Chris “Mad Dog” Russo is one of the masters of sports talk radio, in part because he can make mountains out of molehills like few others.
He found a great one while scanning the celebrities sitting courtside during Game 4 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden.
The New York Knicks completed an historic comeback for the ages on Wednesday, reversing a 29-point deficit to defeat the San Antonio Spurs and put themselves one game from their first NBA championship since 1973.
The who’s who of celebrities sitting courtside was as much a storyline on the evening as what was happening on the court. And while most viewers were focused on people like Taylor Swift, Jerry Seinfeld, Timothee Chalamet, or Ben Stiller, Russo spotted someone else in the crowd. Someone he felt should have known better than to show his face that night as the team he owns, the New York Mets, continues to struggle.
“I did not like the idea that Steve Cohen was at the Knick game the other night,” Russo told Kelley Franco on the Three Inning Fan Show. “The Mets stink. They’re losing the game 7-2 and Steve Cohen sitting there courtside during a Knick game. Really? I mean, geez.
The Mets came into the 2026 MLB season with high hopes, but it’s been a nightmare so far. At 30-38, the Mets are in dead last in the NL East, and eventually lost 9-2 to the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday while the Knicks were winning.
“When you have put together this kind of team, suffer with the fans,” he added. “That bothered me. A lot of people wouldn’t care. I thought that was a very bad look. I really did. That’s not having a clue.
“He’s sitting courtside. He’s not sitting in a suite. So the whole world saw him with a Met hat on that look. And the Mets are getting killed by the Cardinals. Boy, oh boy, that is a bad look for an owner. It really is.”
Did anyone else on the planet care that Steve Cohen was at the Knicks game that night? Probably not. But that’s not gonna stop Russo from finding the angle.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.