I love this brawl!

For the last several years the culture of the NBA has been in a steady decline, in part because younger, less mature players are being pushed into high-profile positions before they are ready, and in part because the "old guard" -- Jordan, Bird, Magic, Thomas -- left, and there are few respected elder statesmen in the league to keep passions under control.

That was on display, possibly as never before, in Detroit tonight during the Pacers-Pistons game. In the final minute of the game, with Detroit ahead by 15, Indiana's Ron Artest committed a hard foul on Detroit's Ben Wallace as Wallace went in for a layup. Clean foul, but not necessary at that point in the game. Wallace turned and gave Artest a hard shove, and the situation deteriorated to the point that Artest and Stephen Jackson, also of the Pacers, went into the stands and took several swings at fans who had been pelting the Indiana players with drinks.

Plenty of blame to go around here, from the players to the fans who were throwing objects at the players. The NBA has some serious work to do in cleaning up its image. Good luck.