Former NBA guard Cuttino Mobley filed a lawsuit against Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, accusing the New York Knicks of pressuring him to retire as a way to save approximately $19 million.
Mobley retired because of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a heart disease, shortly after the Knicks acquired him from the Los Angeles Clippers on Nov. 21, 2008. He knew he had an irregularity with the heart, but an MRI exam the team ordered after his physical revealed the more serious condition.
The lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York contends the Knicks knew of Mobley’s condition but pushed to make the trade anyway, then sent him to specialists they knew would oppose him playing, so insurance could pay his contract and it wouldn’t count against the luxury tax.
It adds that Mobley had been medically cleared to play every year of his career and had never experienced any symptoms, and that he has suffered “irreparable injury, monetary damages, mental anguish, emotional distress, humiliation, and other compensable damages as a result of defendant’s discriminatory practices.”
While we saw a similar situation with Darius Miles in Portland and I wouldn't put it past Dolan, if Mobley's condition is truly that serious then I'm not sure he has a legitimate complaint here. While it's unfortunate that his career ended the way it did, if the risk of playing had become too great then surely it was a blessing in disguise, frustrating as it may be for him.
