Malice at the Palace

The Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons had not met since the previous season's Eastern Conference Finals, which the Pistons won in six games en route to their first NBA title since the "Bad Boys" era of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Coming off a two-game winning streak, the Pacers held a 6–2 record, while the defending champion Pistons had begun their season 4–3. The game was televised nationally on ESPN Richard Hamilton and Lindsey Hunter started the fourth quarter with consecutive three-point field goals, as the Pistons cut into the lead again, but Stephen Jackson's back-to-back field goals gave the Pacers a 93–79 lead with 3:52 remaining, and essentially putting the game away. The Pacers were led by the 24-point effort of small forward Ron Artest, who scored 17 in the first quarter. Jermaine O'Neal notched a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. Tinsley had 13 points, eight assists and a career-high eight steals. Hamilton led the Pistons with 20 points. Rasheed Wallace and Ben Wallace both recorded a double-double. ==Fight==

running into the stands to attack Michael Ryan, who he believed threw a cup at him. The man in the blue jersey and white baseball cap to Artest's left, John Green, was the actual person responsible.|alt= The brawl began with 45.9 seconds remaining in the final quarter of the game, when the Pacers led 97–82. Pistons center Ben Wallace was fouled from behind by Artest, who slapped him across the back of the head during a layup attempt. Wallace later said that Artest had warned that if they fought him he would be hit. Pistons coach Larry Brown later said he was initially not concerned, because when altercations occur in NBA games, they usually last a few seconds. After breaking up the confrontation, the referees discussed fouls and ejections before the game resumed. Sportscaster Mike Breen, calling the game for ESPN, believed Wallace would be ejected, while Bill Walton was of the opinion that Stephen Jackson should be ejected as well for shouting at the Pistons players and aggravating the situation. Breen expressed concern that, if Wallace got ejected, he would have to walk past the Pacers bench, which could have caused another incident. As the referees huddled to discuss penalties, Artest went to the scorer's table and lay down on it, putting on a headset to speak with Pacers radio broadcaster Mark Boyle, though the broadcast team did not activate his microphone. Boyle recalled that the broadcasting team knew Artest's personality and "there was no way we were going to put an open mic in front of Ron Artest in that situation". Pacers president Donnie Walsh later stated that Artest was following advice he had received on how to calm down and avoid trouble in a volatile situation. Ninety seconds after Wallace shoved Artest, most of both teams' players and coaches were huddled at midcourt, attempting to calm down Wallace. Tayshaun Prince was the only player on either team who did not leave the bench during the entire incident. Others became automatically eligible for one-game suspensions. While Artest was lying on the table, Wallace threw a towel at him, causing Artest to briefly stand up before he was held back by coaches and teammate Reggie Miller. A spectator, John Green, then threw a plastic cup of Diet Coke at Artest, hitting him in the chest. Artest immediately reacted to this by jumping off the table, charging into the stands, and grabbing another spectator, Michael Ryan, whom he mistakenly believed was responsible. Artest shouted at Ryan, "Did you do it?", to which Ryan replied, "No, man. No!" Pacers play-by-play announcer Mark Boyle stood from his chair at the broadcast table in an attempt to hold back Artest and was knocked backwards and stepped on, suffering five fractured vertebrae and a gouge on his head. Pistons public address announcer John Mason implored the remaining crowd to leave the court and arena because the game was over, and pleaded with fans to not throw any objects or engage in fighting. No players from either team spoke to the media before leaving the arena. Eventually, police officers swarmed the arena, threatening to handcuff those who would not leave. In the Pacers' locker room, O'Neal and Carlisle nearly got into a fight, as O'Neal was upset that some coaches had tried to restrain players while they were defending themselves out on the court. After everyone calmed down, Artest asked Jackson, "Jack, you think we going to get in trouble?" Jackson replied, "Are you serious, bro? Trouble? Ron, we'll be lucky if we still have a fucking job!" The conversation convinced an amazed Jackson and Pollard that Artest "wasn't in his right mind, to ask that question". Auburn Hills police entered the locker room to make arrests, but the team rushed Artest onto the bus and refused to take him off. The police decided to protect the Pacers as they left the arena, delaying decisions about criminal charges and arrests until after reviewing videos of the incident. By the time the Pacers' team bus departed, dozens of police cruisers were stationed in the parking lot and lined the surrounding road. ==Charges==

