Brooklyn Nets

The **Brooklyn Nets** are an American professional basketball team based in New York City in the borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at Barclays Center. They are one of two NBA teams located in New York City; the other are the New York Knicks. The team was established in 1967 as a charter franchise of the NBA's rival league, the American Basketball Association (ABA). They played in New Jersey as the **New Jersey Americans** during their first season, before moving to Long Island in 1968 and changing their name to the **New York Nets**. During this time, the Nets won two ABA championships (in 1974 and 1976). In 1976, the ABA merged with the NBA, and the Nets were absorbed into the NBA along with three other ABA teams (the San Antonio Spurs, Indiana Pacers and Denver Nuggets, all of whom remain in the league today).

In 1977, the team returned to New Jersey and played as the **New Jersey Nets** from 1977 to 2012. During this time, the Nets won two consecutive Eastern Conference championships (in the 2001–02 and 2002–03 seasons), but failed to win a league title. In the summer of 2012, the team moved to Barclays Center, and took its current geographic name.[10]

## History[edit]

Main article: History of the Brooklyn Nets

Further information: Brooklyn Nets accomplishments and records

The Brooklyn Nets were founded in 1967 and initially played in Teaneck, New Jersey, as the New Jersey Americans. In its early years, the team led a nomadic existence, moving to Long Island in 1968 and playing in various arenas there as the New York Nets.[11]

Led by Hall of Famer Julius "Dr. J" Erving, the Nets won two ABA championships in New York before becoming one of four ABA teams to be admitted into the NBA as part of the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. The team then moved back to New Jersey in 1977 and became the New Jersey Nets. During their time in that state, the Nets saw periods of losing and misfortune intermittent with several periods of success, which culminated in two consecutive NBA Finals appearances in the 2001–02 and 2002–03 seasons by teams led by point guard Jason Kidd.

After playing 35 seasons in New Jersey, the team moved back to the state of New York, changed its geographic name to Brooklyn, and began playing in the new Barclays Center, starting with the 2012–13 NBA season.[10][12]

## Rivalries[edit]

### Boston Celtics[edit]

The Boston Celtics were once rivals of the Nets during the early 2000s because of their respective locations and their burgeoning stars. The Nets were led by Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin, while the Celtics were experiencing newfound success behind Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker. The rivalry began to heat up in the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals, which was preceded by trash-talking from the Celtics[13] who claimed Martin was a "fake" tough guy. Things progressed as the series started, and on-court tensions seemed to spill into the stands. Celtic fans berated Kidd and his family with chants of "Wife Beater!"[14] in response to Kidd's 2001 domestic abuse charge. When the series returned to New Jersey, Nets fans responded, with some brandishing signs that read "Will someone please stab Paul Pierce?"[15] referring to a night club incident in 2000 in which Pierce was stabbed 11 times. When asked about the fan barbs being traded, Kenyon Martin stated, "Our fans hate them, their fans hate us." Bill Walton said at the time that Nets-Celtics was the "beginning of the next great NBA rivalry" during the Eastern Conference Finals in 2002 with the Nets advancing to the NBA Finals, though New Jersey swept Boston in the 2003 playoffs.

On November 28, 2012 there were indications that the rivalry might be rekindled when an altercation occurred on the court, resulting in the ejection of Rajon Rondo, Gerald Wallace, and Kris Humphries. Rondo was suspended for two games in the aftermath, while Wallace and Kevin Garnett were fined.[16] The story was revisited on December 25, when Wallace grabbed Garnett's shorts and the two had to be broken up by referees and players alike.

However, the rivalry between the Nets and the Celtics appeared significantly cooled off by the June 2013 blockbuster trade that dealt Celtics stars Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Nets in exchange for Wallace, Humphries, and others. This move was billed as a merger of the two Atlantic Division teams.[17] Celtics announcer Sean Grande said, "It's almost as if you found a great home for these guys. You couldn't have found a better place. These guys will be in the New York market, they'll be on a competitive team, they'll stay on national TV. It's funny, because the enemy of my enemy is my friend. So with Celtics fans feeling the way they do about the Heat, feeling the way they do about the Knicks, the Nets are going to become almost the second [Boston] team now."[18]

