It was the NBA’s worst nightmare, a day that gave the sport a permanent black eye.

Five years ago, on Nov. 19, 2004, the Indiana Pacers visited the Palace of Auburn Hills, Mich., to play the Detroit Pistons. As with every Pacers-Pistons game during that time, the game was very chippy and physical.

With 45.9 seconds remaining in the game and the Pacers ahead 97-82, Pistons center Ben Wallace and Pacers forward Ron Artest got tangled underneath the basket. Wallace didn’t appreciate Artest’s hard foul so he shoved him with both hands.

After referees and players tried to separate the two, Artest goes to the scorer’s table and lies there for a few seconds. What transpired next was the ugliest bench-clearing, fan-clearing melee in NBA history – and quite possibly in American sports history.

Five years ago, Ron Artest went into the stands at the Palace of Auburn Hills and forever embeded an ugly image of the NBA and its players.

A fan threw a cup of beverage in Artest’s direction and, in TruWarier fashion, Artest rushed up the stands to confront the perpetrator and the pushing and shoving turned into an all-out Mike Tyson-like punch-0ut.

Pacers forward Stephen Jackson went into the stands with Artest and began throwing haymakers as if he was in a “Toughman” competition. Soon, fans were punching back and the brawl spilled over onto the court.

A man in a Pistons jersey approached Artest on the court, shouting at him. Artest punched him in the face, knocking the man to the floor before leaving the court. Artest was pulled away, and the fan charged back. Artest’s teammate, Jermaine O’Neal, stepped in and punched the man.

Former Pistons ticket holder and the infamous fan that threw the cup at Artest retold the incident to ESPN’s Jay Crawford Thursday morning.

“I remember throwing the cup, actually a cup of Diet Coke, not a beer, but I had been drinking and I’ve had issues with alcohol in the past,” Green told “ESPN First Take.” “I remember [Artest] running into the stands and grabbing the wrong person and I felt bad. I grabbed Artest from behind, the whole thing was kind of a huge blur. It happened so fast.”

“Just a very bad scene,” he added. “It was a scary situation.”

Green said Artest called his home several months ago to apologize.

“He said that he was sorry, that … the whole thing embarrassed him as it did me,” Green said. “He wanted to do something for the community for troubled youth. Of course, I can’t do much on this end without him.

“We tried to come up with something to give back to the community and come up with something positive. It’s not like it’s not always going to be known as the brawl, but maybe we could take something good out of it. We’re going to try to do something in inner-city Detroit or L.A., maybe after the season ends and he has more free time on his hands.”

Green was convicted of misdemeanor assault — he punched Artest when the player stormed into the crowd at Detroit’s Palace of Auburn Hills — and sentenced to 30 days in jail and two years’ probation. He also was ordered to attend Alcoholics Anonymous and anger management counseling, and was banished for life from Detroit’s home games.

Artest, who now plays for the Los Angeles Lakers, was suspended for a record 73 regular-season games and 13 playoff games, and lost approximately $5 million in salary. Overall, the NBA suspended nine players for more than 140 games combined, including a 30-game suspension for Jackson, 15 for O’Neal, five for Pacers guard Anthony Johnson and six for Wallace. Others got one-game suspensions for leaving the bench.

Artest and Green will never live down the Brawl at The Palace, but both men claim they have changed since their tempers ignited a firestorm the NBA is still trying to extinguish.

“You know, I realized then the trouble I got in that night pretty much stemmed from alcohol,” Green said. “I wouldn’t have done that sober. Look at the video of people throwing stuff. One little thing triggered this huge event with people throwing stuff and getting way out of hand. It all stemmed from alcohol. If we can control that, we can control these situations.”

As for Artest, Green said: “He’s reached out to the community. He’s trying his hardest to let people know he’s not the same person.”

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Here are the juiciest stories worth keeping an eye on for this upcoming season:

Artest, LO-Dashian and the Lakers

Ron-Ron said that he’ll be on his best behavior when the real season begins. However, I think the Truwarier is talking about off the court stuff. As far as on the court, his game is about as hard as his deltoids. It’s not going budge. He’s a ground-and-pound player, meaning he likes to dribble away the shot clock and prefers isolations on one side of the court. It will be interesting to see how well Artest embraces the triangle offense.

