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Brawl at the Palace lives in infamy
(AP)
Updated: 2005-11-18 08:53
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Millions of dollars were lost, reputations were tainted
and the NBA was shaken on Nov. 19, 2004, when the Indiana Pacers, Detroit
Pistons and fans were involved in perhaps the worst brawl in U.S. sports
history.
Indiana Pacers' Ron
Artest is restrained by Austin Croshere before being escorted off the
court following their fight with the Detroit Pistons and fans in this Nov.
19, 2004 photo, in Auburn Hills, Mich. [AP] | A
year later, the ugly series of events and the aftermath are being rehashed and
dissected.
NBA commissioner David Stern hopes lessons were learned.
"No. 1, players can't go into the stands. They need to leave that to security
and not get into vigilantism," Stern said in an interview this week with The
Associated Press. "No. 2, fans have to be held accountable because they can't do
anything they want just by virtue of buying a ticket. No. 3, we need to continue
to review and update our procedures on security and crowd control."
Several players and fans lost control during a five-minute stretch on an
unforgettable night at The Palace in suburban Detroit. Pistons chief executive
Tom Wilson aptly described it as the perfect storm.
It all started when Indiana's Ron Artest fouled Detroit's Ben Wallace with
45.9 seconds left in a game that was essentially over, with the Pacers leading
by 15. Wallace responded with a two-handed shove to Artest's chin, leading to
several players pushing and Artest lying on the scorer's table.
Just when the confrontation appeared to be over, a fan hit Artest with a cup
filled with an icy beverage and the volatile player bolted into the stands in a
rage, followed by fist-swinging teammate Stephen Jackson.
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