It has been more than three years since the infamous brawl at the Palace, and one of the key figures Ron Artest was back in town Friday for the Sacramento Kings' game against the Pistons.

This was only Artest's second trip to the Palace since Nov. 19, 2004, when the then-Pacer entered the stands and started throwing haymakers after he was hit with a cup while lying on the scorer's table.

Artest gave a simple shake of his head when asked whether returning conjures images of the night that went wrong. He said memories of that evening are "all gone."

"Especially when you've got a lot of fans," Artest said before Friday's game. "I used to read a lot of the blogs, and a couple people said they wouldn't mind seeing me play in Detroit. That's, like, a big turnaround from those days. That's a big turnaround, and you've got to be proud of that."

Artest a Piston? Even he thought that's a bit far-fetched.

"I wouldn't consider not playing here," said Artest, who scored 18 points in the Kings' 100-93 victory and blew kisses to the crowd after several baskets. The crowd booed him every time he had the ball. "But right now, I'm doing Sacramento. But it's not something I'm opposed to, you know. That would be a hell of a first day if Ron Artest was in a Pistons' jersey. That would be kind of crazy."