Now with Artest in the mix, for the first time since 2004 when Shaquille O’Neal left town, Kobe Bryant will have to deal with a BIG personality in the locker room. Add Lamar Odom’s sudden rise to the tabloids’ front pages with his recent marriage to reality TV star Khloe Kardashian, the Lakers will be a traveling rock band and TMZ and the E! channel will never be too far away.

During the Lakers Media Day, Odom refused to comment on his recent marriage to Kim Kardashian’s younger sister. Not sure how long LO will be able to fend off the media, and it’s unrealistic to think that he’ll be able to completely focus on just basketball this season. Stay tuned.

Kobe must be saying to himself: “Thanks, Ron and Lamar, for giving me a break from the media spotlight.”

KG and his knee

The Boston Celtics are still holding their breath to see if Kevin Garnett is completely healed from the knee injury that kept him on the bench throughout the playoffs. Reports say that Garnett has been working out with his team and seems to be coming along nicely. However, once a player suffers a major injury to their knees, they are never the same. Time will tell if KG can overcome this major obstacle. Celtics Nation is on pins and needles.

LeBron James is surrounded by microphones and cameras during Media Day. (AP)

LeBron & Shaq

Shaquille O’Neal likes slogans as much as he likes nicknames. The Diesel has vowed to “Win a Ring for The King” this season. That’s big talk for a 7-foot-1, 350-pound man. At 37, Shaq is in the twilight of his Hall-of-Fame career and his skills have diminished to the point where he can only rise up every other game. Despite all the kryptonite thrown his way, Shaq is STILL a Superman when it comes to punishing people in the post and he is STILL the second best center in the league behind only Dwight Howard, which speaks volumes about the lack of great big men in today’s NBA.

Spurs Reloaded

The San Antonio Spurs have quietly added some key pieces to their championship puzzle. Gone are oldies Fabricio Oberto and Bruce Bowen, and in comes Antonio McDyess and Richard Jefferson. McDyess will be asked to fill the role of David Robinson and be Tim Duncan’s bodyguard in the post while Jefferson will be asked to be the fourth scorer on a team that has relied on the Big Three (Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili) for nearly a decade. San Antonio also added two kids to its aging roster with 2008 pick George Hill and 2009 pick DeJuan Blair. Both played well during the summer and should contribute off the bench.

Replacement Refs

The NBA is prepared to go the entire season with replacement referees as the referees’ union continues to fight for their pensions and benefits. David Stern is not going to be bullied by a bunch of old guys wearing Footlocker jerseys. Rasheed Wallace said: “I know there’s going to be a lot of stupid star calls like it is with the old refs, so I don’t there’s going to be too much change.“

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Ron Artest hopes to point the Lakers to a 16th NBA championship. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

When Ron Artest was introduced as the newest member of the Los Angeles Lakers, he didn’t disappoint and gave the assembled media a sneak peak at his colorful personality, starting with the No. 37 jersey he chose to wear for the 2009-10 season.

Why No. 37?

“I just ask all my Twitter friends and on MySpace and Facebook, and I asked all my fans to pick a number for me,” Artest said during his press conference on Wednesday. “A fan came up with this idea, because I like Michael Jackson so much, she said pick 37 because Thriller was the No. 1 album for 37 straight weeks and it was the No. 1 album of all time.”

The jersey number was definitely an odd choice even for an oddball like Artest. But that’s Ron Artest in a nutshell – half genius, half madman, but 100% quirky,

The Artest deal was reported at $33 million stretched across five years, and the agreement was basically consummated just hours after the free agency period began on July 1. Artest posted on his Twitter page on the evening of July 2 that he just signed a deal with a team. He did not specify which team, but the media dismissed the reports, saying the source was a phony. As it turned out, it was indeed Artest who sent the message on his “96TruwarierQB” Twitter account.

The acquisition of the 30-year-old forward signifies the end of the Lakers being labeled “soft.” The recently crowned world champions instantly got harder and tougher by bringing in the imposing 6-7, 250-pound enforcer. Everything about him exudes physicality. He could walk right up to you and say “Boo!” and you would be running for cover.

