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| PHOTO: BLEACHER REPORT |
February 11, 2017
Peter Solari, Contributing Editor Follow @4PeteSakeNY
According to a report from DNA Info, senior vice president for security at Madison Square Garden, Frank Benedetto, was fired Friday after an altercation involving his staff led to the arrest of Knicks great Charles Oakley at a game earlier this week.
Oakley became involved in a heated shoving match with Garden security while attempting to get to his seats a few rows behind Knicks owner James Dolan. Dolan and Oakley have long been at odds. In the aftermath of the scuffle, the team released a statement charging the ex-power forward with acting in an "inappropriate and abusive" manner, and ended with a parting shot, urging Oakley to "get some help soon."
According to the New York Post, Oakley admitted he had been drinking before the game, saying
"I had a couple of drinks but I had no drinks at the Garden."
His wife, Angela Reed Oakley, told TMZ Sports, "He doesn't have a drinking problem. It would've come out a long time ago if he did."
Charles Oakley was arrested by NYPD officers and charged with three misdemeanors before being released.
Benedetto was hired last August after a career in the U.S. Secret Service, protecting presidents. More from DNA Info:
Dolan has an ongoing feud with Oakley, who was briefly denied admission to a game last year before ultimately being allowed inside. Oakley also told reporters that MSG security insisted on following him around at games long before Benedetto was hired last August. Benedetto, who was at Wednesday game and witnessed the fiasco, took over the top security post after serving as a top U.S. Secret Service official who was credited with helping oversee the safety of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama while serving as Assistant Special Agent in Charge of Presidential Protection.Oakley has maintained his innocence in the whole fiasco, instead pointing a finger at Dolan, who he says, has a personal vendetta. From the New York Daily News:
Oakley told the Daily News moments after being released from Midtown South police station at around midnight that the Garden security asked him to leave because Dolan did not want him there.For their part, the Knicks have essentially called Oakley delusional. The team released another statement on Thursday, claiming that "dozens" of police officers and security personnel witnessed Oakley behaving poorly.
“I was there for four minutes,” Oakley said late Wednesday night. “I didn’t say anything to him. I swear on my mother. They came over and wanted to know why I was sitting there. I bought the ticket. I said why do you guys keep staring at me. Then they asked me to leave. And I said I’m not leaving”
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| KNICKS STATEMENT TWEETED 02/09/2017 |
While it's perfectly legitimate to criticize the Knicks for how they've handled Oakley over the years, the security team was really just doing their jobs. After all, Oakley is seen on video screaming at, and even shoving security officers. That's completely unacceptable, and every fan, regardless of who they are, should ejected and turned over to authorities in that situation.
It remains to be seen, however, if Dolan played any part in escalating Wednesday's incident to embarrassing heights.
UPDATE: OAKLEY BANNED FROM GARDEN
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| PHOTO: BARSTOOL SPORTS |
Dolan, speaking during The Michael Kay Show on ESPN New York 98.7 FM, said the policy regarding Oakley wasn't necessarily a lifetime ban but that they needed to keep the Garden "a place that's comfortable and safe."Dolan also took the opportunity to once again accuse the former Knick of being an alcoholic.
Dolan said Oakley was verbally abusive in front of fans "in a nasty way."
"With racial overtones, sexual overtones," Dolan said. "Stuff they should never hear."
"He may have a problem with alcohol," Dolan said. "We don't know."
Oakley's attorney, Alex Spiro, told ESPN that he will deal with Dolan's accusations in court.
On Friday, the Knicks also released statements from twelve employees/witnesses, which, on the surface, appear indicate that Oakley was entirely responsible for what happened.
However, Scott Caccioli, who chronicled Oakley's estrangement from the Knicks for The New York Times last year, tweeted the following on Thursday:
2/ Referring to Dolan, Oakley told me in November: "Everytime I walk in the Garden, they got to let him know, 'Oakley in the building.' "— Scott Cacciola (@ScottCacciola) February 9, 2017
There is no disputing that Oakley's behavior after security approached him was outrageous, and he deserved to be arrested for it. However, Dolan's behavior since long before Wednesday, and right up to now, indicates that he has a serious axe to grind with Oakley, and the game against the Los Angeles Clippers provided him the perfect opportunity to embarrass the fan favorite.3/ Oakley also told me he was approached by three Garden security guards at a game last season. This was not his first such interaction.— Scott Cacciola (@ScottCacciola) February 9, 2017
Wednesday night wasn't the first time Oakley was met with hostility from The Garden staff (I can tell you first hand they aren't as courteous or professional as they lead you to believe from their statements), and he's been treated like a common criminal every criminal every time he enters the building. So again, while there's no excusing his violent behavior, can you blame the guy for being paranoid?
Considering his past with MSG personnel, it's rather understandable that Oakley would become uneasy after taking his seat, looking up, and seeing the eyes of every Garden employee in the vicinity, locked in on him. Then he conveniently gets ejected after one of them whispers into, of all people, Dolan's ear? It's really no wonder why Oakley would be fuming at this point.
Again, that's not to defend Oakley's reaction. You can't manhandle people like that with no consequences, and for that, he'll pay a price. However, it's important to see things from Oakley's perspective too, and from where he's sitting, the owner won't stop messing with him.
In his radio interview Friday, Dolan told Kay, "I certainly think Charles should be embarrassed. Should we be embarrassed? No, it's sad. The staff at MSG were abused. Don't be embarrassed -- just refuse to be embarrassed."
That's pretty good advice. The Garden staff has nothing to be embarrassed about. Dolan, on the other hand, should probably bury his head in the sand as soon as possible, and not just because he's run a once-proud franchise into the ground.
Dolan should be embarrassed that he's chosen to use his staff to further his personal vendetta. He should be embarrassed to have instructed his employees to treat an icon of the franchise, like a piece of trash. And most of all, Dolan should be embarrassed that he sent his henchmen to get bruised and bloodied, in order to make a mockery of one of the Knicks' most famous alumni, because he didn't have the stones to do it himself.
Last month, Ringling Brothers Circus announced it would be closing it's doors for good after 146 years, and Dolan has apparently decided to pick up the slack, acting as the ringleader of a clown-show known as the New York Knicks. If you don't believe me, look no further than Dolan's last 48 hours.
After embarrassing Oakley in front of thousands in attendance, and millions of viewers on national television, Dolan spent two days making sure the whole world knew that this whole fiasco was the result of inappropriate behavior from a former player who suffers from alcoholism and has an anger problem.
Next, after making it abundantly clear that Oakley was the one in the wrong, and that his staff handled things appropriately, Dolan fires his head of security, making him a scapegoat.
Finally, Dolan reiterates that Oakley's behavior was unacceptable by banning him from the Garden, and praising his security personnel for their handling of a tough situation, even though he just fired their boss for bungling the same situation...
Does any of this make sense? Are these the actions of rationally thinking person? Of course not! This is Dolan damage control, and like everything else he touches, it turned to crap in no time at all.
What I find most repulsive about all of Dolan's actions, is how he showers Garden security guards with faux sympathy for getting "abused," when, in reality, he couldn't have asked for anything more.
Dolan has been trying to stick it to Oakley for a very long time, and on Wednesday, he saw his opportunity and took it. Dolan was looking for a spectacle, and a spectacle is what he got, but that hardly means he'll come out of it smelling like roses.
Sure, Oakley is facing three misdemeanors, but as impossible as it may sound, New Yorkers and NBA fans alike, despise Dolan more now, than they ever have before. Is there any wonder as to why?
