By Adam Hart
Introduction
Located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, the Nets play in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Eastern Conference in the Atlantic Division. Before joining the NBA, the team played in the American Basketball Association (ABA). The ABA merged with the NBL to form the NBA. The team has a history of moving around and changing names, as you will discover below, so read on!
11 Fun Facts About the Brooklyn Nets
1. The team was founded in 1967 by New Jersey Americans. The following year the team moved to Long Island – New York, and rebranded as the New York Nets.
2. The team moved to New Jersey in 1977 and played as the New Jersey Nets until 2012.
3. The franchise finally moved to its current home of Brooklyn in 2012 and is now known as the Brooklyn Nets.
4. Currently, Brooklyn Nets play its home games at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The Barclays Center is a state-of-the-art Arena constructed in 2010 and opened on September 21, 2012. The project cost an estimated $1 billion.
5. The franchise is owned by Joseph Chung-Hsin Tsai, a Chinese (Hong Kong)/Canadian billionaire with a net worth of 9.4 billion USD. He purchased the team in September 2019.
6. The team’s color is black, white, and dark gray.
7. Even though the team has not won the NBA Finals, they played in the finals two times… in 2002 and 2003. So, they have 5 Atlantic Division titles and 2 Eastern Conference titles.
8. The Net’s main rivalries are the Boston Celtics, the New York Knicks, the Philadephia 7ers, and the Toronto Raptors. They all play in the same Division, the Atlantic Division.
9. The Nets have had some great players play for them, such as Jason Kidd, Dražen Petrović, Bill Melchionni, Julius Erving, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Kyrie Irving and others.
10. Although it has yet to materialize, the trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving is the most offensively talented duo in the history of the NBA.
11. Steve Nash formerly coached the team. He is a Canadian-born basketball player who won league MVP two times during his time with the Phoenix Suns.