The Knicks and the Heat were fierce rivals in the 1990s and faced off four straight times in the playoffs from 1997 to 2000. The two teams had disdain for each other and players would often get embroiled in heated arguments and skirmishes on the court. The rivalry reached a boiling point in 1998, as a brawl erupted between the two teams. Tim Hardaway played peacemaker and held back Charles Oakley despite him being an opponent.
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During an appearance on All the Smoke, hosts Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes asked the former Heat star about the brawl and specifically why he prevented the Knicks forward from entering the scuffle and risked getting hit. Hardaway said,
“I know [Charles Oakley] wasn’t going to swing back on me because we’re cool. Anybody else I probably would’ve come with an elbow.”
During his playing career, Oakley was infamous for being a brutal enforcer. In 1994, he got into a physical altercation with Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, as the two stars swung their arms at each other.
30 years ago today, Charles Barkley slapped Charles Oakley during one of their many altercations.
Oakley on the 99 NBA Lockout incident via his book: “I did not punch Barkley. I did, however, slap the s**t out of him.”
@NBACobwebs pic.twitter.com/dDt76n5oUu
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) February 28, 2024
One of the biggest fights of Oakley’s career was with SuperSonics forward, Xavier McDaniel. The two got caught up following a possession and ended up swinging at each other in the stands.
Xavier McDaniel vs. Charles Oakley: December 16, 1989.
Both men were ejected, fined $7,500 and suspended for one game. pic.twitter.com/Ycx0fVwTmd
— NBA Cobwebs (@NBACobwebs) December 16, 2020
Given Oakley’s track record, it came as a shock to many that Hardaway would attempt to stop the forward. But the Heat star was one of the few opponents he was on good terms with and the duo have remained friends after retiring from the NBA.
The genesis of that infamous 1998 fight had little to do with the two teams’ disdain for each other. Knicks forward Larry Johnson and Heat icon Alonzo Mourning had unresolved issues from their time as teammates on the Hornets.
Their relationship soured before they ultimately went their separate ways. The animosity between the two came to the fore in the final seconds of Game 4 of the Heat and Knicks’ first-round series in the 1998 playoffs.
War ready.
Game 1 will be 25 years to the day for the Knicks vs Miami Heat brawl.
— Big Knick Energy (@BigKnickEnergy_) April 27, 2023
Mourning felt that Johnson delivered a cheap shot whilst the two were fighting for a rebound. As a result, the Heat forward swung at the Knicks star. Johnson retaliated with a flurry of punches. Amid the chaos, Knicks head coach, Jeff Van Gundy, clung to Mourning’s left leg.
Oakley then jumped to the frontline, which prompted Hardaway to step in and pull him away. The Knicks pulled through and won the game to tie the series at two games apiece.
Johnson and Mourning were both suspended for their actions. The latter’s absence proved costly to the Heat as they lost the series-deciding Game 5 98-81.
The Heat and Knicks’ Rivalry of the 1990s
The rivalry between the two franchises began off the court. Knicks head coach Pat Riley surprisingly resigned from his position and accepted an offer from the Heat to become the franchise’s new team president and head coach.
His sudden exit made him New York’s top public enemy. Fans showered him in boos during his return to Madison Square Garden. The Heat’s acquisition of Mourning added more fire to the feud. The forward was a college teammate of Knicks star Patrick Ewing at Georgetown and the two had a competitive rivalry.
The off-the-court drama coupled with their battle for supremacy in the playoffs led to the birth of an intense rivalry. The two teams remain rivals, but the fire has fizzled out.
