Violence & Brawls ·
The Cup That Set Off the Fight at the Palace
In the final minute of a 2004 Pacers–Pistons game, Ron Artest entered the stands and players fought with fans. The game ended early, and the NBA imposed major suspensions.
Ron Artest was lying on his back on the scorer’s table when a cup and its contents, thrown from the stands, struck him. He jumped up and climbed into the seats, throwing punches. Stephen Jackson joined him, and fans punched back. In the final minute of the Indiana Pacers’ game against the Detroit Pistons on Nov. 19, 2004, a confrontation on the court became a fight between players and spectators.
Indiana was leading 97–82 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Michigan. The Pacers were facing the defending NBA champions for the first time since the Eastern Conference finals. Despite the margin, most of both teams’ key players remained in the game. Officials stopped it with 45.9 seconds left, and Indiana won by that score.
The confrontation began when Artest fouled Detroit’s Ben Wallace hard from behind as Wallace went up for a layup. Wallace turned and pushed Artest in the face. The benches emptied, and punches were thrown. As players shoved each other and coaches tried to restore order, Artest lay down on the scorer’s table, looking relaxed, according to the Associated Press account. Then the cup hit him.
Security personnel and ushers tried to separate the people fighting in the stands. Rick Mahorn, a former Pistons player seated courtside as a Detroit radio analyst, also tried to intervene. Detroit’s Rasheed Wallace and Indiana’s David Harrison were in or near the stands, trying to break up fights.
The violence was not confined to the seats. Later, a man in a Pistons jersey approached Artest on the court, shouting. Artest punched him in the face and knocked him down. After Artest was pulled away, the man charged back, and Jermaine O’Neal punched him. As the Pacers headed toward their locker room, people threw a chair, beer, ice and popcorn. The arena announcer pleaded with fans to stop throwing things.
“I felt like I was fighting for my life out there,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said that night. “I’m sorry the game had to end this way.” About three hours after the game stopped, Auburn Hills police emerged from a television trailer with videotapes gathered from media outlets. Officers interviewed witnesses and planned to speak with players. Deputy Chief Jim Mynsberge said there was, at that point, no indication of major injuries.
A 2014 Detroit Free Press retrospective identified John Green as the fan who threw the cup and reported that charges filed after the brawl resulted in Green receiving jail time. Green later said he had not intended to hit anyone. “I feel awful about this whole thing,” he told the newspaper in 2006.
The NBA imposed suspensions on nine players. According to the Free Press retrospective, Jackson received 30 games and Ben Wallace six. Artest was suspended for 73 regular-season games and 13 playoff games.