### New York Knicks[edit]

Main article: Knicks–Nets rivalry

The Knicks–Nets rivalry has historically been a geographical one, with the Knicks playing in Madison Square Garden in the New York City borough of Manhattan, while the Nets played in the suburban area of Long Island and in New Jersey, and since 2012 have been playing at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Media outlets have noted the Knicks–Nets rivalry's similarity to those of other New York City teams, such as the Major League Baseball (MLB) Subway Series rivalry between the American League (AL)'s New York Yankees and the National League (NL)'s New York Mets, and the National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the National Football Conference (NFC)'s New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC)'s New York Jets, the result of the boroughs' proximity through the New York City Subway. Historically, the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn competed via the Dodgers–Giants rivalry, when the two teams were known as the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants. Like the Knicks and Nets, the Giants and Dodgers played in Manhattan and Brooklyn, respectively, and were fierce divisional rivals.[19] The rivalry between the New York Islanders and New York Rangers of the National Hockey League has also taken on a similar dimension since the Islanders moved to Barclays Center in 2015.[20] Due to the Knicks being located in Manhattan and the Nets being located in Brooklyn, some media outlets have dubbed this rivalry "Clash of the Boroughs".[21][22]

### Toronto Raptors[edit]

A rivalry with the Toronto Raptors had begun in 2004, when then-Raptors guard/forward Vince Carter had been traded to the then-New Jersey Nets.[23][24] However, the two teams did not meet in the playoffs until 2007, when the Nets defeated the Raptors in the first round series, 4–2, after a go-ahead shot by Richard Jefferson with 8 seconds left in Game 6 led to a 98–97 victory.[25] Seven years later, the two teams met again in the first round, and the series went to seven games, with a game-winning block by Paul Pierce, giving the Nets the 104–103 victory.[26] The series was also noted for controversy when Toronto Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri made derogatory remarks towards Brooklyn at a fan rally outside Maple Leaf Square in Toronto before Game 1. Ujiri later apologized at halftime.[27]

## Culture[edit]

### Mascot[edit]

Cover to *BrooklyKnight #1*, distributed at the Brooklyn Nets home opener. Art by Mike Deodato.

The mascot of the New Jersey Nets was **Sly the Silver Fox**, who debuted on October 31, 1997 as part of the rebranding of the Nets for the 1997–98 season.[28] Prior to that, the Nets' mascot was an anthropomorphic dragon named **Duncan the Dragon**.[29]

After the Nets' move to Brooklyn, the team introduced a new superhero mascot named **BrooklyKnight** (a pun on the demonym"Brooklynite") on November 3, 2012. In his first appearance, he was lowered from the ceiling of the Barclays Center amid sparks and fanfare and introduced by Nets PA announcer David Diamante: "Here to defend Brooklyn, he's the BrooklyKnight." The mascot was co-created by Marvel Entertainment, a sister company to NBA broadcasters ABC and ESPN. The character also starred in 32-page comic book published by Marvel titled *BrooklyKnight #1*, written by Jason Aaron with art by Mike Deodato.[30][31] After the Nets' second season in Brooklyn, the BrooklyKnight mascot was retired.[32]

### Team anthem[edit]

On November 3, 2012, the Nets introduced a new team anthem titled "Brooklyn: Something To Lean On", written and recorded by Brooklyn-born musician John Forté.[33] The song is notable for its refrain, which features the "Brooklyn" chant that has been popular with fans in the Barclays Center.[34]

## Management[edit]

The Nets' front office in 2016 included Mikhail Prokhorov (principal owner), Brett Yormark (CEO), Sean Marks (general manager), and Jeff Gewirtz (executive vice president, business Affairs & chief legal officer).[35]

### Ownership history[edit]

The original owner of the Nets franchise was trucking magnate Arthur J. Brown, who was the founder of the American Basketball Association team that was then known as the New Jersey Americans in 1967. The next year, Brown renamed the franchise to the New York Nets following a move to Long Island, and sold the team for $1.1 million to entrepreneur Roy Boe.[36] Due to financial losses suffered while the team was in Long Island, Boe moved the team back to New Jersey in 1977 and sold the team a year later to a group of seven local businessmen led by Alan N. Cohen and Joseph Taub, who became known as the "Secaucus Seven".[37]

After a lengthy ownership of the franchise and numerous attempts to improve the financial situation of the team, the "Secaucus Seven" finally sold the team in 1998 to a group of local real estate developers led by Raymond Chambers and Lewis Katz,[38] who called themselves the "Community Youth Organization" and wanted to move the team to Newark, New Jersey. The next year the group signed an agreement with New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner to form YankeeNets, a holding company that owned the two teams, and later also the New Jersey Devils, and increase leverage in future broadcast contracts by negotiating together. After receiving offers from numerous broadcast partners, including what was then their current rights holder Cablevision, YankeeNets decided to launch its own regional sports television called the YES Network.

