Malice at the Palace is a Netflix documentary about what started as an altercation between the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers that devolved into an all-out brawl between the Pacers and Pistons fans. More specifically Metta World Peace formerly Ron Artest, Jermaine O’Neal and Stephen Jackson were the players the most physically involved and the most penally punished, but Reggie Miller, who was actually suited and seated on the sidelines for that day’s game due to an injury, was also caught up in the whole whirlwind of a mess. A police officer actually almost maces him! I felt bad watching the footage of him saying farewell after 18 years of playing and never having won a ring. The previous year and the year of the melée he was sure he’d get one.

I’m not going to pretend that I’m a huge sports fan (anymore). My days of sports fandom were more so in my tween and teenage years when I used to watch basketball, wrestling and soccer with my father and the boys. Football not so much, although to this day I never miss a Super Bowl. I watch for the halftime show and commercials, which more and more are straight trash and no longer as funny as years past. Not to mention, there’s no element of surprise. Commercials are previewed days before the game on shows such as Access Hollywood, of which I am a devoted viewer. I DVR the damn show, ok? Give me all the celebrity news. Access Hollywood is also how I got this year’s Olympic highlights. I usually watch, but not this year.

Though I’m not a huge sports fan (anymore), I do love a good documentary. And this one about what happened in Michigan at The Palace in November 2004 ranks up there as one the best ones I’ve watched in a while.

Some of my thoughts while watching Malice at the Palace:

1. The tense music and the droning set of over the fight footage and interviews had my adrenaline pumping. It was 1 am and I wanted to fight someone.
2. Ron Artest/Metta World Peace is a weirdo. Not Dennis Rodman level, but I’m here for it!
3. Concession food and drinks are too expensive for me to throw at millionaires, or even in the trash. I’m drinking every drop and eating every crumb, or morsel as Tony Baker would say.
4. The mofos aka sportscasters were too quick and too comfortable calling Black players thugs. They were defending themselves. I’m glad Bob Costas got pink eye in both eyes and got taken off air when he was reporting the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
5. All the multi-camera footage inside the arena, though grainy, is incredible. No such things as privacy, folks.
6. Where TF was security? Fans just easily ran onto the court.
7. John Green is an a-hole. I hope he gets daily papercuts that he only discovers when he uses hand sanitizer.
8. Reggie Miller and his ears remind me of President Obama.
9. The player penalties were beyond excessive.
10. This documentary and last year’s The Last Dance made me miss watching basketball with my father and the boys in the 90s.