NBA News: New York Knicks Fan Suing Madison Square Garden For Ejection Last January
A New York Knicks fan heckled Carmelo Anthony in a game way back in January 2014— a move that cost the fan his seat in the game after getting ejected from the stadium and eventually, his job.
On Tuesday, the same N.Y. fan, a certain Anthony Rotondi, filed a case in a Manhattan Supreme Court claiming that he was within his rights to taunt the Knicks star, that he did not deserve the ejection and the eventual repercussions of the ejection.
The New York Post, a NY-based website which covers the Knicks, first reported the story.
“At no point did Rotondi interfere with the game.To the contrary, Rotondi merely engaged in the type of fan-like conduct the Garden encourages each and every night that the Knicks play, and that he had engaged in at previous Knicks games at the Garden,” Rotondi’s court filings stated.
Rotondi was ejected late in the game between the Knicks and Detroit Pistons at the Madison Square Garden (MSG) on Jan. 7 when the Knicks gave up a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter before winning 89-85 that evening.
Carmelo Anthony finished with 34 points in that game.
Rotondi, one of the many frustrated fans because of the N.Y. near collapse, apparently heckled Anthony with jeers such us “Carmelo, you stink” although some witnesses are claiming that Rotondi’s choice of words were, “"Carmelo, you f---ing suck.”, which could be the reason for getting ejected from the game.
Rotondi worked as a Financial Services trader for ING before the company fired him because of the incident, according to the court file. Rotondi also added that an MSG official also called his bosses after the incident and complained about his actions and two days later, Rotondi was unemployed.
Rotondi’s suit demands that MSG reveals the employee who called ING after the incident.
MSG officials are not bothered by the case calling it “a frivolous lawsuit” and that they are even considering filing a counter-suit against Rotondi.
Be it the Knicks, Carmelo Anthony, Madison Square Garden or the Knicks fans— there is always drama in New York.
