Malice at the Palace
The Lead
Audible
3.7 • 2.1K Ratings
🗓️ 5 December 2019
⏱️ 28 minutes
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Summary
The Pistons-Pacers brawl known as “Malice at the Palace” rocked the NBA fifteen years ago. Many people saw it as a low point for the league. The melee, which included flying beer bottles and fans getting punched in the face, forced the league to implement new rules in an attempt to recreate its image. With the Palace now being deconstructed, The Athletic’s Michael Lee joins us to look back at the infamous incident and to explain how the NBA bounced back from the bedlam to be bigger than ever.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Well, this past Sunday was a historic and somewhat sad day for sports fans in Michigan, |
| 0:11.0 | Kavita. |
| 0:12.0 | The former home of the Detroit Pistons in the process of being torn down. |
| 0:15.8 | Well, the palace of Auburn Hills will be demolished to make way for corporate redevelopment. |
| 0:20.3 | The palace, man. |
| 0:21.6 | I mean, listen, it housed some of the most memorable teams and moments in Detroit sports |
| 0:27.2 | history from the bad boys in the late 80s to the pistons going to work and winning it |
| 0:32.7 | all in 2004. |
| 0:34.2 | That the Detroit Pistons have just shot the wash-asewous lakers. |
| 0:39.2 | 187. |
| 0:41.2 | 187. |
| 0:42.2 | 187 to win the NBA title. |
| 0:47.2 | But the arena might be best known for its most infamous moment. |
| 0:51.2 | It's been 15 years since the all-out brawl known as Malice at the Palace, rocks the NBA, |
| 1:05.6 | and forced many people to re-examine the relationship between the league and its fans. |
| 1:10.6 | Today, the Athletics Michael Lee joins us to break down how that incident changed the |
| 1:15.6 | league both on and off the court and helped shape the NBA into what it is today. |
| 1:21.9 | From wondering in the Athletic, I'm Kavita Davidson. |
| 1:24.5 | And I'm Andres Keltow. |
| 1:25.8 | It's Thursday, December 5th, and this is The League. |
| 1:29.4 | It felt like something great was happening. |
| 1:36.8 | There was just something about the emotion and the moment. |
... |
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