The Malice at the Palace has long been one of the most devastating moments in American sports history and the Indiana Pacers were right in the middle of it all. Netflix has released never-before-seen footage of the NBA’s most devastating brawl as several former players have tried to clear their names.
With Rick Carlisle returning as Indiana’s head coach this summer, it only makes this documentary more relevant as we try to finally get rid of the past. Will the worst night in franchise history finally be put to rest?
Former Indiana Pacers continue to try to clean up their reputations from the Malice at the Palace
Without giving any major spoilers, this documentary gives some more insight into the eventful night at the Palace of Auburn Hills back in 2004. Fresh off a strong playoff push the season before, the Pacers were contenders for the NBA Championship in the 2004-05 season and were set to prove as such.
Their rivalry with the Detroit Pistons was growing, especially after the Pistons knocked Indiana out of the playoffs just a few months prior and ruined their dreams. With one final shot to win a title, the Pacers did everything they could to surround Reggie Miller with talent but that talent wound up being the reason the Pacers fell apart.
Ron Artest, Jermaine O’Neal, Stephen Jackson, and others shared their memories of that season in an exciting ride. With so much to gather from the hour-long episode, it is certainly worth a watch.
Several Pacers icons were in the documentary to recount the events of that night. O’Neal, particularly, was a favorite of mine throughout ‘Untold’ as he worked to clean up his image and reputation.
Those early-2000s Pacers teams were very exciting to watch but their passion for the game and their teammates quite literally took things a bit too far. Stephen Jackson and Ron Artest, who are the highlights of the show, offer little regret about the brawl in Detroit which shows just how close those teams were.
Obviously, that brawl was a sore spot for the NBA and between both organizations. The players involved have never been afforded the opportunity to share their perspectives of the events until now.
There were plenty of twists and turns along the way. The Pacers were always portrayed as the bad guys, which makes sense to a degree given the severity of the “riot” but it stretches beyond that. All parties involved allowed things to escalate beyond belief and 17 years later, we still have so many questions.
If you have the time between now and the upcoming Summer League schedule, I highly recommend checking it out. Jermaine O’Neal and Ron Artest were both incredible. Reggie Miller’s insights from the bench that night are also a nice change of pace as you venture through the chaos.
Speaking of Summer League, the Pacers continue their run this afternoon against the Atlanta Hawks tonight at 6:00 p.m. Duane Washington Jr. and Chris Duarte were both promising in their debuts last night. Hopefully, the two youngsters can show enough throughout the summer to be part of the rotation.