From columnist John Hollinger in The Athletic, March 25, Have Knicks, Nets swapped destinies?
Once upon a time, this was supposed to be the Brooklyn Nets: Building patiently, developing late draft picks and smart free-agent signings and riding in the slipstream of good culture vibes while keeping their powder dry for just the right moment to pounce on a big star.
But this past Saturday, as on most days this season, it was their crosstown rivals in Madison Square Garden who had all the right ingredients for that formula. The most notable thing about the New York Knicks’ perfunctory 105-93 win over the Nets on Saturday was that it wasn’t even remotely surprising. It was yet another data point in the divergence between the stumbling rebuild in Brooklyn and the near-flawless execution of New York’s surprising rise from the Dolan doldrums.
Hollinger deftly synthesizes what the tabs have been saying, which I summarized six weeks ago as With the surging Knicks (ranked #7) and floundering Nets (#23), the narrative finally flips.
The question for Nets watchers, and GM Sean Marks, is how to rebuild without a top draft pick and with the albatross of Ben Simmons' contract and some well-paid players (Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson), who are not quite team anchors.
Could it take another five years for the Nets, currently out of the play-in for the last playoff spot, to become league contenders?
Quite possibly. If so, we'll see ownership lean on a lot of "Brooklyn" promotion to get fans in the seats.
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