The “Malice at the Palace,” the late-game brawl between the Detroit Pistons and the Indiana Pacers on Nov. 19, 2004 that extended into the stands of the Palace of Auburn Hills, is arguably the defining NBA moment of the 2000s. It was the death knell for a contending Pacers team, and it ushered in a new set of rules that the league thought it needed in the aftermath of the incident, most famously a strict dress code.
Most of the parties involved, including the NBA, have tried to distance themselves as fully as possible from the events of that day. Ron Artest, for example, jumped around the league, became an advocate for mental health by thanking his psychiatrist after hitting a game-saving shot to win Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals, and legally changed his name to Metta World Peace. Pacers teammate Stephen Jackson is a beloved TV personality on ESPN’s The Jump, and the Pistons have moved to an entirely new arena.
That doesn’t diminish the impact that the brawl had on the league, and specifically Artest. The upcoming Showtime documentary, “Quiet Storm: The Ron Artest Story,” will try to grapple with its legacy. The film will show the entirety of the fight, per Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press, as well as some new interviews from the people involved. It will debut on May 31.
It has been almost 15 years since Artest charged into the stands after the fan who threw a drink at him, and the incident remains a cultural touchstone. It will be interesting to see what the new film reveals about that night and what the players learned from it.
