If Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw do receive suspensions for leaving the bench late in Game 4 after Spurs forward Robert Horry body-checked Steve Nash, the Suns want to make sure the duo has company.
A team source said that Phoenix notified league officials that Spurs Bruce Bowen and Tim Duncan left the bench in Game 4 when teammate Francisco Elson dunked early in the third quarter and hung on the rim, only to have the Suns James Jones inadvertently undercut him as he headed up court. Elson fell to the floor.
According to the Suns, Duncan jumped off the bench and walked onto the court with Bowen following him to get him back on the bench.
The Suns believe that if Stoudemire and Diaw are suspended for leaving the bench, then the same rule should apply to Bowen and Duncan.
NBA rules state that any player leaving the bench during an altercation will be suspended, without pay, for a minimum of one game and fined up to $35,000. The suspensions will commence prior to the start of their next game.
A decision will come Wednesday before Game 5, set for 7:30 at US Airways Center.
