New York Knicks owner James Dolan wasn't in attendance at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for Thursday night's NBA draft -- because he was across town singing in his blues-infused rock band.
Dolan's musical ensemble, JD & The Straight Shot, charged patrons from $20 to $25 to see their Manhattan show at City Winery New York City as the Knicks contemplated how to approach one of the franchise's most important days of the year. From the City Winery website:
"Americana band JD & The Straight Shot -- featuring vocalist/guitarist Jim Dolan whose voice the New York Post calls 'reminiscent of Tom Waits and Randy Newman,' bassist Byron House (Robert Plant, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton), violinist/fiddler Erin Slaver (Martina McBride, Rod Stewart) and guitarist Marc Copely (B.B. King, Rosanne Cash) - is currently working on their forthcoming album due out in 2017."
The achingly beautiful first single 'I Know, You Know, I Know' gives an exciting taste of what's to come. The track produced by Chuck Ainlay (Mark Knopfler, Miranda Lambert), was written by Dolan, Copely and Slaver and spotlights sweeping accordion melodies performed by Shawn Pelton (Sheryl Crow, Levon Helm). The new song has been a rousing audience favorite at JD & The Straight Shot shows."
Dolan can be seen performing with his band in this video.
SB Nation's Charlotte Wilder attended the concert and provided a live play-by-play of the concert, which featured a 24-song set list:
Here's the set list for the concert James Dolan is playing with his band JD and the Straight Shot during the NBA draft. No "Fix the Knicks" pic.twitter.com/qMI920uwLK
— Charlotte Wilder (@TheWilderThings) June 22, 2017
"We didn't PLAN to have this concert on the same night as the NBA draft, for those of you wondering" says James Dolan the night of the draft pic.twitter.com/cLa7INH2Nf
— Charlotte Wilder (@TheWilderThings) June 23, 2017
Dolan has now done a "persona change" as some kind of carnival master to sing his song Ballyhoo. Top hat, scarf, glasses pic.twitter.com/AVRjFsp4Of
— Charlotte Wilder (@TheWilderThings) June 23, 2017
According to Wilder, two spectators were removed from the building during the show after shouting their displeasure with Dolan's musical skills.
The Knicks took French point guard Frank Ntilikina with the No. 8 overall pick, just the second player from France's LNB Pro A (and the first since 1999) to be taken by the franchise.
-- Nick Ostiller and Brendan C. Hall
