“Sh*t is going to happen”: Reggie Miller defends Stephen Jackson while giving an emotional recount of infamous 'Malice at the Palace' incident

Reggie Miller and Stephen Jackson , the two basketball veterans, took fans down memory lane and gave their accounts of the infamous ‘ Malice at the Palace ’ incident, which significantly disrupted the NBA world. Stephen Jackson chose the All The Smoke podcast, which covered the incident, to apologize to Reggie Miller, which left the latter teary-eyed.



Reggie Miller defended Stephen Jackson while revisiting ‘Malice at the Palace’ incident during a podcast


In All the Smoke’s recent podcast, Reggie Miller and Stephen Jackson came face to face. They revisited the infamous incident, ‘Malice at the Palace,’ which affected their team’s future in the championship and various players’ careers. Stephen Jackson extended a heartfelt apology to Reggie Miller for his behavior, which moved him. Responding graciously to the apology, Miller said:


“You don't need to apologize because that's basketball that's life you know shit's going to happen and even though we were short-handed ..when we were short-handed bander Brothers like when people talk about Bander Brothers I mean people forget we had to play the next night with like five or six guys cuz everyone was suspended still made the playoffs and still made the playoffs..”








Stephen said in his apology:


“I'm glad to see you because this I've never had a chance to tell you that… i'm sorry.. u just let me finish though because like I we all understood what our motivation was for that season it wasn't for us it was for you the whole motivation for getting things done the right way and getting the championship was for you so… I never got a chance to apologize you for my actions now with me saying that I love you even more because you defended me because you knew that I was just being a loyal teammate i wasn't you know what I'm saying i wasn't out there being a thug or nothing like that so it meant a lot to me but we never had a chance to talk about it during the time uh has passed… so much time has passed.. how how have your relationship been with guys that was involved and guys that was on our team”


Miller choked up hearing those words from Stephen Jackson. He said he didn’t need to apologize and went on to explain what the Indiana Pacers' days meant to him.



What ‘Malice in the Palace’ incident is all about


Malice in the Palace is one of the most unfortunate incidents in NBA history . On November 19, 2004, a game between the Indiana Pacers and the Detroit Pistons was underway at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Michigan. During the game, the Indiana Pacers’ Ron Artest's foul involving the Detroit Pistons’ Ben Wallace triggered the events, leading to an uncontrollable physical altercation involving players and coaches from both teams.


The matter worsened when a fan threw a beer at Artest, following which the players ran into the stands and fought with fans.








The brawl led to several suspensions, including Stephen Jackson’s, who was suspended for 30 games, as he mentioned in the podcast. Other suspended players were Artest, Jermaine O’Neal, and Anthony Johnson. Even a few fans involved in the brawl were banned from attending NBA games for life. The fans also faced assault charges and were asked to do community service.


The NBA also took some transformative steps and instructed players to dress in business casuals when arriving at the court to play. The dress code stayed till 2014, and was relaxed after Adam Silver took over the commissioner’s position after David Stern, who had set the code.


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What do you think of Stephen Jackson’s apology to Reggie Miller? Share your thoughts in the comments.