hours at least -- against their often belligerent point guard, Gary Payton.

	Gary Payton's antics over the years appeared to finally catch up to him with his since-reversed suspension.

I thought the Sonics made themselves proud by putting their foot down on franchise players who dictate the terms of their existence. But this is obviously a move to kowtow to the wishes of their star player. If they don't stand up to Payton now they apparently never will. And that's just a shame.

After Payton went off on Paul Westphal in a team huddle Tuesday night, then further exacerbated the incident by going off to the media about Westphal in the locker room afterwards, the Sonics had enough of Payton's attitude and originally suspended the Olympian for at least one game.

This was a culmination of frustration the organization has with Payton that appears to have come from the very top, namely, owner Barry Ackerley, who has been Payton's biggest supporter in recent years.

It stems from last season, when Payton threatened Westphal after he perceived that Westphal quit on the team by benching the starters in the fourth quarter of a blowout loss to the Lakers; to Payton getting in a fight with Vernon Maxwell, and Horace Grant getting injured in the process.

And it goes back even before that, when Payton would go off in the locker room, and the Sonics would cater to him by saying, "It's just Gary being Gary."

It probably goes back even before that, when Payton would constantly argue with George Karl. Over the years, he has gotten his way so often, and not been punished -- and believe me, a $1,000 fine is not a punishment to Payton -- that he considers himself above such things.

	“	It don't matter what he said to me, but it was a disrespectful thing that he did. If I disrespect you, you can disrespect me back. But don't disrespect me when I'm trying to help. If he do that again, there is going to be a problem. ”
		— Payton

After the Maxwell incident, general manager Wally Walker was asked, "What would it take for you guys to suspend him? When is enough enough? When do you take a stand against the criminals running the asylum?"

Walker dodged the question then, but he no longer could dodge it when Payton went off on Westphal in a team huddle during the fourth quarter of a victory over the Mavericks.

During the timeout, Westphal said something to Payton that ignited Payton's volatile personality.

Payton started yelling on Westphal, and eventually had to be restrained by teammate Pervis Ellison and others.

According to sources, Payton was overheard saying to Westphal, "I don't give a (expletive) about this game anymore. You all can suspend me for the rest of my career."

As teammates pushed Payton away from Westphal, he was again overheard screaming, "I'll slap your ass." Then, "Shut up, you bitch."

After the game, Payton -- who usually does not speak after similar incidents in the past -- said that Westphal disrespected him by what Westphal said, and that if he does it again, Payton no longer will play for him.

"He is going to respect me or I am not going to play for him," Payton said. "That's just period. If he is going to say something bad to me and I think it is bad, he is going to respect me before that. Or he won't have me playing for him. I am not going to say anything else about it, I am going to be a professional about it, but that's the way it is going to be on the bench. It is going to be respect. If I respect him, he is going to respect me."

Westphal declined to discuss the blowup, saying only, "It's a blip on the radar screen."

Payton would not say what Westphal said to him.

"It don't matter what he said to me, but it was a disrespectful thing that he did. If I disrespect you, you can disrespect me back. But don't disrespect me when I'm trying to help. If he do that again, there is going to be a problem."

After the blowup, there was some confusion. Payton wanted to remain on the court, but Westphal wanted to replace him with rookie Desmond Mason.

The officials didn't know what to do for about 30 seconds. They wanted to begin play as the Mavericks players stood on the court, but Payton was still on the court while Westphal motioned for Mason.

Eventually, Ellison got Payton to the bench, where he stayed until Westphal put him in the game for Brent Barry with 5:45 remaining. He scored four points down the stretch and helped the Sonics to their first two-game win streak this season.

"As long as I stay cool and we do what we had to do, we won," Payton said. "Guys had to calm me down, and I thought about it and I thought, I am not playing for him, I am playing for these guys. So once I calmed down and got through it, it is over with. I don't care. I don't give a (darn). We don't have to talk no more, we don't have to see each other no more. I don't give a (darn). I'm coming out here playing for these 12 guys, and I don't give a damn about him."

Payton was reminded that he said he was going to keep open lines of communication between he and Westphal, but cut off the reporter in mid-sentence.

"And the communication was (screwed) up today," Payton said. "Like I said, if he don't respect me, then he won't have me playing for him.

"I ain't worried about it. I ain't even worried about him. I'm worried about these guys in here, these 12 guys on my basketball team. I don't give a (darn) about him. I am going to look out for them. So that's it. I ain't going to make no trouble. I'm just going to let you all know, if he do it again, he won't have me playing for him."

The question, of course, before the suspension was reversed, is this: Would Westphal permanently lose Payton by suspending him? Because even though this was, apparently, an organizational decision, Payton will view it as a personal affront. And when he feels threatened, he usually lets somebody have it.

Here's the thing: Last week, Westphal disclosed that after the Sonics lost a game in Orlando, and there was finger-pointing in the locker room -- Vin Baker was insulted that Payton criticized him, and redirected the criticism toward Westphal -- Westphal offered to resign.

Payton took up for Westphal at the time, primarily, Payton said, because he did not want the Sonics -- i.e. Payton -- to look like Penny Hardaway and the Orlando Magic, which voted out Brian Hill.

Now, though, Payton seems not to care. And will care even less after he returns from his suspension.

With his not-so-carefully-chosen words Tuesday, which were, however, carefully directed, Westphal seems to have lost the one person that he definitely needed to keep.

This reminds me of the movie "The Perfect Storm," where every decision that is made, small or large, conspires to bring about a tragedy.

Some of the decisions are foolish, some are simply bad luck, and some are calculated so carefully that they backfire to only add to the debacle.

I'll go on the record to say that Westphal does not deserve to be fired. He is a good man who has found himself in a bad situation, one that involves a lot of issues and circumstances -- too many to be printed in this column -- for which no man could be prepared.

But this team, with these relationships such as they are, is in a free fall for which no parachute can be found.

And life is not like the movies. Sometimes, even good men wind up having bad, unfair and undeserving decisions cast upon them.

I hear the train whistle blowing. But I fear the warning doesn't matter.

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