YankeeNets failed in its attempts to secure a deal with Newark to construct a new arena in the city. By that point in time, tensions between the management of the Yankees, Nets, and the Devils had cause a rift between them, and a decision was made to split the group up.[39] With their plan to move the Nets dead, the Community Youth Organization placed the team on sale. After a short bidding process, the group secured a deal in 2004 with real estate developer Bruce Ratner to buy the team for $300 million, defeating a similar offer by Charles Kushner and Senator Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey. Ratner had purchased the team with the intent of moving it to a new arena in Brooklyn, which was to be a centerpiece of the large-scale Atlantic Yards development.[40]

Mikhail Prokhorov, a Russian billionaire and current owner of the Nets

On September 24, 2009, Mikhail Prokhorov, Russia's third-richest man according to *Forbes*, confirmed his intention to become majority owner of the Nets. Prokhorov sent an offer to the team owners requesting that the control shareholding of the basketball club be sold to his company, Onexim, for a symbolic price. In return, Prokhorov funded a loan for the construction of a $700 million arena in Brooklyn which was later named the Barclays Center, and attracted additional funds from Western banks. Prokhorov stated that he initiated the deal to help push Russian basketball to a new level of development.[41] On May 11, 2010, following approval from the other owners of the NBA, Prokhorov had become a principal owner of the Nets.[42]

In late 2017, there were multiple reports of an agreement for Prokhorov to sell a 49% stake in the team to Joseph Tsai, the executive vice president of the Alibaba Group, with an option for Tsai to become the majority owner.[43][44]

## Season-by-season records[edit]

Main article: List of Brooklyn Nets seasons

## Facilities[edit]

### Practice facilities[edit]

The Nets' practice facility and headquarters for the team's basketball operations are located at the **Hospital for Special Surgery Training Center** (HSS Center) in the Industry Citycomplex in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn. The facility opened on February 17, 2016 and is built on the roof of an empty warehouse in the complex, occupying 70,000 square feet of space in total. The renovation project cost roughly $50 million.[46] The opening of the training center completed the Nets' move to Brooklyn.

The team's previous practice facility was at the 65,000-square-foot **PNY Center** in East Rutherford, New Jersey, which opened in 1998.[47] Prior to that, the team practiced at the **APA Recreation Center** in North Bergen, New Jersey, sharing their lockers and practice courts with truck drivers who used the facility.[47]

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in November 2012, PNY Center suffered power outage and extensive water damage due to flooding, and for several months, the team used the smaller training spaces and practice courts inside the Barclays Center instead.[48]

## Players and coaches[edit]

Main articles: Brooklyn Nets all-time roster and List of Brooklyn Nets head coaches

### Retained draft rights[edit]

The Nets hold the draft rights to the following unsigned draft picks who have been playing outside the NBA. A drafted player, either an international draftee or a college draftee who isn't signed by the team that drafted him, is allowed to sign with any non-NBA teams. In this case, the team retains the player's draft rights in the NBA until one year after the player's contract with the non-NBA team ends.[49] This list includes draft rights that were acquired from trades with other teams.

### Franchise leaders[edit]

**Bold** denotes still active with the team. *Italics* denotes still active, but not with the team. "Name\*" includes points scored for the team while in the ABA.

