There. I said it.
I know damn well that the NBA wants me to like the Nets. They have rigged the system so that the Nets are in front of me on TNT and NBATV playing a bunch of sexy games in their jet black units with Jay-Z on the sideline.
Just a year ago these were the NEW JERSEY NETS. A franchise that would forever be associated with Keith Van Horn was the opposite of cool has re-emerged in a way that is as fake and contrived as the cast of Jersey Shores. The league has put lipstick on a pig and damn that pig looks good.
If they had landed Dwight Howard and been superstar loaded (as I expect them to be in a couple of years) the Nets would have been harder to like. I always root against the teams that are loaded with sellouts. The Nets on the other hand are lovable. I love that Deron Williams was traded BEFORE he could demand a trade so I didn’t have to hear it. Williams has game. He also has that rare entertainers ability to be both workmanlike and spectacular at the same time.
The rest of the cast is lovable too. While I can’t stand the weird facial expressions of Brook Lopez I do enjoy watching him play and now find myself rooting for him as the guy “they wanted to dump to pick up Howard.” I hope he wins titles every year while Howard watches bitterly with the Lakers.
Joe Johnson has been one of the most overpaid players in the game for going on 8 years now but for some reason I consider him an underdog and find myself rooting for him to show all those people who don’t think he is a winner how he took the lowly Atlanta Hawks to the playoffs in recent years.
And to top it all off nobody is easier for me to root for in this league than Reggie Evans. His dirty tricks may make him the butt of a few jokes but he is a guy who leaves it all out on the floor, is willing to do anything (except perhaps practice jump shots) to win a game and ALWAYS has this crafty little smile on his face that makes you feel like he knows how cool it is to be playing in Brooklyn.
I wish I could resist the leagues brainwashing but I cannot. I’m a fan. I love the Nets and they are my team until the Sonics come back.
Wow. This hit home. I live in Brooklyn now and have become a big Nets fan. I am going to the game tonight, in fact.
The Gas Man leaving KJR:
https://twitter.com/kjrgas/status/276074568970547202
Sad.
Don’t forget their coaching staff consists of Avery Johnson (former Sonic) and PJ Carlesimo (former Sonics coach).
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8711940/new-orleans-hornets-change-nickname-pelicans-according-report
New Orleans Pelicans
I understand that it’s the state fauna emblem and all…
… but seriously? Pelicans? It doesn’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of opposing teams, does it? Or speak of the wonderful athletic ability, skill or prowess that the team’s going to be displaying. It just says “We’re from Louisiana, and we’re good at swallowing things whole”. :-D
This post amuses me…they are somehow lovable cause its a bunch of guys paid like super stars but suck so they are overpaid? How’s this for a mind blower…the Nets have higher salaries than the Heat the next two years. Even better the hawks have basically the same record as the nets. Finally, Williams is lovable except for that whole forcing one of the better coaches in nba history to quit…that doesn’t seem lovable.
I find the Nets one of the most boring and unlikeable teams in the NBA. Deron pushed out one of the most legendary coaches in NBA history. Brook Lopez is a 7-footer who is too afraid of contact to grab more than 8 boards per game. Joe Johnson is the least exciting All-Star in history; all he does is shoot contested 18-footers after 15 seconds of pointless through-the-legs dribbles. Kris Humphries is a tool for obvious reasons. Gerald Wallace - I guess he’s OK, but his best days are well behind him. To be fair, though, I still love Reggie.
The Nets seem destined to be Atlanta 2.0 - good enough to make the 2nd round, not good enough to contend. Until they get Johnson’s contract off their books, that will continue to be the case.
I think another good reason people like them is because they aren’t Miami or the Lakers. Its another team that typically isnt a front runner has emerged as a potential contender in the East.
They are Atlanta 2.0 because they have Joe Johnson? I dont see any other similarities.
Jerry Sloan has said it wasnt Williams fault. He has also acknowledged that he has had lots of confrontations with players. Not sure I would put this all on Deron Williams. Especially when the team ends up trading him anyway.
They are ATL 2.0 because they have decent talent and no room to move to the next step. Seems pretty obvious. They aren’t a serious contender. Again it is funny that somehow they are the underdog that did thing right and yet have a higher payroll than Miami.
