DALLAS -- The doctor who oversees the NBA's drug and alcohol rehabilitation program Friday ordered Dallas Mavericks forward Roy Tarpley suspended indefinitely following his latest arrest for driving while intoxicated.
Franchise owner Don Carter, meanwhile, said he had spent all of Friday trying to reach Tarpley without success.
'I'm not saying Roy is trying to dodge me,' Carter said. 'But he has been scarce.'
Tarpley has been under the supervision of Dr. David Lewis for the past three years and this is Tarpley's fourth suspension in his five years with the Mavericks.
'Having met with Roy, I'm satisfied he is in violation of his after care,' said Lewis, medical director of the ASAP family treatment center in Van Nuys, Calif. 'As a result of that, Roy is suspended without pay for an indefinite period.'
Tarpley has twice been suspended for violating the NBA's drub abuse program and a third violation involving drugs would bring about a permanent suspension from the league.
Seventeen months ago Tarpley was arrested for DWI and eventually received a two-year probated sentence. He was suspended on that occasion as well.
Early last Saturday Tarpley was stopped for speeding on a street in north Dallas and again arrested for DWI. Tarpley denied he was drunk and said he would gladly go to court to fight the charge. Prosecutors have asked that Tarpley's probation be revoked and if it is he would be subject to a jail term.
Tarpley has not played for the Mavericks since the fifth game of the season, during which he suffered ligament damage to his right knee.
Lewis said Tarpley could continue to use the Mavericks' training facility to rehabilitate the knee. Chiefly because of the injury to Tarpley and another season ending injury to guard Fat Lever, the Mavericks are suffering one of the worst seasons in their 11-year history.
'We made the deals we made last year thinking we would have the chemistry we needed this year,' Carter said. 'There wasn't a person in this organization who didn't feel we were going to try to win it all this year.
'That is what makes all of this very frustrating. Now, if we have to throw up our hands and start from scratch with this team, that's what it will be.
'Right now, though, our hands are tied. They are tied because of ASAP and because Roy has his rights. We will eventually have some options, but we have to wait to see what those options are.'
As long as Tarpley does not test positively for drugs, and if he stays out of jail, it seems likely he will eventually return to the Mavericks.
'As soon as Roy is back in compliance with his after care, he will be reinstated,' Lewis said. 'The reason for suspending a player is not punitive, but it is to motivate the player to get back to compliance as quickly as possible.'
Mavericks' vice president for basketball operations Rick Sund said the matter was out of the team's hands.
'The NBA's anti-drug program is implemented by ASAP,' Sund said. 'We understand Dr. Lewis' decision as well as the importance of the after-care program.'
