NETS INSIDER

  The 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia featured some great individual and team performances from the Americans.  No feat was more impressive than Vince Carter leapfrogging France's seven-footer Frédéric Weis for an incredible over the top slam dunk.  Kevin Garnett emphatically celebrated with Carter as the two future Hall of Famers and ex-Nets were etched in Olympic history.  Garnett and Carter have very different legacies with the Nets, but they shared a very cool moment in international competition. 

  Team USA knocked off Serbia 110-84 on Sunday to improve to 1-0 in their group. While all US-born basketball fans are pleased with the outcome, Nets fans will have second and third favorite teams they'll root for to grab the silver and bronze.  Jordi Fernandez, head coach of Canada and Dennis Schröder, point guard for Germany, will give the Nets faithful other rooting interests. Obviously, love for country will supercede all, but Schröder and Germany are coming off a FIBA title last year, while Canada secured third place and the U.S. fourth place.  Team USA added a lot of big names since that disappointing finish including: Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis and others.  The reshaped roster is the odds on favorite to take gold, but a good showing by Team Canada and Germany will reflect well on the Nets. 

When the New Jersey Nets left for Brooklyn after the 2011-12 season, the state, and specifically Governor Chris Christie, wished good riddance to its pro basketball franchise.  The IZOD Center in East Rutherford has  remained merely as a relic of the past. It's been utilized by studios for workspace and the filming sets to the highest bidder including the zombie classic series, The Walking Dead, among others.  Now, an existing NBA franchise may look to relocate across state lines and into the Garden State.  That team, the Philadelphia 76ers, already has its training facility located in Camden, New Jersey.  With strong opposition to build a arena in Center City Philadelphia, the state of New Jersey is making a major push for a proposed 1.3 billion arena project to call New Jersey home.  There's no clear indication that a move is imminent, but New Jersey becoming an NBA city again would be a major development.  Breaking News: The state of New Jersey is ...

  Mikal Bridges is a New York Knick. The supposed centerpiece of a Nets post-Big Three era is now a distant memory.  Sean Marks built a warchest of picks and capitalized on the Knicks overpaying for a zero-time All-Star.  The Nets will be in the Cooper Flag sweepstakes. That means plenty of losing and therein lottery balls hopefully bouncing their way.  In the meantime, the Knicks will be looking to dethrone a Celtics team that just inked Jayson Tatum to the richest contract in league history and has all of it's starters and key reserves locked up for at least the next few years.  The Sixers added Paul George, Caleb Martin and Andre Drummond to a core of a rising Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and Kelly Oubre.  The Bucks and Pacers will look to be a factor, while Miami can never be discounted with Jimmy Butler and Erik Spoelstra. The Knicks have a pathway to the finals, but after losing Isaiah Harkenstein, there's a glaring need for them at backup center. ...

 All big things start small. When the New Jersey Nets were owned by YankeesNets LLC in the early 2000's, there was a New York City real estate mogul that threw his hat in the ownership ring. His name: Bruce Ratner. He's the main impetus for the Nets moving to Brooklyn and he used the deep pockets of then minority owner Mikhail Prokhorov in 2010 to help make it happen two years later.   Prokhorov made big championship promises and mortgaged the future to chase said dreams. Once that endeavor failed, Prokhorov accomplished his mission of moving his Russian financial assets over to the United States and sold a majority stake in the team to current owner Joe Tsai in 2017.  Two years later, Tsai took full ownership control and now five years after that has sold a 15 percent stake in the team to Julia Koch of the notorious Koch family for a whooping $6 billion valuation. Are we sensing a pattern here?  Anytime the Nets have had a minority owner the last few decades, t...

  The New York Knicks went all in on the wrong star. Actually, Mikal Bridges has never been an All-Star and probably never will be one.  But the fact remains the same, Bridges was not the right move for James Dolan's Knicks. The superstar the Knicks actually needed was former Brooklyn Net savior turned John Hancock, Kevin Durant. There have been multiple reports that the Suns were willing to move off Durant and adding him to the Knicks core might make them a title favorite.  Given his age, Durant may actually cost fewer draft picks than Bridges.  Now, Isaiah Harkenstein will likely go to the highest bidder after the Knicks locked up OG Anunoby to a four-year, $213 million contract. Durant to the Knicks would have been scary hours at MSG, but I guess we'll never know. 

  The Brooklyn Nets have an embarrassment of future first round picks. In fact, they have 13 first rounders between the 2025 and 2031 NBA Drafts. And guess what? More could be on the way. Dorian Finney-Smith is a highly coveted player across the league and he might possibly net Brooklyn at least another future first rounder. Cam Johnson is a valuable 6-foot -8 wing with accuracy from long range. Teams may look to attached a future first round pick to any deal where he's included. Don't forget expiring contracts in Ben Simmons and Dennis Schröder. Teams that are looking to clear salary cap space next summer to make a play for a big free agent, will find those two players'contracts useful.  When all is said and done, Brooklyn may come close to Sam Presti and Oklahoma City's ridiculous draft stock. Nets fans are fully embracing the rebuild and Sean Marks is now well armed to build a long-term contender in Brooklyn.