One of the regular scenes inside Madison Square Garden during the New York Knicks playoffs has been former players in the crowd cheering on the 2023-24 team.
At every home game you will see John Starks, Larry Johnson, Stephon Marbury, Latrell Sprewell and Allan Houston, among others, sitting courtside. One former Knick fans haven’t seen inside the building and won’t see anytime soon is Charles Oakley, who hasn’t attended a game at MSG since he was kicked out of the arena in 2017 after an altercation with security.
Oakley’s disagreement led to an ongoing legal dispute with MSG. The arena said Oakley, 60, who played for the Knicks from 1988 to 1998, was asked to leave the game due to disruptive behavior. After being cleared of misdemeanor assault charges in 2018, the longtime NBA forward filed assault and battery charges against team owner James Dolan, and an updated lawsuit was filed in April.
Oakley told Dan Gelston of the Associated Press that an invitation to return to MSG was extended by the organization, but a spokesperson disputed that claim.
As the legal battle continues, MSG’s on-court battle with the Knicks will continue without the presence of one of their beloved former players.
There is a path to resolution, however, in Oakley’s eyes.
“They need to apologize,” Oakley said. “We’ll go from there. He can [Dolan] Be man enough to say that mistakes happen. And he made one.
“Be honest. Just be transparent about what you put someone through and how you changed their life. It definitely changed my life. My daughter Googled me, they show them taking me out of the Garden, that’s bad. It’s hell for a child sees this.”
After two previous lawsuits were dismissed, MSG said in a statement that it expects this latest one to be dismissed.
“This matter should be behind us all at this point, but due to the ongoing legal maneuverings of Charles Oakley and his lawyers, this case will apparently now have to continue,” MSG said. “However, we fully expect this case to be dismissed – for the third time.”
The Knicks are in the second round of the playoffs for the second year in a row and currently lead the series 2-1 over the Indiana Pacers. This spring saw MSG’s two main tenants — the Knicks and the NHL’s New York Rangers — enjoy postseason success and evoke memories of 1994.
Oakley was part of the 1993-94 Knicks team that reached Game 7 of the NBA Finals – the same year the Rangers won their first Stanley Cup title in 54 years.
For now, Oakley will continue to support his former team from a distance as their dispute with MSG continues.
“I don’t want to get in the way, they’re playing really well,” Oakley said. “I’m going to hope that the guys get along well. I’m not mad at anyone on the floor.”
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