This altercation became the most penalized on-court fight in the NBA since the Indiana Pacers–Detroit Pistons brawl, otherwise known as the Malice at the Palace, which occurred on November 19, 2004.

[4] The incident occurred with 1:15 remaining in the Knicks' home game at Madison Square Garden, where the Nuggets were leading 119–100.

All ten players on the court at the time of the incident were ejected by the officiating crew that consisted of Bavetta, Violet Palmer, and Robbie Robinson.

NBA Commissioner David Stern reacted with strict penalties for the players involved, stating, "It is our obligation to take the strongest possible steps to avoid such failures in the future".

[10] However, MSNBC's Michael Ventre said that the Knicks and Nuggets brawl was worse because "it was touched off by the actions of players, and it escalated because of them".

[14] This was echoed by several writers, and sportswriter-television personality Michael Wilbon said that, "NBA players have endured more scrutiny, pertaining to image, than any other professional athletes in America".

[8][12] Martin Luther King III called for a meeting to end the violence in the NBA, stating, "Individuals who play a game should be able to conduct themselves appropriately".

[15] Minutes before the brawl started, Knicks coach Isiah Thomas asked Anthony not to go into the painted area around the basket, despite the fact that they were not members of the same team.

[24][25] In response to Thomas saying that keeping the Nuggets starters on the floor in the final minutes of the game was unsportsmanlike, Karl said that he "never thought about running up the score", and only wanted to "get a big win on the road".

[29] At the time of the brawl, Anthony was the league's leading scorer;[13] his suspension was also the longest of the players suspended, and the sixth-longest in NBA history.

[35] After Anthony and Smith returned from their suspensions, the trio led the Nuggets to 45 wins and the sixth seed in the Western Conference for the 2007 playoffs.