As shocking as the incident was when it happened, in 2004, it seems equally surreal 15 years later. Quiet Storm provides a panoramic view of the brawl. (The lingering hostility between fans and NBA players was explored in an ESPN The Magazine poll four years later: Respondents believed the typical NBA player was less likely than players from the other three major leagues to respect the fans, remain loyal to his team, or love his wife, and more likely to carry a gun, use recreational drugs, or have an entourage.) The racial undertones were difficult to miss: The imagery of black players attacking white fans served as a kind of racial pornography that had many openly opining about the NBA’s ruin. The brawl, arguably the most embarrassing moment in league history, became powerful evidence for those who had long labeled the NBA a thug league, and for those who, because of his lengthy history of suspensions and on-court run-ins, considered World Peace to be a danger. A full-on melee developed: Nine players were suspended, with World Peace receiving an 86-game suspension-still the longest in NBA history for a non-drug-related offense-and a $5 million fine. A spectator threw a drink on World Peace, who went charging into the stands wildly swinging punches. As a member of the Indiana Pacers, World Peace delivered an unnecessary hard foul to the Detroit Pistons’ Ben Wallace with under a minute left in the game, and the two got into a heated confrontation. Quiet Storm, of course, gives adequate time to the brawl for which he’s still best known. Despite his forthright nature, World Peace told me recently when he appeared on my podcast, Jemele Hill Is Unbothered, that he was reluctant to participate in a documentary about his life: “I try to be behind the scenes.” The film is a worthy vessel for the athlete’s turbulent journey, depicting its subject’s efforts-publicly and privately-to change his once-toxic reputation. This honesty-which made him one of the most fascinating players to ever wear an NBA uniform-is evident in the new Showtime documentary Quiet Storm: The Ron Artest Story (directed and produced by the former ESPN feature producer Johnny Sweet). World Peace has always shown the world a surprising sort of candor.

The ex-NBA player, who won a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2010 and gained notoriety for his role in the infamous “ Malice at the Palace” brawl in 2004, might be described as “crazy” or “angry” or “tough.”īut another way to describe him might be “brutally honest,” whether it’s about his mental-health struggles that began in his youth (he thanked his psychiatrist on national television immediately after the Lakers captured the NBA title) or admitting that he applied for a job at an electronics store his rookie season because he wanted a discount. Metta World Peace, formerly known as Ron Artest, is one of those people whose name never evokes a middle-of-the-road reaction.

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