Listen, I feel bad for Charles Oakley.

I really do.

Because if you’re a Knicks fan who watched the 1990s, Charles Oakley wasn’t just some guy who played for the Knicks. That man was basically the Garden’s unpaid security department. Oakley protected Patrick Ewing, protected his teammates, protected the paint, and probably protected a few fans from themselves.

And now, nine years after that absolutely insane night at Madison Square Garden, a judge has ruled against Oakley in his remaining assault-and-battery case against MSG.

And I’m sitting here thinking…

OF COURSE THIS CASE LASTED NINE YEARS.

This is the Knicks we’re talking about.

We waited 53 years for another championship.

We waited years for competent basketball.

And apparently we’re waiting until 2035 to figure out what happened to Charles Oakley in the stands!

The judge basically said: “I watched the videos. I heard the witnesses. Oakley didn’t prove MSG security assaulted him.”

Translation:

“Charles, I have watched this video more times than you watched Patrick Ewing highlights.”

And that’s where this gets complicated.

Because I feel bad for Oakley.

I understand why he feels like he was wronged. The scene was ugly. Oakley gets into an altercation with security, gets handcuffed, gets arrested, and suddenly one of the most beloved Knicks of all time is being treated like he walked into the Garden carrying a flamethrower.

But the judge looked at the evidence and said Oakley didn’t prove that MSG security used excessive force against him.

That’s the ruling.

And MSG basically came out afterward saying:

“WE WON! AGAIN!”

At this point, Madison Square Garden is treating this lawsuit like the Knicks treated the Eastern Conference this year.

WIN. WIN. WIN.

Meanwhile, Charles Oakley’s lawyers are saying they believe there are conflicting accounts and that a jury should decide what happened.

And here’s my problem with this whole thing:

We’re talking about CHARLES OAKLEY!

This is a guy who spent his career getting paid to knock people on their ass legally.

Now we’re sitting here debating whether Charles Oakley was knocked on his ass illegally!

You couldn’t write this script if you tried.

And then there’s James Dolan.

Now let me be very clear: the judge’s ruling did not find that James Dolan personally assaulted Charles Oakley.

But Dolan is still attached to this entire soap opera because this wasn’t just some random guy getting kicked out of a basketball game.

This was Charles Oakley.

A guy who helped define Knicks basketball.

A guy who was part of the culture of Madison Square Garden.

And somehow the relationship between Oakley and Dolan became so toxic that one of the most beloved Knicks of all time became persona non grata at the building where he helped create memories.

That’s the part that bothers me.

Because money changes the game.

James Dolan is a billionaire.

Charles Oakley is fighting a legal battle that has been going on for NINE YEARS.

That’s the part where I look at this thing and say:

“Well, Charles… you’re bringing a butter knife to a billionaire’s legal gunfight.”

Dolan has enough money to keep lawyers working until the next Knicks championship.

Actually…

BAD EXAMPLE.

The Knicks already won one this year!

But you get my point.

Oakley can appeal. His attorney says they hope the Second Circuit sends the case back for a jury trial.

So this thing might not be completely over.

But here’s my biggest question:

Why does this whole situation still feel so damn sad?

Because Charles Oakley should be walking into Madison Square Garden as a legend.

Not as a guy whose legal history with the building requires more chapters than the Knicks’ championship drought.

The Garden should be celebrating Oakley.

The fans should be cheering Oakley.

And Oakley and Dolan should have figured out how to sit in the same building without looking like two divorced parents fighting over who gets the dog.

Instead, we’re still talking about handcuffs, security guards, lawsuits, appeals and courtroom testimony NINE YEARS LATER.

That’s insane.

And here’s the Errol Marks bottom line:

I feel for Oakley.

The judge made his ruling based on the evidence, and that’s the legal reality.

But emotionally?

As a Knicks fan?

I hate that it ever got to this point.

Charles Oakley was supposed to be remembered for protecting Patrick Ewing, throwing elbows, grabbing rebounds, intimidating everybody who came into the Garden and being one of the toughest damn Knicks we’ve ever had.

Instead, we’re still talking about the night he got dragged into a legal battle with Madison Square Garden.

And James Dolan?

He’s still sitting on billions.

Oakley?

He’s still fighting.

That’s why this story leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Because sometimes you can win the courtroom…

AND STILL LOSE THE DAMN STORY.

And Errol Marks from the Sports Loud Mouth has one final question:

Can somebody PLEASE get Oakley and Dolan in the same room, take away the lawyers, take away the microphones, take away the security guards…

…and just let them settle this like Knicks fans have been settling arguments since 1973?

Over pizza and beer.

Because apparently that’s cheaper than another nine years in federal court!