On Wednesday, New York Knicks legend Charles Oakley was arrested and ejected from Madison Square Garden after an altercation with security during the Knicks' home game against the Los Angeles Clippers, a game the Clippers won 119-115. Bleacher Report provides a good run down of the events that transpired, that you can read here. Oakley has reportedly harbored feelings of ill-will towards Knicks owner James Dolan for quite some time and the Knicks claim that he directly attacked Dolan, a claim that he denies.
I don't want to get into whether or not Charles Oakley actually attacked James Dolan or if the New York Knicks overreacted to his presence. I wasn't at the game and we have conflicting stories of as to what happened. What I do want to express is my opinion that Charles Oakley has every right to be upset with the direction of the New York Knicks and if he is so passionate about the sorry state of the team that he would go bananas at Madison Square Garden, I say good on him.
When I think of the New York Knicks, I still think of Patrick Ewing, John Starks, and Charles Oakley. I remember their fierce battles with the Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, and Orlando Magic in the 1990s and look back at those days as if they were billions of years ago. It feels like an eternity since the Knicks were relevant and quite honestly, their owner James Dolan should feel embarrassed that he has let such a storied franchise essentially rot and decay for the last 15+ years.
Sadly, it appears as though James Dolan doesn't give a hoot about the Knicks' pathetic state. He seems content to watch the team continue to flounder as Phil Jackson continues to show the rest of the NBA that he is not cut out for an NBA front office job. Dolan, a bloated doppelgänger of George Zimmer, has made a fool of himself and the Knicks for far too long and it's about time a Knicks legend flies off the handle in disgust.
What I want to make clear is that I am not indicting Charles Oakley of going bananas at Madison Square Garden. I have no proof that his arrest was justified. What I am saying is that if he did in fact unleash a tirade of epic proportions directed at James Dolan, he has my full support. While NBA owners do have full control of their teams, it doesn't make their actions pertaining to the franchise justified or morally acceptable. NBA owners may own a team, but they don't own everything that pertains to that team. They don't own the history, the legacy, or the significance that a team has to its city. That stuff belongs to the fans and the city that the team resides, which is why Charles Oakley has every right to be upset.
Unlike James Dolan, Charles Oakley literally put his blood and sweat into the Knicks every time he stepped on the floor in a Knicks uniform. Charles Oakley proudly represented the Knicks while Dolan has made a mockery of them and turned them into one of the most dysfunctional franchises in the NBA. James Dolan probably eats nothing but donuts and coffee judging by his disheveled and sloppy appearance and what's even worse is that he's probably ok with it. If anything, he's probably happy being a rich bum that owns the Knicks without a clue of as to how to make them good. He might as well go to games with a propeller hat on his head and tell jokes at halftime because that's all that he's good for.
At the end of the day, whether or not Charles Oakley actually attacked James Dolan is neither here nor there. The big story is that we are once again talking about another controversy in the New York Knicks organization and that has to stop. We've seen Derrick Rose evaporate for a period of time, we've heard Carmelo Anthony trade rumors float around, and now we have a team legend reportedly vent his frustrations while at a game. Dysfunction and controversy cannot continue to follow this Knicks team and whether he likes it or not, it's ultimately up to James Dolan to put a stop to this nonsense and get the Knicks back to prominence.
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