The "what if" moment that changed every NBA team forever

Indiana Pacers: What if the Malice at the Palace never happened?

The Pacers had won a league-best 61 games in 2003–04 but were eliminated in the second round. That led to increased expectations heading into the 2004–2005 NBA season, but things quickly went off the rails for Indiana. They got off to a slow start leading into their game at Detroit. Things were going well for them until a fight broke out after Ben Wallace shoved Ron Artest. That led to the ugliest brawl in North American sports history, with Artest going into the stands to fight a fan who threw beer at him.

The aftermath of the brawl decimated the Pacers, with Artest, one of the Pacers' best players, being suspended for 73 games and their best player, Jermaine O'Neal, being suspended for 30 games (later dropped to 15). Even once they got most of their team together, the effects of the brawl seemed to hang over the team, and they were later eliminated in the second round of the playoffs.

After that, NBA legend Reggie Miller retired, and Artest was traded. The Pacers then went just 41-41 in the 2005–06 season before trading key players Stephen Jackson and Al Harrington in the 2006–07 season, signaling a reset. Ultimately, the Pacers appeared to have built a true title contender that could win the NBA Finals, but the Malice at the Palace derailed any chance of that ever happening.