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After collecting salaries from James Dolan and the New York Knicks for about 10 years, Charles Oakley has to pay them back.
A federal judge has ruled that Oakley owes the Madison Square Garden Company approximately $642,000 in attorney’s fees stemming from an ongoing lawsuit between the two parties.
The legal issues stem from Oakley’s high-profile ejection from a Knicks game in early 2017, when he was accused of punching a security guard near owner James Dolan’s seat on the court.
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Retired NBA star Charles Oakley attends the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Hawks at State Farm Arena on December 30, 2022 in Atlanta. (By Griffin/Getty Images)
“Charles Oakley came to the game tonight and behaved in a highly inappropriate and completely abusive manner,” the Knicks said in a statement at the time. “He was deported and is currently under arrest by the NYPD. He was a great Knick, and we hope he gets help soon.”
Oakley was charged with assault and trespassing, but the charges were later dismissed. He filed a civil suit for the eviction.
The team claims Oakley continually yelled at Dolan, but Oakley denied this and said he was asked to leave the arena shortly after taking his seat for the match for no reason. He hasn’t returned to Madison Square Garden since, despite the team’s recent resurrection.
MSG’s lawyers attempted to obtain the deleted texts from Oakley, which incurred costs.
“The court rejected most of MSG’s wildly inflated fee requests,” Oakley attorney Valdi Licul said in a statement to Front Office Sports. “Nevertheless, we do not agree that MSG is entitled to any recovery and will promptly seek to appeal.”
Charles Oakley sits on the court before the game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the New York Knicks at Quicken Loans Arena on February 15, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
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Last year, Oakley said Dolan’s lawyers invited him to a game, but he declined.
“They need to apologize,” he told the Associated Press. “We’ll go from there. Can (Dolan) be man enough to say that mistakes happened, and he made one?”
“Be honest,” Oakley added. “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 showed them dragging me out of the yard, it’s bad. It’s hell for a kid to see that.”
Oakley is seeking damages for assault, battery and reputational harm after Dolan suggested the former NBA player had a substance abuse problem.
James L. Dolan attends the 5th Annual Little Steven Policeman’s Ball at Mandarin Oriental New York on December 20, 2019, in New York City. (Bobby Bank/Getty Images)
“He is physically and verbally abusive. He may have a drinking problem, we don’t know, do we?” Dolan said at the time.
The Knicks are among the favorites to win the NBA Finals for the first time since 1973.
