The New York Knicks evidently want nothing to do with Zohran Mamdani, the front-runner in next month’s mayoral election who defended the extremist slogan “globalize the intifada” earlier this year and has repeatedly been accused of anti-Semitism.
The NBA team sent a legal warning to the socialist assemblyman after he used the team’s iconic branding in a campaign advertisement that not only was published on social media but aired during the Knicks’ season opener on Wednesday night.
The team’s blue and orange basketball logo was featured prominently in the ad — but instead of saying “Knicks,” it said “Zohran.” On social media, the ad was captioned, “This is our year. This is our time.”
In its cease-and-desist letter to Mamdani, obtained by the New York Post, the NBA team suggested that the ad was “likely to mislead the public into believing that the Campaign is affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by, or in some way connected with the Knicks.”
Per the team’s demand, Mamdani’s campaign removed all of the offending ads as of Friday afternoon.
“The NY Knicks have sent NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani a cease-and-desist letter for using the NY Knicks logo to promote his candidacy,” a team spokesperson told the Post. “The Knicks want to make it clear that we do not endorse Mr. Mamdani for mayor, and we object to his use of our copyrighted logo. We will pursue all legal remedies to enforce our rights.”
‘Am I angry that I’m not the one taking down Zohran the socialist and the communist?’
Dora Pekec, Mamdani’s campaign spokeswoman, said in statement obtained by Bloomberg, “Adjustments are being made to the ad, and while the Knicks might not be able to publicly support our campaign, we’re proud to publicly support our NY Knicks.”
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Photo by Michael M. Santiago / Staff via Getty Images
The latest Victory Insights poll suggests that Mamdani is poised to become New York City’s next mayor, leading disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) by over 18 percentage points, 46.7%-28.6%. The poll shows that the Republican candidate, Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa, in trailing in third place with 16.2% support.
In hopes of giving Cuomo a boost over Mamdani, Mayor Eric Adams (D) announced on Thursday that he was endorsing the former governor and did so while wearing a Knicks hat.
“Am I angry that I’m not the one taking down Zohran the socialist and the communist? You’re darn right I am,” said Adams. “But you know what? This city means more to me than anything. And it is time for us as a family to come together.”
“New York can’t be Europe, folks,” continued the mayor. “I don’t know what is wrong with people. You see what’s playing out in other countries because of Islamic extremism.”
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