Spike Lee is mad.
Mad about being told to use a different entrance to Madison Square Garden last night. Mad that the Knicks spread word that he and owner James Dolan shook hands, shared a laugh and resolved the issue. Mad that the Knicks released an official statement calling Lee’s characterization of events laughable.
Sopan Deb of The New York Times:
“Whats laughable is how the Knicks are the laughingstock of the league in sports. That’s what’s [f—ing] laughable.” – Spike Lee
Lee says a month ago he was at a game, he saw Howard Stern leave through a particular exit – he tried to leave through the same way. Security wouldn’t let him.
Lee says "on my mother's grave," that he has never been told not to come in through the entrance at the center of the dispute.
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 3, 2020
OMG: "I'll tell you one thing. I heard from the Brooklyn Nets." Lee says he gave away his tickets for this year already. (He's not changing allegiances though.)
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 3, 2020
Lee says there was no handshake between him and Dolan at halftime. Says the statement is lying about that.
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 3, 2020
Lee asking why they have ticket scanners at the 'employee entrance' if they don't let people in through there who aren't employees. (He says his ticket was scanned on the way in.)
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 3, 2020
On the picture that shows him and Dolan shaking him hands, Lee retracts what he said that they didn't shake hands. "First of all, I didn't want to speak to him." He said he didn't get out of his seat until halfway through the conversation.
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 3, 2020
"Anything the Knicks say, it’s going to be a lie. I challenge you to get the answers. I want Madison Square Garden to produce an email before I arrived at the Garden yesterday saying, 'Mr. Lee, you could no longer use the employee entrance."…."It never happened."
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 3, 2020
Lee made a big stink about denying he shook hands with Dolan. That fell flat with the above photo, which the Knicks included with their official statement.
But the handshake picture means little. Dolan and Lee shook hands. So what? They clearly didn’t resolve the issue, as proven by Lee’s dour mood continuing today. Sometimes, there’s a forgettable handshake in the midst of a terse conversation.
That said, Lee is setting himself up for more holes to get poked into his arguments.
In addition to employees and media, Lee’s desired entrance is also for patrons with disabilities. That’d explain the ticket scanner.
Did the Knicks previously tell Lee not to use this entrance? I still don’t blindly believe that, though it’s worth noting just how insistent he is. (On the other hand, he was also insistent about the handshake.)
There’s also room for gray area. Perhaps, the Knicks told someone close to Lee and the message never reached the famous director. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Knicks answer Lee’s challenge of producing documentation telling Lee (or someone) about an entrance-policy change.
No matter how this goes from here…
1. People want to side with Lee over Dolan.
2. It’s not good for the Knicks to have their most visibly loyal fan speaking about them this way.
3. It’s not good for the Knicks to have a high-paying customer viewing them this way.
The Knicks should have avoided this entire drama in the first place. If Lee wants to use a certain entrance, they should have accommodated him. This is now an unwinnable fight for the Knicks.