The ugliest day in modern NBA history

Nowadays NBA basketball players are called "soft" and "fake mans". Fans are adamant that the athletes in the "alien league" are soft, and the real battle has given way to pure math, shooting threes and a boring style of play by all teams. Every slight foul is exaggerated, and physical play is almost absent. However, there is a very serious explanation for this. And it is called "Malice at the Palace” (note. Ed. Meleto in Palata).

On November 19, 2004, in an apparently very peaceful match, and with a foregone conclusion, one of the ugliest scenes, not just in the modern history of basketball, but in the existence of this sport in general, took place. The main characters are the basketball players of the Indiana Pacers and the Detroit Pistons, and even fans get involved in the horror, later known as the "Melee at the Palace" or "Hate at the Palace".

With less than 60 seconds left in the fight, the winner is clear and there is no indication that we will witness a "bloody spectacle" - a term more often used in boxing and MMA, never in basketball. Alas, the ugly scenes reached one of the most gentlemanly of sports.

At the referee's decision, some of the basketball players of the two teams grabbed each other's throats and began to hit each other hard with their fists. The referee brigade totally loses control over the meeting, and the Pacers players are pelted with various objects and especially drinks. This prompts one of Indiana's basketball players, Ron Artest (now known as Metta World Peace), to invade the fans and start dishing out justice.

A few seconds later, a number of basketball players are already in the stands, and everyone is fighting with everyone - basketball players with fans, fans with basketball players, fans with fans. An absolute lunatic. Ultimately, the scandal ends within minutes, but the biggest circus in NBA history doesn't go down lightly for those involved in the skirmishes.

The management of the league handed out brutal punishments, with a total of 9 basketball players serving 146 game suspensions. Ron Artest misses the entire next season, and the fine for everyone involved is a monstrous $11 million. 5 of the basketball players who threw fists also received a sentence - 1 year in prison (suspended) and hundreds of hours of community service. Fans involved in the brawls are banned from attending Detroit Pistons games for life.

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