But the villain of this drama is Indiana’s Ron Artest. His foul on Detroit’s Ben Wallace, when the game was all but decided in the Pacers’ favor, was a dirty little push, but a far cry from his most flagrant fouls. It was the sort of irritating needle he is famous for.

An enraged Wallace pushed Artest in the face. The benches emptied. For effect, Artest stretched out his 6-foot-7 frame on the scorers’ table, drawing more attention to himself. When Artest was struck by a cup thrown by a fan, he leaped off the table and jumped into the stands, throwing wild punches as he climbed over the seats.

This makes no sense. Ron Artest was hit by a cup of ice. He was not punched or assaulted. The fan who threw it at him should have been thrown out of the game, but the riot started when Artest went into the stands. He was the one who escalated the incident into player vs. fan violence. After that, many fans and players shamed themselves, but the list of culprits for the riot has to start with Artest.