ORLANDO, Fla. — "Hello everybody!" James L. Dolan shouted into the microphone in front of about 100 people who had arrived early at the Amway Center for an Eagles concert.
Most of the crowd had never heard of the opening band, J D & The Straight Shot, so Dolan introduced the group. "We're a band from New York City," he said.
That much was true. But what Dolan did not mention was that, in addition to being the band's rumble-voiced lead singer, he is the president and chief executive of Cablevision, and the owner of the Knicks.
As Dolan's band performed here on Saturday, a night after performing at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, his basketball team, the second-most expensive in the league, was in the midst of another dispiriting loss. The Knicks are a shambling, desultory group these days, stumbling through an opening month that has been worse than even pessimistic fans feared.
But as the Knicks fell to the Wizards in Washington and their fans burned, Dolan and his band fiddled through covers of '70s songs like "Let It Roll" and "White Bird."
"This is someone wealthy who is having a good time," Randy Sturdevant, a retired electrical contractor, said to his wife during the show. "This is some rich guy's hobby."
The band plays a mixture of blues and rock. In 2011, The New York Times' pop music critic, Jon Pareles, described Dolan as a "karaoke-grade singer." Dolan's son, Aidan, plays guitar in the band. But the other band members are seasoned musicians who have played with Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin and Bon Jovi, among others.
Dolan's moonlighting gigs are hardly a secret in the basketball world, although the fact he was playing in N.B.A. arenas this past weekend, and not some small New York club, would probably catch any number of people by surprise, including a lot of people who root for the Knicks. One of those fans, apparently, has hijacked the Wikipedia page for Dolan's band, renaming songs with titles like "Can't Make the Knicks Win," "Wasting Knicks Fans Time," "Reunion with Isiah in Hell" and "Try Selling the Knicks."
Dolan has, in fact, recorded a song called "Fix the Knicks," which appeared on the band's 2011 album. It begins with the line: "Everywhere I go, I hear everybody say, What you gonna do to make that team play?"
J D & The Straight Shot did not play "Fix the Knicks" on Saturday — perhaps because it would be hard to know where to start.
A team that played harmoniously for much of last season in going 54-28 is completely out of sync this time around. The extra pass is not being made, the defense is too often lax. Home-court advantage has been abandoned, with the Knicks having lost their last six games at Madison Square Garden.
And the individual headaches are many. Amar'e Stoudemire is owed $45 million through this season and next, but has turned into something of an afterthought because of his damaged knees.
Iman Shumpert, a young player who was seen to have a big upside because he can both defend and score, has instead turned into an underperforming mystery and the subject of trade rumors. In Monday's loss to Portland, he failed to register a point, rebound or assist in 23 minutes of action.
Tyson Chandler, a rock in the middle for the Knicks, is out indefinitely with a leg injury. Carmelo Anthony, the team's one bona-fide star, will opt out of his contract at the end of the season and could sign elsewhere.
All of this has resulted in a disorienting 3-10 record going into Wednesday's game in Los Angeles against the Clippers. The notion that the Knicks might be able to contend for a championship this season already seems far-fetched.
In Dolan's long run as the man in charge of the Knicks, the team has never won a title, and has often been inept. But if he has proved hapless at turning the Knicks into a consistently competitive team, he has shown some success in promoting J D & the Straight Shot. He has also appeared willing to flex his corporate muscle to boost the band.
One of the band's songs, "Can't Make Tears," has been used in the show "Hell on Wheels," which airs on AMC — a channel controlled by Cablevision. Joe Gayton, one of the show's creators, said Dolan is a huge fan of the show and let it be known he wanted one of his songs featured on it. Gayton and the producers complied. "Can't Make Tears" was also made into a music video, using various scenes from "Hell on Wheels."
The band has also opened for Willie Nelson and at other venues for the Eagles. Indeed, the Eagles played a three-night stand at the Garden earlier this month, although J D & The Straight Shot did not perform at those shows.
And on Saturday night, Dolan announced from the stage that one of the band's songs would be featured in an upcoming Meryl Streep movie, "August: Osage County."
Asked whether Dolan was using his corporate position to promote his band, and whether it was disconcerting for him to be on the road performing while his team was struggling, Barry Watkins, the Garden's executive vice president of communications, responded that The Times was pursuing a "line of unfair questioning."
"Everyone has time off of their jobs and spends free time in ways they choose," he said. "We see no reason to comment further."
Meanwhile, those in attendance Saturday night, whether they realized who Dolan was or not, seemed to more or less enjoy his band's performance.
"It was excellent music, and he seems to have a great personality," said Sturdevant, the retired contractor. "Even though you might be able to buy your way onto that stage, the Eagles would still only allow someone good to open for them."
As the set wound down, Dolan even told the audience — which by then had grown to several thousand — that they could receive a free CD in return for their email address.
"We want to thank the Eagles for letting us open up for them," Dolan said. "They're truly gracious and we're truly grateful."
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