NBA's New York Knicks Owner Sued For Sexual Assault In Relation To Harvey Weinstein

A woman by the name of Kellye Croft has initiated a lawsuit against James Dolan, the Executive Chairman of Madison Square Garden Sports Corp., accusing him of sex trafficking and sexual assault. 

Croft, in legal documents obtained by The Blast, claims that Dolan followed in his friend Harvey Weinstein's predatory ways despite his consistent denial of knowledge of the latter's misdeeds.

In Croft's filing, Dolan is accused of utilizing his power and influence to exploit a young woman for his own lewd desires. According to her, she and the owner of the New York Knicks first met in 2013 when she was 27 and he was 58. 

At that time, she was working as a Licensed Massage Therapist on tour with the rock band the Eagles — a tour that Dolan allegedly played a significant role in financing. The executive chairman of MSG Network had opened for the band with his own band, JD & The Straight Shot.  

Croft initially met Dolan in the professional context of performing a massage. However, Dolan allegedly manipulated her into a sexual relationship, and in January 2014, he orchestrated her inclusion in the tour in Los Angeles.

Despite the purported work assignment as a massage therapist, Croft claims that Dolan trafficked her under fraudulent pretenses. As it turned out, the now-68-year-old facilitated and aided Weinstein in meeting Croft.

She allegedly met Weinstein waiting by the hotel's elevators, paid for by Dolan. There, the disgraced former film producer struck up a conversation with her, suggesting that he already knew who she was because of Dolan. 

Harvey Weinstein managed to convince her to give him a massage in his hotel suite. Once in his hotel suite, he changed into a bathrobe and attempted to intimidate Croft into providing him with a naked massage on his bed, physically preventing her from leaving his room at one point. 

Although she managed to convince Weinstein that she would give him a massage if she could retrieve her massage table from her hotel room, he followed her to her room, forcibly pushed her door open, and proceeded to sexually assault her, according to the court documents. 

Following the attack by Weinstein, she immediately informed Dolan about what transpired. The details of the "vile attacks" would later make up the lyrics of Dolan's song, "I Should've Known."

Per the documents, in 2018, Dolan emailed his "friends," introducing a new song he composed, specifying that it conveyed his sentiments regarding friends accused of using their "power to coerce or force sexual gratification."

As far as Croft is concerned, that was an unmistakable allusion to his former best friend and now-convicted sexual predator, Harvey Weinstein, who had recently been revealed as a serial perpetrator of rape and sexual assault.

Croft asserts that despite Dolan's purported innocence in connection with Weinstein, he affirmed to her after she relayed the 71-year-old's attack that "we all know" Weinstein "has problems." In fact, Dolan insisted that "his friends" were attempting to get Weinstein the "help" he needed.

The heat continues to build for the former film boss as everything continues to evolve, and now his friends are caught in the crossfire.

Months before Dolan got slammed with this lawsuit, The Blast reported that his pal was experiencing difficulty assembling a new legal team to appeal his verdict in Los Angeles. The reason for that would be the supposed unwillingness of lawyers in Los Angeles to work with Weinstein on the case. 

"I wouldn't get near that m——— with a ten-foot pole," declared one lawyer, as another pointed out, "He needs a new strategy to even have a fighting chance." 

Similarly, a high-profile lawyer found it interesting that Weinstein is challenging the witness' credibility, stating:

"To question the credibility of the state's witnesses, you have to offer a compelling counter-narrative. To do that, you need a lawyer who is a great communicator, who sends a message to the jury with their presence."

They added, "Not to sound like a fossil, but I think he needs to hire a woman." The male lawyer's advice to Weinstein seems odd to onlookers, especially considering his previous legal representative, Jacqueline Sparagna, is a woman.

It is because of the criminal defense lawyer's separation from the case for reasons undisclosed that Harvey Weinstein is looking for new counsel.