As for Williams and Sloan…if you read the stories and don’t think he was a factor then I have a bridge to sell you. The game before he quit they got in an argument and then Williams decided to ignore play call on multiple consecutive occasions.
I’ll be interested to see how the fans who shut out the NBA catch up with the history of the league that they missed the last 5 years
This.
Dude, I plan on writing from that pov. The other day I was watching GS v Denver and the first thing that I thought of was that David Lee is fricken great, then, how the heck did he get there.
A really have no idea how he got there.
I’m thinking of calling it “Rip Van Sonicsfan”
That will be me. I know nothing of the last 5 years. Who came in, who left, who won what. And I don’t care.
But I won’t have to catch up. I’ve learned that history is nothing. I’ll claim your history of the last 5 years and we’ll be even.
Pretty much. There’s going to be a lot of “who’s that guy?” and “when did the Hornets move back to Charlotte?”
Watching the game tonight vs OKC. I swear a 3rd grader designed the Thunder alternate unis
these new thunder unis are SO bad. wow.
great game so far, damn i want the NBA back.
“playing a bunch of sexy games in their jet black units with Jay-Z on the sideline.”
LOL.
Mrs Robinson, we have a problem.
I honestly mean no disrespect to fellow Sonic fans that are able to follow other teams. I just can’t. That does not make me more of a Sonic fan or anything, its just me. I can watch a few minutes here and there of an NBA game, but I can’t bring myself to follow any other team thats not named Seattle Supersonics.
I hear ya, that’s pretty much me righ up to the arena deal agreed to by the city.
I’m still not gonna watch the Blunder.
I don’t watch a ton. The Kings suck so bad I can’t watch them.
the flip sid, I really could watch a playoff series of GS v Denver. Super active teams that run actual sets, lots of parts, entertaining.
I’ve gotten to enjoy some of the things some players do. Some guys are athletic, some game smart, and a few have both.
The New Orleans Pelicans name is as laughable as us taking the name Seattle Clams because we are so fond of Ivars.
Terrible. It defies all the modern rules of branding.
I kinda like it. It sounds like an ABA name.
And they won’t even have the mardi gras color scheme that they all wanted. It’s going to be Navy blue, red and gold.
Does this uniform look familiar?
http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/942750-50-sweetest-looking-retro-jerseys-in-nba-history/page/47
a name like the “pelicans” is what happens when you have a 90 year old owner. how do these guys expect a 13 year old kid in new orleans to get behind a team with that name? i read that “krewe” was also a possibility, which in my opinion was the most obvious choice, a name with cultural significance and honestly just sounds kind of cool. teams dont have the oppurtunity to re-brand very often, this is a prime example of how wrong it can go. huge, huge mistake.
@Jason - Exactly. Old white guys should be writing the checks but letting people with greater connection to the emerging customer base make decisions like that. I guarantee you that if you took the top 10 hottest ad firms in the US right now and said “would you recommend the name Pelicans”all 10 would say no and 9 of them would laugh you out the door. There is ZERO national appeal and there is ZERO youth appeal.
Say what you want about the Pelicans old white guy, at least he didn’t just sign Jason Bay to a multi-year contract … :D
Sorry, I meant a contract at all … not a multi-year deal.
In a sport with no salary cap why wouldn’t you take as many fliers as possible? Actually a smart move by the mariners for a change.
Loved this post, Brian. Not because I’m anything close to a Nets fan but because it’s nice to see some hoops talk creep back into the fold. Most of us are here because we are NBA junkies at heart, and it will be nice to be able to talk hoops again. Certainly understand why some went into hibernation the past few seasons though.
The Pelicans? Where is Stern with a veto when you need him?
First thing that i thought of when i heard new orleans pelicans is this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzbn0yR2A-w
Hopefully gold is the primary color because I for one am tired of all the blue and red colored teams. The NBA is already a league with some real clunker name choices (in recent years at least) but Pelicans is about as high school or community college a mascot name as you can get.
http://espn.go.com/blog/playbook/fandom/post/_/id/1948/uni-watch-readers-redesign-the-hornets
I do think that number 4 would be pretty sweet though.
