Two incidents in the violent domain of professional sports during the 1970s proved too brutal even for bloodthirsty fans. Kermit Washington of the Los Angeles Lakers had a reputation to maintain after he was featured in the October 1977 Sports Illustrated article "The Enforcers," which noted his intimidating style of play. On 9 December in a game between the Lakers and the Houston Rockets, a fight broke out, with Washington in the middle of the melee. When mild-mannered Houston team captain Rudy Tomjonovich rushed in to break it up, he was met with a right hand that would have done a heavyweight boxing champion proud. Tomjonovich's injury, his subsequent lawsuit against Washington stated, included fractures of the nose, jaw, and skull; facial lacerations and a brain concussion; loss of blood and leakage of spinal fluid from the brain cavity. His injuries required...