BOSTON — James Dolan appears glad with the Knicks middling standing this season however involved concerning the subsequent “four weeks” with out Mitchell Robinson.
“The Knicks are doing well,” the group proprietor advised FOX5 New York on Thursday morning. “They’re not on the high of the league, however they’re not on the backside. And they’re in a playoff place now.
“We just lost a player — Mitchell Robinson — for four weeks, and he was important to us. So we have to make it through the next four weeks.”
The Knicks by no means offered a restoration timeline for Robinson, solely that he’ll endure a re-evaluation three weeks from the surgical procedure on Jan 19. After Dolan’s suggestion that Robinson will likely be out till after the All-Star break, a group spokesman mentioned, “Nothing changed in our update.”
Heading into Thursday’s sport towards the Celtics, the Knicks had been 1-3 since Robinson broke his thumb on the pinnacle of Wizards guard Bradley Beal. They had been seventh within the Eastern Conference — which, regardless of Dolan’s declare, doesn’t assure a playoff spot — and still have the NBA’s hardest remaining schedule based mostly on the opponent’s present file.
Dolan, in the meantime, appears extra optimistic along with his different sports activities group, the Rangers, who’re sixth of their convention with 60 factors in 48 video games.
“Being a team owner, you have good days and bad days. When you win, it’s a good day. When you don’t win, it’s a bad day,” mentioned Dolan, who was sporting a Rangers scarf. “I think the Rangers are really cooking. They have a shot this year to win the whole thing.”
Dolan’s look on FOX5′s Good Day New York represented his first in-depth media interview in practically 4 years, and it principally involved his controversial use of Facial Recognition Technology to ban attorneys from all MSG venues who’re a part of lively lawsuits towards Dolan.
Dolan mentioned it’s his proper as a enterprise proprietor, evaluating it to a baker who was sued by a buyer and now not needed to promote that particular person bread. When interviewer Rosanna Scotto reminded Dolan that MSG receives tax abatements from New York City, the 67-year-old redirected from the premise that it’s greater than a non-public firm.
“We get tax abatements. Every team in New York gets tax abatements,” Dolan mentioned. “If you don’t think we should have tax abatements, we should take away from all the teams. Which of course they don’t want to do.”
Dolan receives a tax break that’s as much as roughly $43 million per yr due to an exception drafted in 1982 by Mayor Koch. Various New York lawmakers have since threatened to repeal the exemption.
Dolan added Thursday that he received’t relocate MSG regardless of a suggestion from Mayor Adams that he’s open to that dialogue as Penn Station will get a large renovation.
“I’m not going to move Madison Square Garden,” Dolan mentioned. “It’s in a good place right now. It’s easy for everybody to get to. And honestly, we invested billions of dollars into the building.”
But Dolan has dropped one challenge: his blues band, JD & The Straight Shot, which has been on hiatus as a result of the opening of his new venue in Las Vegas, the Sphere, experiences steady delays.
“It’s sucking up all my time,” Dolan mentioned. “I have to wait until I finish this project. Then I’ll get back to the music.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com