Things may come to a head soon. As we already know.
http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/05/nba-owners-forced-to-choose-between-maloofs-and-sacramento-in-remake-of-major-league/
That is a really good article. The league needs to just kibosh the Virginia Beach idea sooner than later. No reason to mention why. Or go ahead and approve it with a relocation fee so high it bankrupts them. Make it $200 mm.
Hopefully the people of Virginia end the madness before it even gets to that point. But Im sure they are hungry for any type of pro sports. It wouldnt surprise me if they get screwed and are happy about it.
It is a good column. I’ve made a few of the same points. The problem I have is that some of the arguments being made that reach two conclusions, they move or sell.
The Maloofs will likely get cowed into selling, but that’s the extent of the “good of the league” reach.
The owner can sell to whoever they want. Owners have sold for less to ensure that teams stay. There is no good reason that the Maloofs would do anything like that.
Should a team go from the 20th largest market to the 13th for the good of the league?
That’s a debate, and a short one. Money makes that decision not the league.
I don’t think we should disrespect the “Pelicans” name. In Louisiana those folks have a lot of pride in their state and based on what they have gone through I think they deserve a name that represents their culture. The name is designed to have meaning for them not us. Considering they still have a team I would say congrats to them on the new name. I would love to see Charlotte get the “Hornets” name back.
For once we actually agree on something. It may sound goofy but the name has a lot of history in the city.
Better an acutal name instead of “Brass” or the nauseating “Krewe”. Those were actual options. They did good considering.
are you trying to say the name “krewe” isnt culturally relevant to new orleans? do you know what it means? it would be perfect.
its was a choice between an awkward weird looking bird OR a celebrated tradition that pretty much everyone in your city loves. hmmm, which one sounds better?
I don’t mind the name “Pelicans” its still better than “Thunder.” I hope Charlotte gets the Hornets name back.
Looks alot like “Like Mike”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0wiLTsDqag
I was excited about the Nets when I lived in Brooklyn (manly while the project was Blbeing built). This current collection of players are not going to compete but can give some entertaining games. I hope they do well though.
I love Kenneth Frairied (sp?) in Denver.
They should have at least spelled it Pelikanz.
In other news, the Mariners just called their warehouse and told the interns to start rebranding all the leftover Richie Sexson bobbleheads to “Jason Bay.”
Lol
It would be sweet if Charlotte could get the Hornets name back.
It would be even sweeter if New Orleans could get Jazz back, but that isn’t going to happen.
Not-so-breaking news: Mariners DFA Figgins to Sign Someone Actually Worse Than Him.
Ummm thiS isn’t even remotely true….
Jay Z rules. Great guy to have on your side in terms of PR. But I heard the other day that he owns less than 1% of the team. If you own that little are you really even really an owner? Aren’t you really an owner on paper only.
But speaking of owners. I like Prokhorov. Right or wrong he is going for it. He’s like the Eastern Conference Cuban. I wish a guy like that would buy the M’s.
Did you watch the video if his 8 concerts at Barclay’s? Inside of the arena looked pretty great.
Less than 1% of ownership is a fancy way of saying your a season ticket holder!
exactly!!
Jay-Z: “What do I get for being minority owner?”
Prokhorov: “You get courtside seats and get to say you are an owner.”
Jay-Z: “Is that it?”
Prokhorov: “Yes. You dont even get to vote on anything.”
Jay-Z: “Sha…watch ESPN and tell me who owns this team. Just didn’t have to PAY for it. H to the izz-O!!”
Whoa… Wait a second…
You mean to tell me that this whole New Orleans Pelicans thing is real? I just assumed it was some internet-wide joke.
I can’t decide it it’s funny or sad.
I was just playing Mad Libs with SMK206′s post from above:
” ___________ pushed out one of the most legendary coaches in NBA history. __________ is a 7-footer who is too afraid of contact to grab more than 8 boards per game. _________ is the least exciting All-Star in history; all he does is shoot contested 18-footers after 15 seconds of pointless through-the-legs dribbles. _________ is a tool for obvious reasons. _______ – I guess he’s OK, but his best days are well behind him. To be fair, though, I still love Reggie.”