But before we hand the Lakers the Larry O’Brien trophy for 2009-10, consider some of the baggage Artest brings to the locker room. For all the heightened testosterone he injects into a ballclub (he has played for Chicago, Indiana, Sacramento and Houston) the highly combustible Artest is still…Ron Artest, and there are several warning signs that comes with the package.

His probation officers, also known as the NBA headquarters in New York, are always watching his every move. The Queensbridge native just can’t seem to escape the image of him climbing the standings and throwing down with paying customers in The Palace of Auburn Hills during the infamous Pacers-Pistons brawl in 2004.

From that point, Ron-Ron has developed a reputation for being a trouble-maker. He has become a magnate for technical fouls and is arguably the most scrutinized player in the league. The Lakers rely on continuity and steady flow, two of Phil Jackson’s favorite terms, so the addition of someone such as Artest – whether it’s with or without merit – can cause a disruption in Jackson’s circle of trust.

Think back to 2004 when the Lakers has Shaq, Kobe, Gary Payton and Karl Malone. Team chemistry was completely out of whack and the Big Four and their gigantic egos were too enormous even for a grand stage such as Tinseltown.

Last week, Jackson told a radio station in Los Angeles that he was not given the “either/or” when it came to choosing between Artest or Trevor Ariza. “He’s an unknown,” Jackson said of Artest. “He’s a player that even I think his own teams don’t know exactly what he’s going to do that particular night.”

Jackson didn’t sound like a guy who is looking forward to dealing with a headstrong personality, especially at this stage of his career where he is considering retirement and has dealt with numerous health issues.

Artest may have lost a step or two but his tenacity on defense can still be a huge plus. Bulldog forwards such as LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony can no longer push their way through the Lakers defense. However, the same can’t be said about his game on offense. It’s just not built for the triangle offense, which is defined by ball movement and spacing.

Artest tends to pound the ball on one side of the court and can be reluctantly to swing the ball to the weak side. He is extremely inconsistent as an outside shooter and, at times, forces shots and does not make good decisions. To be effective, Artest needs the ball in his hands but he might have a difficult time prying it off Kobe Bryant’s hands.

He is at his best when he posts up smaller defenders and muscles his way to the basket. But on a team that already has excellent low-post scorers in Bryant, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom (whenever he decides to re-sign with the Lakers) and Andrew Bynum, Artest could be the odd man out. It is highly doubtful that he will plant himself behind the 3-point line and give way to Bryant and Gasol, much like what Trevor Ariza did during the playoffs.

If Ron-Ron falls in line and defers to Kobe and the others, then this experiment will work. But Artest is at the point of his career that his popularity is at its peak and he will do nothing halt his rising Q rating. He loves being in the spotlight and doesn’t hide his shameless promotions of his TruWarier record label.

To ask Ron Artest to take a step back and let others shine is a very deadly proposition.  It’s just not his nature nor his preference.

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Ron Artest is not going down without a fight in the Western Conference semifinals. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Despite having watched his team get destroyed by 40 points in Game 5, Ron Artest remained confident. In fact, he was so confident that he believed his Houston Rockets would be back in Los Angeles on Sunday for Game 7, which meant he guaranteed a Rockets victory in Game 6.

“We come back in Game 7, we’ll know what to expect and how to play, and the energy they’re bringing and everything like that,” Artest said at the postgame news conference just minutes after the Lakers delivered a 118-78 thumping on the Rockets to regain control of the seven-game series.

Though the Lakers are ahead 3-2 in the series, Artest is not ready to see his face on TNT’s “Inside the NBA” show with a fishing rod in his hand.

“For us, it don’t matter which Laker team shows up. It’s all about which Houston Rockets team that shows up. I like the position that we’re in right now. I think we’re gonna be fine.”

Artest continued: “The good thing about is, Tim Ledger, or Leg … ‘How do you say his name?’ Legler! Tim Legler! When we lost Mac (Tracy McGrady), he said we’re not going to the playoffs,” Artest said. “Then, Charles Barkley said we’re not getting out of the first round, these guys are horrible. The good thing about it is, whatever those guys say is wrong. And they said the Lakers are going to win. That’s something to be encouraged about.”

