James Dolan Sued; Shareholder Lawsuit Alleges He Focuses Too Much on His Band

New York Knicks owner James Dolan is reportedly facing a lawsuit that argues he makes too much money for the amount of work he puts in as the executive chairman and CEO of the Madison Square Garden Company.

Marc Hogan of Pitchfork reported the news, noting the Norton C. Willcox Testamentary Trust brought the lawsuit on behalf of all the company's shareholders and alleged he makes much more than his peers in the industry even though he "works at MSG only part-time" because of the time he spends with his band JD & the Straight Shot.

Hogan cited company filings that said Dolan was paid $75.6 million over the last three fiscal years.

"By comparison, MSG's peer companies paid their CEOs an average of $17 million for the same three-year period," the complaint said. "The highest-paid peer CEO received $32.4 million, over $43 million less than James."

The complaint pointed to how many times JD & the Straight Shot toured in arguing Dolan only works part-time. The band allegedly performed in six countries and 41 U.S. cities in 2017 alone and is recording a seventh album.

"This lawsuit amounts to nothing more than corporate harassment. The company stands by its policies and practices," MSG said in a statement, per Agenda (h/t Hogan).

Dolan took over the role of executive chairman and CEO of MSG in 1999, and the Knicks have largely struggled since even though they made the NBA Finals in his first year. They made the postseason one time from the 2001-02 campaign through 2009-10 and won a single series when they made three straight playoffs from 2010-11 through 2012-13. They've also had eight top-10 draft picks to work with during his tenure.

What's more, their 17-65 mark this season was the worst in the league.