Points scored (regular season) (as of the end of the 2016–17 season)[52]
1. *Brook Lopez* (10,444)
2. Buck Williams (10,440)
3. *Vince Carter* (8,834)
4. *Richard Jefferson* (8,507)
5. Jason Kidd (7,373)
6. John Williamson\* (7,202)
7. Julius Erving\* (7,104)
8. Kerry Kittles (7,096)
9. Derrick Coleman (6,930)
10. Chris Morris (6,762)
11. Mike Gminski (6,415)
12. Billy Paultz\* (6,297)
13. Bill Melchionni\* (6,230)
14. Otis Birdsong (5,968)
15. Keith Van Horn (5,700)
16. Albert King (5,595)
17. Kendall Gill (4,932)
18. Darwin Cook (4,699)
19. Kenny Anderson (4,655)
20. *Deron Williams* (4,609)
21. Kenyon Martin (4,269)
22. Rick Barry\* (4,252)
23. *Joe Johnson* (4,240)
24. Stephon Marbury (3,963)
25. Bernard King (3,901)
26. Brian Taylor\* (3,804)
27. Dražen Petrović (3,798)
28. *Devin Harris* (3,747)
29. Darryl Dawkins (3,687)
30. Walt Simon\* (3,634)

Other Statistics (regular season) (as of the end of the 2016–17 season)[52]

 Jason Kidd
 Kerry Kittles

 Billy Paultz\*
 Derrick Coleman
 Mike Gminski

 Bill Melchionni\*
 Kenny Anderson
 Darwin Cook

 Darwin Cook
 Kerry Kittles
 Chris Morris
 Kendall Gill

 George Johnson
 Buck Williams
 Mike Gminski
 Derrick Coleman

### Retired numbers[edit]

See also: List of National Basketball Association retired jersey numbers

### Basketball Hall of Famers[edit]

**Notes:**

* 1 Played or coached for the team when they were known as New York Nets.
* 2 Played or coached for the team during its time in ABA.
* 3 In total, Daly was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as coach and as a member of the 1992 Olympic team.

#### FIBA Hall of Famers[edit]

 No.
 **3** | Dražen Petrović

## Individual awards[edit]

### NBA Individual Awards[edit]

NBA Rookie of the Year
* Buck Williams – 1982
* Derrick Coleman – 1991

NBA Executive of the Year
* Rod Thorn – 2002

J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award
* Wayne Ellington – 2016

All-NBA First Team
* Jason Kidd – 2002, 2004

All-NBA Second Team
* Buck Williams – 1983
* Jason Kidd – 2003

All-NBA Third Team
* Derrick Coleman – 1993, 1994
* Dražen Petrović – 1993
* Stephon Marbury – 2000

NBA All-Defensive First Team
* Jason Kidd – 2002, 2006

NBA All-Defensive Second Team'
* Buck Williams – 1988
* Jason Kidd – 2003–2005, 2007

NBA All-Rookie First Team
* Bernard King – 1978
* Buck Williams – 1982
* Derrick Coleman – 1991
* Keith Van Horn – 1998
* Kenyon Martin – 2001
* Brook Lopez – 2009
* Mason Plumlee – 2014

NBA All-Rookie Second Team
* Chris Morris – 1989
* Kerry Kittles – 1997
* Richard Jefferson – 2002
* Nenad Krstić – 2004
* Marcus Williams – 2007
* MarShon Brooks – 2012
* Bojan Bogdanović – 2015

### ABA Individual Awards[edit]

ABA Most Valuable Player Award
* Julius Erving – 1974–1976

ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player
* Julius Erving – 1974, 1976

ABA Rookie of the Year Award
* Brian Taylor – 1973

All-ABA Team First Team'
* Rick Barry – 1971, 1972
* Bill Melchionni – 1972
* Julius Erving – 1974–1976

All-ABA Team Second Team
* Brian Taylor – 1975

ABA All-Defensive Team
* Mike Gale – 1974
* Brian Taylor – 1975, 1976
* Julius Erving – 1976

ABA All-Rookie Team
* John Roche – 1972
* Jim Chones – 1973
* Brian Taylor – 1973
* Larry Kenon – 1974
* John Williamson – 1974
* Kim Hughes – 1976

### NBA All-Star Weekend[edit]

NBA All-Star Game
* Buck Williams – 1982, 1983, 1986
* Otis Birdsong – 1984
* Micheal Ray Richardson – 1985
* Kenny Anderson – 1994
* Derrick Coleman – 1994
* Jayson Williams – 1998
* Stephon Marbury – 2001
* Jason Kidd – 2002–2004, 2007,[a] 2008
* Kenyon Martin – 2004
* Vince Carter – 2005–2007
* Devin Harris – 2009
* Deron Williams – 2012
* Brook Lopez – 2013
* Joe Johnson – 2014