Suspensions On November 20, 2004, the day after the incident, the NBA suspended Artest, Jackson, O'Neal, and Wallace indefinitely, The following day, the NBA announced that nine players would be suspended for a total of what eventually became 146 games: 137 games for Pacers players and nine games for Pistons players. David Harrison was also seen fighting with fans, but the NBA stated that he would not be suspended because "the incident occurred as the players were attempting to leave the floor". Artest was given the longest suspension; he was suspended for the remainder of the 2004–05 NBA season, a suspension that eventually totaled 86 games (73 regular season and 13 subsequent playoff games), the longest suspension for an on-court incident in NBA history. In the week following the announcement of the suspensions, the players' union appealed the suspensions of Artest, Jackson, and O'Neal, saying they thought that commissioner Stern had "exceeded his authority". The NBA appealed the decision of the arbitrator to reduce O'Neal's suspension in federal court, and on December 24, a judge issued a temporary injunction allowing O'Neal to play until a full hearing was held on the NBA's appeal. O'Neal played in two more games before the NBA's case was brought before the U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York, on December 30. The NBA argued that under the terms of the league's Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), Stern had absolute authority to hand out suspensions and hear appeals for all on-court incidents. The judge ruled that because O'Neal's behavior was an off-court incident, arbitration was allowed under the CBA and thus the arbitrator was within his rights to reduce the suspension. Despite O'Neal's successful appeal, no further appeals were made to reduce Artest's and Jackson's suspensions. Legal consequences Auburn Hills police obtained videotapes of media coverage of the fight. Green was identified by county prosecutor David Gorcyca, who had been his neighbor. On November 30, Palace Sports and Entertainment, the owner of the Pistons, banned Green and Haddad from attending any events at the Palace of Auburn Hills, including Pistons home games, and the DTE Energy Music Theatre revoked their season tickets and issued them refunds. Green had several previous criminal convictions, including counterfeiting, carrying a concealed weapon, felony assault, and three drunken driving convictions. He was on court-ordered probation from a DUI conviction at the time of the brawl. In December 2004, five Pacers players and five Pistons fans (John Ackerman; John Green; Bryant Jackson; William Paulson; and David Wallace, Ben Wallace's brother) were charged with varying levels of assault and battery. Indiana's O'Neal, who also threw usher Melvin Kendziorski onto the scorer's table when attempting to enter the stands, and Pistons fan/spectator Green, who Gorcyca said "single-handedly incited" the brawl by throwing the cup at Artest, were charged with two counts. Artest, Harrison, Jackson, and Anthony Johnson were charged with one count of assault and battery each. Two fans, Haddad and Shackleford, who entered the court during the fight were charged with trespassing. In March 2005, Bryant Jackson pleaded no contest to a felony assault charge for throwing the chair. In May 2005, he was sentenced to two years' probation and ordered to pay $6,000 in restitution. David Wallace was convicted, and sentenced to one year of probation and community service for punching Pacers player Fred Jones from behind. A week later, Harrison received the same sentence. In October 2005, Johnson, the last player to be charged, received a similar sentence. He was ordered to serve 100 hours of community service. In March 2006, a jury found Green guilty on one count of assault and battery for punching Artest in the stands. They acquitted him of an assault charge for throwing the cup. In May 2006, Green was sentenced to 30 days in jail and two years' probation. In November 2006, the Pistons issued a letter to Green informing him that he was banned for life from attending any Pistons home games under orders from the NBA, and he would be subject to trespassing charges if he was found attending. In a revision from his initial punishment two years prior, the ban no longer extended to other events at the Palace. Multiple civil suits were filed against both the Indiana Pacers and its players by fans involved in the brawl; some were dismissed or lost at trial and others resulted in confidential out-of-court settlements. ==Aftermath==