Dude, it’s the 2002-04 Sonics!
all he does is shoot contested 18-footers after 15 seconds of pointless through-the-legs dribbles.
FLIP MURRAY
1) Pushed out legendary coach: Wally Walker
2) 7-footer afraid of contact: Drobnjak? Calvin Booth?
3) Least exciting All-Star: presumably Rashard. Flip matches the description perfectly but was never an All-Star
4) Tool for obvious reasons: three-way tie between Vladi Radmanovic, Robert Swift, and Jerome James.
5) OK but best days well behind him: Kenny Anderson.
7 footer afraid of contact: Vladimir Stepania.
Bingo.
7 footer afraid of contact: Pretty much every center we ever had.
Extremely funny but not true of course. LOL. Remember “The Banger”? I do appreciate the humor though. Brickowski came to mind next. You probably know the others.
Giving New Orleans grief over “Pelicans” seems like a bit of the ol’ pot calling kettle black, only it’s misdirected. It is their state nickname after all. What is “Sonics” supposed to represent in todays’ day & age?
Supersonic speed
Burger and fries?
Winner!
Stole my thunder…calling the team the Sonics in 2012 would be just as strange as the Pelicans
They can be the New Orleans Pelicans, we’ll be the Seattle Seagulls!
The fans can shower the court with fries and tiny exploding balls of whipped cream before each game!
Oh, don’t get me wrong - it’s fine as a state nickname and emblem.
But as the name of a basketball team? Blaarrrrggh. Outside of Louisiana (and those in the US who know it well enough), there is a planet of people laughing at the idea of a basketball team called the Pelicans.
At least “Sonics” implies a team build for speed and agility.
Here in Australia, we have a rugby team called the Sydney Roosters. You can imagine the jokes about a bunch of burly rugby players being compared to a puffed-up farmyard animal that struts about the place like he owns it. :-)
Jay Z designed the Brooklyn Nets logos, so he gets to do more than just sit court side.
Ya…wouldn’t mind have a 1% stake in something that continues to go up in value
Oh dont get me wrong. Being part of any ownership group, maybe not the Maloofs, would have to be pretty awesome. But Jay Z is clearly more of a face man when it comes to the ownership aspect. His value isnt his financial contribution or team decision making.
jay z absolutely did not design the nets logo. he probably approved it, thats about it.
Jay Z had “input” on the Nets Logo but he NBA has the final say.
Thanks for clarifying.
The Bobcats had Michael Buffer at the game tonight which brought up memories if Game 7 versus the Jazz. I still get goosebumps.
http://youtu.be/QXf3lASwjI0
holy crap has the bobcats court always looked like this?!? its TERRIBLE. chris hansen please dont do make our court look anything like this atrocity.
I just finished looking at hansens arena drawings pdf on city of seattle site. Then it really hit me how much of a joke the Maloofs and this Virginia Beach thing is. You know how much work has gone on for years to get to where we are today?. VB is just starting. I cant see any way they pull this altogether by March. Im also curious as to public opposition over there. All the attempts to derail this thing you’d have to imagine there would be public push back. Especially being that the thing is essentially tax payer funded. As i looked over the documents i just kinda chuckled them silly maloofs.
ive been thinking the same thing. the sheer amount of man hours and money that went into securing our arena are ridiculous. whoever is pulling the strings of this VB thing has either been working on this behind the scenes for YEARS or is incredibly naive.
They haven’t been working on it for years look at the stark contrasts with hansens plan. Our plan has been extremely well thought out. Council went a step further and got arena co. to buck up another 40 mill. Stern needs to put this to rest. I cant see how Stern and the b.o.g’s could possibly reward the Maloofs after they made everyone look like fools pulling the rug out from under the league and the city of sac. VB doesn’t even know how much its gonna cost the cost went up another 46mill yesterday. Second they dont even know where the money is coming from. They are banking on the state giving 150 million. They cant even make up their mind where they’d play interm. First it was the old aba home now today its apparently Richmond Va. Its a Big sham.
