Former New York Knicks star Charles Oakley is standing firm in his boycott of the team following his ejection from a game in 2017. Despite the Knicks' recent success, Oakley says he will not attend any games until owner James Dolan apologizes for the incident.
Charles Oakley, the former New York Knicks star, has been a notable absence from the team's recent playoff games, despite the presence of other former players on the sidelines. Oakley's highly publicized beef with the Knicks organization dates back to 2017 when he was ejected from a game and allegedly struck a security official near Dolan's courtside seat.
The incident remains a he-said, he-said situation, with the Knicks claiming Oakley was yelling continuously at Dolan, while Oakley denies this and maintains he was asked to leave for no reason. Oakley was arrested for assault but eventually cleared, and an ongoing legal battle between the two parties continues.
Despite this, Oakley claims that Dolan's lawyers have reached out to him, inviting him to a recent game. However, Oakley has refused, stating that an apology is necessary before he can consider attending. "They've got to apologize," Oakley told The Associated Press. "We'll go from there. Can (Dolan) be man enough to say, mistakes happen. And he made one."
Oakley has filed an amended lawsuit against Dolan and Madison Square Garden, which has been assigned to Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron. Oakley alleges that he was defamed and subjected to false arrest and imprisonment as a result of the incident.
"Just be honest," Oakley said. "Just be transparent over what you put someone through and how you changed their life. This definitely changed my life. My daughter Googled me, they show them pulling me out of the Garden, that's bad. That's hell for a kid to see that."
MSG has denied all claims made by Oakley. "There's no kind of agreement. There's no kind of, `Let's make this go away,'" Oakley said. "They're not being transparent about what happened."
Oakley admits that he would love to attend a Knicks game at MSG, but only if Dolan makes amends. "I think it's a bad time to ask me to come to a game," Oakley said. "The case is still going. You ain't trying to settle a case. The case is still pending. Take care of your business with the case and let the game worry about the game, you know what I'm saying?"
Despite the ongoing legal dispute, Oakley insists that he is rooting for the Knicks from home. "I don't want to get in their way, they're playing great," Oakley said. "I'm going to cheer at the guys to do well. I'm not mad at nobody on the floor."
The Knicks currently hold a 2-1 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinals series against the Indiana Pacers, aiming for their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2000.
