It’s the seventeenth anniversary of one of many final massive brawls the NBA has seen. It’s so notorious it even has its own Wikipedia page.
It was Dec. 16, 2006, when a younger Carmelo Anthony — then with the Denver Nuggets — punched the Knicks’ Mardy Collins, after Collins knocked J.R. Smith to the bottom when going for a layup. Anthony got here to his teammate’s support, landed the punch, after which seemingly ran all the best way to the opposite facet of the court docket, leaving the preventing for everybody else.
Nate Robinson was able to take out nearly anyone and the aftermath resulted in him and Smith being suspended for 10 video games and Anthony suspended for 15. Every workforce was fined $500,000.
In comparison with different NBA fights within the 2000s (I’m you, Malice on the Palace), nobody was severely injured. Former Commissioner David Stern was fast to deal out the damages so as to attempt to reign in and cease these fights in a few of the extra unruly and aggressive days of the NBA.
“It’s our obligation to take the strongest doable steps to keep away from such failures sooner or later and to make a press release to all who observe the sport of basketball that we perceive our obligations and take them severely,” Stern said. “Accordingly, I’m issuing the penalties listed beneath, and can take the event to set forth a few of the issues which have influenced my determination right here and can proceed to information us as we search to show our willpower that the NBA and its gamers be considered as standing for the most effective in sports activities.”