The pettiness here is absolutely hilarious … LMAO.
Recently, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Knicks owner James Dolan verbally battled it out when it came to watch parties related to the team.
Fast forward to Thursday, and Mamdani and Dolan ended up seeing each other at City Hall to finish off the championship parade for the franchise, and there was seemingly some heat on the stage. (RELATED: The Athletic Annoyingly Declares It ‘Zohran Mamdani Sports Summer’ Following Knicks Winning NBA Finals)
While the watch party war was going on, Dolan did an interview where he stated that the mayor wasn’t a real Knicks fan. Well, it appears that got under the skin of Mamdani because it showed while he was giving his speech. Only feet from the Knicks owner, he shot off a list of some of the greatest memories in the franchise’s history, while also naming iconic and obscure stars. One of the players included Charles Oakley, who was banned from Madison Square Garden by Dolan in 2017 following their infamous hullabaloo.
For around eight minutes, talking in a passionate speech, Mamdani put a spotlight on Knicks history, working towards a title, the campaigns that resulted in heartbreak and the tenacity needed to deliver a championship to New York following a 53-year drought.
Mamdani just shouted out Charles Oakley with Dolan sitting right behind him pic.twitter.com/va0tPcS1kh
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 18, 2026
When it was time for Dolan to speak, on the other hand, he kept things simple. Very simple.
“I don’t need your vote. I don’t need to quote to you what happened. If you’re real Knick fans, you know it already,” said Dolan.
“I don’t need your vote. I don’t need to quote to you about what happened here, because if you’re real Knick fans, you know it already” – Jim Dolan with a much less rousing speech https://t.co/NymKoioEBB pic.twitter.com/TIIJLf4BHh
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 18, 2026
After the scene, Mamdani handed out keys to the city to both players and staffers, which included Dolan and his son. During their photo ops, they appeared to be annoyed, however, still exchanged handshakes with Mamdani.
Watch James Dolan and son seemingly snub Mamdani photo op while receiving keys to the city pic.twitter.com/C4YVWHW7hR
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 18, 2026
As someone who cannot stand Mamdani and what he’s doing to New York City, I absolutely appreciate the violation from James Dolan.