Even after 20 years, “Malice at the Palace” remains one of the biggest NBA scandals of all time. What caused the wild brawl and how strangely bad boy Ron Artest reacted at the time.
The NBA would prefer to completely erase November 19, 2004 from its history. Even 20 years later, the term “Malice at the Palace” is still infamous.
During the game between the Detroit Pistons and the Indiana Pacers, a wild brawl broke out over a cup being thrown, which had very serious consequences for everyone involved and changed the NBA forever.
“We had to learn hard lessons back then. There was enormous damage to us as a league. In public and sometimes in the media, our players were stigmatized as gangsters. The great deeds of hundreds of young men were overshadowed by a few,” recalled current Commissioner Adam Silver.
Ben Wallace and Metta World Peace clash
It all started so innocently: with 45 seconds left, the Indiana Pacers were clearly leading 97:82 against the Detroit Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills (hence the nickname), where the Pistons were based until 2017.
Even though the game had long been decided, one Ron Artest – later ironically known as Metta World Peace – fouled Pistons star Ben Wallace. The center pushed Artest, who fought back, teammates from both sides joined in and a scuffle developed.
Up until then, nothing really unusual in a team sport, and the two teams hadn’t particularly liked each other since the Conference Finals the previous season. However, when calm slowly returned, the ominous cup flew.
NBA scandal: A bet leads to the cup being thrown
Bad Boy Artest had – as is his nature – made himself comfortable on the timekeeper’s table when he was hit hard by the soft drink. What followed would become the blackest day in NBA history.
Artest blew all the fuses, he darted obsessively into the stands and attacked another fan – and not the rather drunk man who had thrown the cup.
“I now know that it was a bet. The other guy made a bet with John (Thrower John Green, editor’s note) for $50, he couldn’t meet me,” Artest later recalled.
Mass brawl in the stands and field
Teammate Stephen Jackson followed Artest into the stands and fought with several fans, and various other Pacers players – including legend Reggie Miller, who had been injured on the bench – also joined in. Detroit’s Rasheed Wallace also got involved.
When Artest finally came out of the stands, he was attacked by two other fans who had run onto the court. The fight shifted. Wallace and his brother David, who later received a year of probation, were also involved.
The scene when Jermaine O’Neal knocked out a fan at a running start also remains infamous. The three police officers and security forces present were completely overwhelmed by the chaos.
Current Pacers coach Rick Carlisle (2011 championship coach of Dirk Nowitzki’s Mavericks), who was also Indiana’s head coach at the time, later chose drastic words: “I felt like I was fighting for my life.”
Total 146 game suspension
The referees stopped the game and the Pacers were escorted into the dressing room amid boos and drinks and popcorn being thrown at them. O’Neal was hit by a folding chair.
In the end there were barriers. The nine players directly involved received a total of 146 games. Artest was sidelined for the entire season. Five Pacers players and five fans were later charged and sentenced to probation. Green spent 30 days in jail and was banned for life from Pistons home games.
The consequences were much more far-reaching. The NBA drew the right conclusions. Since then, alcohol has only been sold in the arenas until the end of the third quarter, security measures have also been increased and an etiquette code has been introduced for the players.
Pacers have suffered from scandal for years
The damage to the image of the Pacers in particular was enormous. In order to distance themselves, they gradually separated themselves from the professionals involved.
Artest got his trade wish the following season, followed a year later by Jackson after he shot around in front of a strip club. O’Neal and playmaker Jamaal Tinsley also had to go.
However, the quality also suffered accordingly; in 2008 the Pacers had the worst attendance average in the league and it was not until 2012 that they returned to the playoffs.
Artest underestimates the scope of the scandal
Only Artest had completely underestimated the impact back then. In 2013, Jackson told ESPN an anecdote from the cabin.
“Ron actually asked Jamaal Tinsley, ‘Do you think we’re going to get in trouble for this?’ I just said, ‘Ron, trouble?’ We’ll be lucky if we still have a job.’”
Green and Artest later got along when Metta World Peace won the 2010 championship with the Los Angeles Lakers. A year later, Carlisle (retired from the Pacers in 2007 and returned in 2021) celebrated the title with Dirk Nowitzki.
The NBA has also polished up its image and is now doing more for charities and its reputation among fans. It is perhaps the greatest legacy of Malice at the Palace.
