Post From Feb. 2019
The Brooklyn Nets are back in the playoffs. Many felt it would take them years to climb back from the mess Billy King created. Sean Marks took a team with no picks and no hope. Now has them positioned to be major players this summer.
The Nets are officially done rebuilding, though. Somehow the team that took bad contracts for draft picks. Brooklyn could have $56 million in cap space after they retain D’Angelo Russell, and if they can find a team to trade Allen Crabbe’s expiring deal. Which could be possible because now they have picks to spare.
The Nets are projected to have three draft picks between the 16-31 range in the 2019 NBA Draft. The Nets have an All-Star in D’Angelo Russell and young talent in Caris Levert, Jarrett Allen, and Spencer Dinwiddie.
Nobody is talking about the Nets as a premier spot for free agents. The Knicks seem to be getting all of the attention. Even though the Knicks are currently the worst team in the NBA.
So the question is, why are the Knicks getting all of this love? When the Nets are the better overall option.
First, the Nets are just a better team. Basically, all of their core returns next season. While the Knicks are only expected to bring back Kevin Knox, Mitchell Robinson, Frank Ntilikina, Dennis Smith Jr and Allonzo Trier.
The Nets are better coached and run better organizationally. Kenny Atkinson has taken a young team and made them a 6th seed.
David Fizdale’s time in New York has been brief. Fizdale has done nothing in New York or Memphis to show he can be a successful head coach.
When it comes to location, the Nets are actually better positioned than the Knicks. The Nets have a secret weapon. The Brooklyn Nets organization is actually in Brooklyn. Manhattan and Brooklyn are hotbeds for startups. Brooklyn has already been one of the hottest places to live in the city for years. The training facility is a 15-minute drive from the Barclays Center. Meaning a player for the Nets can have their whole life either in Brooklyn or in Lower Manhattan.
While The Knicks play at Madison Square Garden, the Knicks practice in Westchester. Westchester is nice but it is not New York City. The NY Post ran a story in 2016 stating how the Knicks had only six players who lived in Manhattan. Many players don’t want to deal with the New York traffic.
The Knicks pride themselves on being New York’s Team. You can be more than an athlete in New York. In a time where players are doing more off-the-court, that sounds appealing. Wouldn’t it make sense for your whole life would be in the city?
Location is not the only thing the Nets have going for them. Their lack of an identifying player has now become an asset. The Nets don’t really have a historic player that is solely theirs.
Julius Erving is associated with the Sixers. To most fans Vince Carter will always be a Raptor. Jason Kidd might be the closest thing the Nets have to a historic player to call their own. Although, Kidd played in New Jersey, not in Brooklyn. Being a star for the Nets could solidify a players’ spot in history. As the player who took over New York, in Brooklyn.
Keep in mind, Brooklyn carries less baggage than the Knicks. While giving the players the ability to have their off-the-court ambitions. You have the advantage of actually living in New York with the bonus of not having to play in a pressure cooker.
Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving could shape their legacy by making the Nets the team in New York. Taking what people consider to be a second tier team and making them the Kings of the City, the Brooklyn Nets are going to be major players this summer. The question is, which player is bold enough to be in Brooklyn?