Mamdani Finds a Foil Familiar to New Yorkers: James Dolan

For James Dolan, the famously irascible owner of the New York Knicks, a sudden feud with Mayor Zohran Mamdani seemed in character, and unsurprising to longtime Madison Square Garden Kremlinologists.

But its 0-to-60 escalation in bitterness — with Mr. Dolan describing Mr. Mamdani and his police commissioner, Jessica S. Tisch, as fake Knicks fans and hopelessly inexperienced city managers — struck some observers as self-defeating, especially with his team on the cusp of its first N.B.A. title in more than 50 years.

Mr. Dolan’s animus seems to stem from the city’s decision to maintain a strict security zone surrounding the Garden, at a time when jubilant Knicks fans want to celebrate their team, unfettered.

Hours before Game 4 on Wednesday night, Mr. Dolan went on WFAN, a sports radio station, ostensibly to warn ticket holders to arrive early because the Police Department was implementing a security perimeter around the Garden, much as Ms. Tisch had foreshadowed during a news conference on Monday.




https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/11/nyregion/mamdani-dolan-knicks-feud.html