Knicks Owner James Dolan Slams NBA For New Revenue Sharing Deal

New York Knicks owner James Dolan, a seasoned critic of the NBA’s revenue sharing, slammed the league’s new media deal.

In a letter sent Monday, Dolan outlined a critique of a potential eight percent league office cut of the new $74.6 million media deal. Dolan accused the NBA of tampering with the business model of regional sports networks and stated that it “deemphasized and depowered the local market.”

The Knicks’ chairman announced his resignation in November from his positions on the NBA’s influential advisory/finance and media committees. His resignation comes after suing the Raptors organization for stealing confidential files.

“Member teams depend on revenue received from local rights fees and local fan engagement through high-quality broadcasts that provide tailored coverage for local audiences,” New York’s owner wrote. “The proposal threatens to eliminate RSNs without a comparable replacement offered by the league and no plans to address the distribution vacuum that the league will create to disrupt the RSN industry.”

Dolan, who owns MSG, a regional sports network, was discontented with a $358 million increase in the NBA’s new media deal.

According to Dolan, the proposal “would have a negative impact on the value of each member team’s local sponsorships, including the delivery of camera-visible benefits at as few as 23 home games.”

Dolan notes that 42 million households ditched traditional paid television while his Knicks experienced a 45 percent decrease in the MSG network.

Dolan goes on to write that the NBA “will say it doesn’t matter because your franchise value will continue to rise” and that “ownership pride is what’s sacrificed.”

Article by Christian Bongiorno