I feel like the league forcing the Maloofs to sell to out-of-towners is a PR nightmare for them, though. Although, reading some recent comments from Stern, he sounds like he may have checked out early.
I’m in with the Nets this season too. Reggie Evans is still a favorite of mine. The Barclays Center is awesome. Brook Lopez must stay healthy.
Were those dark blue Blunder uniforms crap or what?
Bring on the Pelicans! Please give the Hornets name back to Charlotte, where it belongs. Only in a really perverse world is there an NBA team in New Orleans but the team in Utah is called the Jazz.
I’d love to see that all switch back too.
But the real question is what Utah would then call itself… :-)
Considering Utah is called the beehive state it has always been weird there is a team in Utah called the Jazz and a team in New Orleans called the Hornets
Those Thunder unis are officially the worst in the NBA, taking the title from the Thunder’s neon blue road unis.
The Nets logo was designed by Jay-Z or at least that is their story:
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/brooklyn-nets-logo-designed-jay-z-165926246.html
there is no way jay z sat there designing a logo in adobe illustrator.
Damon Dash did the original free hand drawing. Memphis Bleek did the coloring
You have to create a logo in adobe illustrator??
Its a B with a basketball…its not even a great logo or something that would be difficult to create. I don’t really see why it would be shocking that JayZ had designed that on some cocktail napkin one night
Jazz owner Greg Miller says the team will not even consider a name change, especially for how long the team has been in Utah. I don’t think it is time for the league to start going crazy on team names. Change New Orleans, Charlotte and well maybe Sacramento and we will be good. If you change the Jazz name then you might as well change the Lakers name which is in reference to the “Great lakes” near Minnesota.
I don’t blame the owner for not wanting to change the name. They’ve been in Utah since 1979. I agree about changing New Orleans and Charlotte, and maybe Sacramento.
Minnesota is known as the “Land of 10,000 States” which is where the name Lakers came from. Minnesota actually has 11,842 lakes that are bigger than 10 acres, according to the MN DNR website.
You know what I always thought would make a good logo? Take the “chief Seattle” logo and just replace the middle with a basketball. It would be good as a baseball cap logo, too.
Great read by Grantland on the name “Pelicans”…..
http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/44376/17-reasons-you-should-support-the-change-to-new-orleans-pelicans
Look, I have huge respect for any bird or animal or fish created by God. Just a short look at the amazing details that He included in each one to adapt to their environment is truly amazing. Yet, lets not ignore the obvious fact, that when the name Pelican was announced, it brought about a huge belly-laugh to most of us. Our state bird is the Goldfinch. If CH came out and announced that as our new name, most of us would have a similar reaction.
Obviously this is not a big deal to anyone not connected to New Orleans. For me it’s just a fun thing to throw around. (Eagles, Hawks, Bears) vs (pelicans, goldfinches, seagulls). Some strike fear, some make you laugh, or just sound cute.
Wow, did I just waste 15 min of my life on this?
Yup, the Lakers were in Minnesota in the 50s.
So many relocations…
Here is the short doc Jay Z made about the Barclays Center. Love the part where he is talking to the old lady on the Subway.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBvyEGQeHnk
I love how awesome the Barclay’s Center looks…hope the new Arena will have similar amenities .
Seattle NBA/NHL Stadium Investor Chris Hansen to Speak Dec. 10 at Mercer Island Boys and Girls Club
http://bit.ly/11MIpfK
chris hansen needs to jump on 710 or 950. i miss his voice, yes i know how weird that sounds.
nothing at all wrong with the supercool name Seattle Supersonics no way you guys should even think about changing that storied name. that would really piss me off. supersonic speed is still fawking cool, period.
i too thought Pelicans was a joke news
item. OMFG tha
t name s
trikes me as lame,
stupid phone
but i havent read the grantland article yet
is larry stone taking over sports from
steve kelley? did kelley piss off sea times that much?
KING 5 Sports @KING5Sports
Virginia governor’s budget proposal to exclude arena funding
http://bit.ly/UsDzPC
Shocker! Didn’t see that one coming, LOL.
Just saw that tweet from Chris Daniels.
New thread is up.