Artest has not lost any of his swagger despite shooting 8-of-34 in his last two games, and has made just one of his last 13 3-point shots. He noted the Rockets are still adjusting to life without center Yao Ming. Matter of fact, he said they’re still adjusting to life without T-Mac.

“We’re learning on the go once again,” Artest said about forging ahead without the Rockets’ two franchise players. “We learned on the go when Mac went out early, now we’re learning on the go now that Yao is out. We got to find a way to win. If it was easy, you know, a caveman can do it.”

As for what he learned from the one-sided loss in Game 5, Artest singled out the importance of forward Chuck Hayes and the importance of taking care of the ball.

“Chuck has to understand he can’t foul early. When he’s out of the game, Gasol has a better chance in the low block. When Chuck fouled early, that hurt us,” said Artest, who cited the Lakers’ big height advantage inside with 7-foot Andrew Bynum, 7-foot Pau Gasol and 6-10 Lamar Odom.

“We’re 6-8, 6-9 … tops. We have no room for error. When Chuck goes out, they started getting tips and we miss rebounds. That’s what happened in Game 4; we didn’t make any errors. I don’t think it was so much was the Lakers did.”

As for what the Rockets need to do on offense for Game 6, Artest said, “We had a good couple of minutes, then we started to turn the ball over. But we’re gonna adjust. That’s been the thing with the Houston Rockets. Even when Yao went out, we adjust. We were on the road the first time without Yao. So that was an adjustment for us.”

The Rockets may be down in this fight, but Artest plans on going two more rounds with the Lakers.

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Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest got real physical with each other in Game 2. (NBAE/GETTY IMAGES)

The Los Angeles Lakers are going a little overboard in trying to shed their “soft” reputation. Against the Houston Rockets in Game 2, the Lakers lay down some serious smack talk during the game and smacked the Rockets with two vicious elbows. Both were calculated and delivered with malice.

In the fourth quarter of a hotly contested and very chippy game, Kobe Bryant sent a message to Ron Artest by swinging an elbow to Artest’s throat. It was an irony or ironies. The bully getting bullied. Ron-Ron did not like that one bit, as he stormed right to Kobe’s face to let him know about it. Artest was ejected, but Kobe brushed off the confrontation. When Bryant was asked about the incident during the postgame news conference, he said nothing. Bryant claimed he did not hear Artest. C’mon, Kobe! The guy was right in your ear. Stop playing the Obi-Wan card and just let the whole world know about your Darth Vader side.

But the biggest bow of the night was delivered by mild-mannered Derek Fisher. Just for the record, I like Derek Fisher. I think he is one of the most well-respected players in the league (he’s the president of the players’ union!) and is one of the classiest people you will ever meet. That’s why it was a total shock to me that D-Fish went to the bully tactic to deliver his message.

To recap what happened, Fisher sized up Houston forward Luis Scola and leveled him with a body check that lifted Scola off his feet and onto the floor. Fisher was assessed a flagrant 2 foul and was ejected. He tried to defend his actions, but he’s not going to convince too many people that it was just a hard, playoff foul. It was more than just a playoff foul. He wanted to hurt Scola to send the message to the Rockets forward, and the rest of the Rockets big men, that the Lakers guards are growing tired of all the illegal moving screens they have been setting for the first two games of the heated series.

Scola had been the target of many Lakers, including Lamar Odom, Sasha Vujacic and even Luke Walton, who rarely gets emotionally involved. Scola must have been really doing something shady to get almost half of the Lakers roster turn against him. Whatever it was, Fisher was going to let him feel it.

As much as I like good hard fouls and physical play in the postseason, I think the Lakers are crossing the line with some of their actions. It’s totally out of character for them. It’s one thing to play tough, it’s another to act tough. The Lakers are not what you call a “tough” team. They are a finese team. It is their greatest strength and their greatest weakness. Kobe is the only pitbull on their squad. The rest of them are puppies. The Lakers should be above all this nonsense, and should just focus on playing basketball instead of acting like a bunch of wanna-be mixed martial artists.

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