Overview
Ten-year NBA veteran Cuttino Mobley claims that the Knicks, in order to save money on the NBA’s “luxury tax,” forced him to retire by sending him to doctors the Knicks knew would use his heart condition, called "HCM," as grounds to refuse clearing him to play. Judge Batts had dismissed the case last June (see prior post here), but Judge Batts ruled Friday that an amended complaint added the detail that was lacking before:
Accepting as true the factual allegations in Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint, several prominent cardiologists have determined that there was no material change in the thickness of the walls of Plaintiff’s heart (and, thus, in his heart condition) between the beginning of his professional basketball career and the present time, and that Plaintiff was as medically fit to play in Fall 2008 as he was in 1998 and 2012. (Am. Compl. ¶¶ 2, 53.) Plaintiff was medically cleared to play each season for ten consecutive years, including two months prior to his trade to the Knicks. (Id. ¶¶24, 33.) Plaintiff further alleges that reports published in sources respected in the scientific cardiology community have concluded that the risks associated with HCM decrease with age. (Id. ¶ 54.) Together, these allegations make it plausible that Plaintiff was as qualified to play professional basketball in Fall 2008 for the Knicks as he was during the period of 1999 to September 2008, when he was medically cleared to play for the Houston Rockets, the Orlando Magic, the Sacramento Kings, and the Los Angeles Clippers. (Id. ¶¶ 17-20, 24, 33.)
