By Hunter Walker 12/28/12 6:29pm

Blast From The Past

Patrick Ewing circa 1985. (Photo: Getty)

Could Patrick Ewing Be Coming Back to New York?

After over a decade playing and coaching in other cities, Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing might have a shot to return to New York, the home where he spent fifteen seasons building his Hall of Fame career with the Knicks. However, the speculation surrounding Mr. Ewing doesn’t involve his old team, it is centered on the Knicks’ new outerborough rivals, the Brooklyn Nets, who are in the midst of a sudden makeover of their coaching staff and could have newfound room for Mr. Ewing on their bench. Read More

By Kara Bloomgarden-Smoke 9/28/12 4:32pm

books

The Nets

Jake Appleman Nets a Book Deal

Sportswriter Jake Appleman has inked a deal with Scribner to cover the Brooklyn Nets debut season. Mr. Appleman has written about basketball for The New York Times, NBA.com, Vibe and NBC Sport and is a senior writer at SLAM magazine. Mr. Appleman tweeted the news this afternoon.

Other sportswriters throughout Brooklyn  are surely kicking themselves Read More

By The Editors 9/25/12 7:42pm

Editorials

A Treat Grows in Brooklyn

The new Barclays Center in downtown Brooklyn has become a reality after nearly a decade of discussion, debate, compromise—and hard work. The neighborhood, the borough and indeed the entire city will reap the project’s benefits for decades to come. Developer Bruce Ratner deserves congratulations for his determination and his vision, now realized.

The centerpiece of Mr. Ratner’s arena is, of course, the Brooklyn Nets, which will become the borough’s first major-league sports team since the Dodgers left after the 1957 baseball season. But the Barclays Center is more than just another state-of-the-art playground for great athletes. It’s also a world-class concert venue, as Jay-Z will demonstrate with a week of concerts to celebrate the opening, beginning Sept. 28. And it will play host to the work of local artists who will celebrate and commemorate the borough’s history and culture. Three commissioned works are in the final stages of installation, with more to come.  Read More

By Kit Dillon 1:48pm

An Arena Grows in Brooklyn

Will anyone be wrapping about "blue and white, blue and white, blue and white" any time soon? (Kit Dillon)

The Barclays Center: Built for a Bank, Not for Brooklyn or the Nets

Welcome to the grand opening of the Barlcays Center—through the Calvin Klein VIP entrance, past the American Express box office and into the Geico atrium—the sometimes home of the Brooklyn Nets. Because in truth, this is the bank’s home and everybody else are its guests. Today it is the press corps’ turn, and we have been welcomed in the grandest of style. Fresh orange juice, hot quiche and chocolate-covered strawberries abound, though none of the twee Brooklyn food that will soon be sold at the very Brooklyn concession stands.

As one reporter mentioned to another, “Remember the good ol’ days?” Would that be when Brooklyn had a team or when journalists could afford their own meals, or even a few sweet years ago, when this was still a hole in the ground, neighbor fought neighbor and the banks were booming?

Barclays and its backers are certainly aiming for a fond nostalgia at the corner of Flatbush and Atlantic. Read More

By Matt Chaban 9/13/12 12:49pm

An Arena Grows in Brooklyn

7 Photos

Barclays' Branding Slam Dunk

Just How Bad Are the Giant Ads All Over the Barclays Center?

We were actually expecting a lot worse, really. Preliminary renderings showed a giant blue crest and the Barclays name emblazoned beside it, not unlike the huge logos atop the Staples Center in L.A. (and the neighboring Nokia Theater). Instead, the photos revealed yesterday by the WCBS chopper show a small, even diminutive logo that barely dominates the large white roof atop the new SHoP-designed arena. Read More

By Matt Chaban 8/30/12 5:54pm

An Arena Grows in Brooklyn

Jumpin' off? (Property Shark)

The Nets Really Are Pushing the Brooklyn Thing: Team May Open Practice Facility in Redhook

Could it get any more Brooklyn than Red Hook? From On the Waterfront to that new Spike Lee movie you haven’t seen, the neighborhood is just off the grid enough to keep nostalgic hipsters feeling like they live in some far away place that is anything but Manhattanized (never mind the IKEA and high-end restaurant scene). But just as the Barclays Center has transformed the nexus of Park Slope and Fort Greene (for the worse, at least in certain [fresh] eyes), might a new Nets training facility do the same to Red Hook? Read More

By Drew Grant 7/17/12 2:39pm

sports

Kris Humphries: Nothing but Nets (Getty Images)

Kris Humphries’ $24 Million Payday With Brooklyn Nets Causing Him to Self-Destruct

Beleaguered wax-man Kris Humphries has had a rough twelve months. The NBA lockouts had us fearing that he would forever be employed as Mr. Kardashian, until negotiations broke down on that front as well, leaving him booted from Team Kim shortly after their fairytale wedding. (“Fairytale” in the sense that it was entirely made up and in no way based on reality.)

His refusal to sign the divorce papers have lead to an ugly court case, with allegations of cheating, stalking, sex-tape set-ups, and a bunch of other sociopathic behavior on both sides. On occasion, he’s been booed off the court before he could even foul.

But now things are looking up for Mr. Humphries. The Brooklyn Nets (previously of New Jersey) have re-signed the power forward with a two year contract for $24 million. Read More

By Drew Grant 6/26/12 3:21pm

sports

The Brooklyn Nets' parked billboard (Twitter)

Deron Williams Wooed By Nets’ Birthday Billboard

Deron Williams is a hot commodity right now: The NBA player almost single-handedly turned around the New Jersey Nets’ subpar season when he scored a personal and team-breaking record of 57 points off the Charlotte Bobcats in March. (Not to mention that this was the NBA’s season record high as well.) Comparisons to Kobe Bryant were inevitable, since he’s the only player to beat the Bobcats with more points than Mr. Williams. Read More

By Bryan Joiner 6/14/12 12:35pm

Brooklyn Nets

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Nets Debut Dance Team (Containing Only One Native Brooklynite) and Its Cheeky Moniker: The Brooklynettes

The Observer lankered out to Brooklyn Bowl last night still trying to square the circle of a professional sports team moving to unkempt Brooklyn, but the team is doing its best job to erase that dissonance by inviting us to some killer parties before the losing starts. This particular party? Cheerleader tryouts. If you insist.

We were there to watch 27 dancers compete in an “American Idol”-like competition to determine the final spots on the dance squad, whose name at the event was revealed to be the cheeky “Brooklynettes.” Read More