NBA All-Star Game head coaches
* Byron Scott – 2002

## NBA D-League/G League affiliation[edit]

The Nets signed an agreement with the Springfield Armor to become its exclusive NBA Development League affiliate starting in the 2011–12 season. This made the Nets the second team to opt for a D-League "hybrid affiliation", the first being the Houston Rockets with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Springfield ownership maintained control over business, marketing, and day-to-day operations, with the Nets having control over coaching and player decisions. This hybrid model was well received by GMs and owners.[53] However, after three seasons, the Pistons purchased the Armor from its former owners, and moved and renamed the team the Grand Rapids Drive.[54]

On November 6, 2015, the Nets announced that they had purchased a new D-League team to be called the Long Island Nets. The team played their home games during the 2016–17 season at the Barclays Center and then at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York after renovations were complete for the 2017–18 season. The Long Island Nets became the twelfth D-League team to be owned by an NBA team.[55]

## Media[edit]

See also: List of Brooklyn Nets broadcasters

The television home of the Nets is currently the YES Network, which the team helped create while they were under the corporate umbrella of YankeeNets LLC, a merger of business operations between the Nets and the New York Yankees. After the dissolution of YankeeNets and Bruce Ratner's purchase of the team, YES signed a long-term deal to keep broadcasting Nets games. The sale to the Ratner group did not include the percentage of YES that was previously owned by the Nets, which remains with the pre-merger Nets owners. Prior to that, the Nets' TV home was Fox Sports Net New York and SportsChannel New York.

The team's local broadcast partner is WWOR-TV, and games have aired on WLNY-TV in the past as well.

The current flagship radio station of the Nets is WFAN, which took over the radio rights to the Nets after losing their basketball contract with the Knicks (who moved to WEPN). Prior to that, Nets games aired on WNEW, WMCA, WVNJ, WNBC, WQEW, and WOR.

In the club's early ABA years, some Sunday road games were televised in a package carried by WPIX. The team's later ABA tenure featured more frequent road telecasts on their current broadcast partner, WWOR-TV. Known then as WOR-TV, it continued airing road games for a time once the team joined the NBA in 1976.

### Television[edit]

Ian Eagle has television duties for the Nets after the departure of Marv Albert in 2011. Eagle became the lead television voice for the team in 1995 after serving as the team's radio voice for one year, while Albert joined the Nets following his firing by MSG Network in 2005 after four decades as the lead voice of the New York Knicks. When Albert joined the broadcast team, he became the lead broadcaster with Eagle as his substitute; beginning in the 2009–10 season, due to Albert's advancing age and his other commitments, Eagle once again assumed the lead play-by-play spot. As of the 2011–12 season, Eagle is the sole lead announcer after Albert decided to move to CBS Sports for both NFL and NCAA basketball, in addition to his work on the NBA on TNT. Ryan Ruocco substitutes for Eagle during the latter's CBS NFL and NCAA commitments.

Joining Eagle in the booth for 2013 are former NBA player and ex-Net Donny Marshall and longtime Nets analyst Jim Spanarkel. Marshall replaced Mike Fratello as the lead analyst following the 2012–13 season and Spanarkel shares duties with him as he has in the past with other announcers.

### Radio[edit]

WFAN is the Nets' current radio flagship, the station having assumed radio rights from WOR following the 2003–04 season. Chris Carrino and Tim Capstraw comprise the broadcast team, Carrino on play-by-play and Capstraw as the analyst.

Other broadcasters who have worked for the Nets include Howard David, Bob Papa, Bill Raftery, Kelly Tripucka, Albert King, Mike O'Koren, Spencer Ross, Mel Proctor, Joe Tait, John Sterling, Mike DiTomasso, WFAN update man John Minko and Mark Jackson.

Nets games have also aired on WNEW and WQEW in the past.

During the club's ABA years, announcers included Marty Glickman, Marv Albert's brothers Al Albert and Steve Albert, baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson, Bob Goldsholl, as well as Sterling and DiTomasso. The latter two joined the club's move into the NBA.