The Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves had themselves a brawl last night in the second quarter of their game, leading to seven ejections and what could end up being multiple fines and suspensions. The melee didn’t quite rise to this level, but it brought to mind the “Malice at the Palace,” the infamous fight between the Pistons, Indiana Pacers, and a whole bunch of fans back in 2004.
Advertisement
There’s never been an NBA incident like that one. Then-NBA commissioner David Stern reacted decisively and punitively to let players know that there was no place in the game for that type of thing.
Ron Artest got the worst of it for going into the crowd. He was suspended for the rest of the regular season and playoffs, which ended up coming out to 86 games. Stephen Jackson got 30 games, and Jermaine O’Neal got 25, which was later reduced to 15 on appeal.
Last night’s incident shouldn’t see such severe penalties, since no punches were thrown and no fans were directly involved (though the fight did spill into the first few rows). There definitely will be some kind of fallout for those involved though, including Donte DiVincenzo, Naz Reid, Isaiah Stewart, and Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson talked about the fight on their Nightcap podcast, and both agreed that they would much rather settle any disputes off the court so as not to be hit with hefty fines and a possible suspension.
“I’ll catch you in the offseason, and you better have a Pamper on, ’cause when I see you Imma slap the s**t out of you,” Sharpe said. This would be much more preferable to settling your business on the court and incurring possibly millions of dollars in fines. “I ain’t punching nobody for no $40 million. They out their damn mind,” Sharpe continued.
David Stern laid down the law after the Malice at the Palace, and we’re still seeing the effects over 20 years later
Punches being thrown used to be a common occurrence in the NBA, but it’s rare these days to see any altercation of that scale. The players simply have too much to lose now, and though Adam Silver isn’t known for being a disciplinarian like Stern was, he is a lawyer, and lawyers love precedent.
Players have to think before getting too crazy about how Silver could lean on Stern’s ruling and hit them right in the wallet. Unlike 2004 though, when Artest was making about $6 million per year, today’s players have much larger contracts. DiVincenzo makes about $11 million per year, Reid makes $14 million and Stewart makes $15 million.
Anthony Edwards and Cade Cunningham weren’t among those ejected (Cunningham was in street clothes as he missed his fourth straight game with a calf injury), because they each have over 45 million reasons to practice non-violence.
There are sure to be some fines and suspensions that arise from last night’s incident, but as Johnson said, “I ain’t seen no punches or nothin’, I just see a little tusslin’, a little wrasslin’.” Silver could send a message to keep things in line, but the Malice at the Palace, this ain’t.
Both the Pistons and the Wolves have been among the hottest teams in the league for the past month, and both have high playoff aspirations. We’ll see if this slows their momentum or gives them an extra competitive edge with just a couple of weeks left in the regular season.