Public reaction Several NBA players and coaches said the brawl was the worst fight they had ever seen. Hockey player Chris Chelios, who attended the game with Kid Rock, described the fight as unbelievable. Pacers fans began to refer to their team as "The Thugs". Pistons CEO Tom Wilson later stated that Artest's action took away physical barriers, such as tables and benches, that normally separate fans and players, and Indianapolis Star reporter Mark Montieth made the statement: "In a way, [Artest] provoked [the forthcoming assault] passively by lying down", even though Artest lying down was something he had done frequently to calm down. In the post-game commentary on ESPN's NBA Shootaround, ESPN studio analysts blamed the Pistons' fans and not the players. John Saunders referred to the fans as "a bunch of punks", and Tim Legler said that "the fans crossed the line". Stephen A. Smith stated that, "They should be ashamed of themselves and some of them [the fans] should be arrested as far as I'm concerned." Their commentary prompted ESPN vice president Mark Shapiro to place calls to host Saunders, as well as analysts Legler, Smith, and Greg Anthony, as Shapiro felt their commentary was biased. The following Tuesday, Shapiro stated, "I wish the studio hadn't laid the blame solely on the backs of the fans Friday night." A significant portion of media criticism was directed at the Pistons fans. 46% of the voters in the SportsNation poll believed that the fans were to blame for the incident. NBA reforms Some NBA teams immediately increased protection of players and arenas, while the NBA reminded teams of existing security procedures. The league imposed new security guidelines on February 17, 2005, for all of its arenas. These new policies included a size limit of for alcohol purchases, a hard cap of two alcoholic beverages per purchase for any individual person, and the discontinuation of alcohol sales after the end of the third quarter. The NBA also later ordered that each team put at least three security guards between the players and the fans. On March 25, 2005, the Pacers played at the Palace for the first time since the brawl. The game was delayed 90 minutes after a series of bomb threats were aimed at the Pacers locker room, but the game eventually started after no explosives were found. Two of the key figures in the original incident missed the game, as Artest was still suspended and O'Neal had an injured shoulder. In the game, the Pacers stopped the Pistons' 12-game home winning streak with a 94–81 win. and the Pacers upset the third seed Boston Celtics in seven games, the two teams met in the second round. Although the Pacers went ahead two games to one, the Pistons clinched the series in six games with three straight wins. After eliminating Indiana, Detroit defeated the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals in seven games, then advanced to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the San Antonio Spurs in seven games. After serving his suspension of the rest of the 2004–05 season, Artest returned to the Pacers at the beginning of the . After playing 16 games, he demanded to be traded, and the Pacers put him on the injured list. The Pacers' Walsh said that Artest's demands were "the last straw", After more than a month of inactivity, the Pacers traded Artest to the Sacramento Kings for Peja Stojaković. Artest faced Ben Wallace for the first time after the fight in November 2006, and made his return to Detroit in January 2007. During the Kings' 91–74 loss to the Pistons, Artest was booed constantly, but there were no unusual incidents. After a year's stop with the Houston Rockets in the 2008–09 season, Artest signed with the Los Angeles Lakers. After winning his first NBA championship in , Artest apologized to Jackson and other Pacers for being "so young and egotistical", stating "sometimes I feel like a coward when I see those guys. I'm on the Lakers, but I had a chance to win with you guys. I feel almost like a coward." On September 16, 2011, Artest legally changed his name to Metta World Peace. During the lockout-shortened , only one of the nine players who were suspended after the brawl was still with his original team: Ben Wallace, who signed with the Chicago Bulls as a free agent in 2006, later traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and rejoined the Pistons on August 7, 2009. Most of the players involved were traded to other teams, and since then, all of the players involved in the brawl have retired, with Artest being the last to do so in 2017. The Pistons advanced to four straight Eastern Conference Finals after the brawl, and six straight overall, making them the first team since the Lakers in the 1980s to advance to six straight conference finals though they only won the championship once in that streak. After losing to the Pistons in the 2005 playoffs, the Pacers failed to finish above .500 until the and missed the playoffs for four straight seasons from 2007 through 2010. Many Pacers from the 2004–05 season believe that the brawl and its consequences ruined a potential championship team, and that the referees did not assist the players well enough to be physically harmed by visitors. Almost four years after the incident, another similar incident happened also at the same arena, this time between the Los Angeles Sparks and the Detroit Shock (later the Tulsa Shock, now known as the Dallas Wings) of the WNBA. This gave it the nickname "The Malice at The Palace II". == Box score ==