Brooklyn Nets facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Brooklyn Nets
Conference	Eastern
Division	Atlantic
Founded	1967
History	New Jersey Americans 1967–1968 (ABA) New York Nets 1968–1976 (ABA) 1976–1977 (NBA) New Jersey Nets 1977–2012 Brooklyn Nets 2012–present
Arena	Barclays Center
Location	Brooklyn, New York
Team colors	Black, white, gray
Main sponsor	GetYourGuide
CEO	Sam Zussman
General manager	Sean Marks
Head coach	Jordi Fernández
Ownership	Joseph Tsai
Affiliation(s)	Long Island Nets
Championships	2 ABA: 2 (1974, 1976) NBA: 0
Conference titles	2 (2002, 2003)
Division titles	5 ABA: 1 (1974) NBA: 4 (2002, 2003, 2004, 2006)
Retired numbers	6 (3, 5, 23, 25, 32, 52)
Association Icon Statement

The Brooklyn Nets are a professional basketball team from Brooklyn, a part of New York City. They play in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team is in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Their home games are played at the Barclays Center. The Nets are one of two NBA teams in New York City, the other being the New York Knicks.

The team started in 1967 as a founding member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), which was a rival league to the NBA. They were first called the New Jersey Americans and played in New Jersey. In 1968, they moved to Long Island, New York, and changed their name to the New York Nets. During this time, the Nets won two ABA championships in 1974 and 1976. In 1976, the ABA joined with the NBA. The Nets, along with three other ABA teams, became part of the NBA. These teams are the Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs.

In 1977, the team moved back to New Jersey and became the New Jersey Nets. They played there until 2012. With star player Jason Kidd, the Nets reached the NBA Finals twice in a row, in 2002 and 2003. However, they did not win a championship. In 2012, the team moved to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. This made them the first major sports team in Brooklyn since the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team left in 1957. Since moving to Brooklyn, the Nets have made it to the playoffs many times. They reached the Conference Semifinals in 2014 and 2021.

History of the Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets started in 1967 as the New Jersey Americans. They played in Teaneck, New Jersey. In their early years, the team moved around a lot. In 1968, they moved to Long Island and played in different arenas as the New York Nets.

With famous player Julius "Dr. J" Erving, the Nets won two ABA championships. This was when they were in New York. In 1976, they became one of four ABA teams to join the NBA. The NBA asked the Nets to pay a special fee to the New York Knicks. To help pay this fee, the Nets sold Erving's contract to the Philadelphia 76ers. Because of this, the Nets went from winning the last ABA title in 1976 to having the worst record in the NBA in 1977. The team then moved back to New Jersey in 1977 and became the New Jersey Nets. While in New Jersey, the Nets played in two straight NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003. Jason Kidd was their main player.

After 35 seasons in New Jersey, the team moved back to New York. They changed their name to the Brooklyn Nets. They started playing in the new Barclays Center in the 2012–13 NBA season. The NBA Board of Governors approved the team's move to Brooklyn on April 13, 2012.

Team Rivalries

Boston Celtics

In the early 2000s, the Nets, led by Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin, had a strong rivalry with the Boston Celtics. The Celtics had stars like Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker. This rivalry became very intense during the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals. Players and fans from both teams showed strong feelings. When the series returned to New Jersey, Nets fans showed their dislike for the Celtics. Bill Walton even said it was the "beginning of the next great NBA rivalry." The Nets, led by Kidd, won that series and went to the NBA Finals. The next year, in the 2003 playoffs, the Nets beat Boston again.

The rivalry showed signs of heating up again in 2012. An argument happened on the court, leading to players being ejected or fined. In 2019, the Nets signed Kyrie Irving, who had played for the Celtics. Many Celtics fans were not happy with Irving. During a game in Boston, Celtics fans chanted against Irving. When the teams played in Brooklyn, Nets fans chanted back, supporting Irving. In 2021, after a Nets victory in Boston, a fan threw something at Irving.

New York Knicks

The rivalry between the Knicks and Nets is mostly about geography. The Knicks play in Manhattan, and the Nets played in Long Island and New Jersey. Since 2012, the Nets have played in Brooklyn. Media often compares this rivalry to other New York City sports rivalries. For example, the Major League Baseball (MLB) rivalry between the New York Yankees and the New York Mets. Or the National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the New York Giants and the New York Jets. This is because the boroughs are close to each other, often connected by the New York City subway. Long ago, the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants baseball teams had a similar rivalry. They played in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Some people call the Knicks-Nets rivalry the "Clash of the Boroughs."

Toronto Raptors

The rivalry with the Toronto Raptors started in the 2000s. It became strong in 2004 when Raptors star Vince Carter was traded to the New Jersey Nets. The teams first met in the playoffs in 2007. The Nets won that series. Richard Jefferson made a game-winning shot in Game 6.

Seven years later, in 2014, the teams met again in the playoffs. This series went to seven games. Paul Pierce made a game-winning block, giving the Nets a close victory. Before Game 1, the Raptors' general manager made some comments about Brooklyn. He later apologized. The Raptors and Nets played each other again in the 2020 NBA playoffs. Toronto won that series.

Season-by-season record

Here are the results for the Nets' last five completed seasons. For all seasons, see List of Brooklyn Nets seasons.

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, W–L% = Winning percentage

Season	GP	W	L	W–L%	Finish	Playoffs
2019–20	72	35	37	.486	4th, Atlantic	Lost in first round, 0–4 (Raptors)
2020–21	72	48	24	.667	2nd, Atlantic	Lost in conference semifinals, 3–4 (Bucks)
2021–22	82	44	38	.537	4th, Atlantic	Lost in first round, 0–4 (Celtics)
2022–23	82	45	37	.549	4th, Atlantic	Lost in first round, 0–4 (76ers)
2023–24	82	32	50	.390	4th, Atlantic	Did not qualify

Team Uniforms

New Jersey Americans

When the New Jersey Americans started in 1967, they wore white and red uniforms. The white uniforms had red, blue, and white stripes. The team name and numbers were red with blue outlines. The red uniforms looked similar. They had blue numbers with white outlines.

New York Nets

1968–1972

When they moved to Long Island and became the New York Nets, they kept the same uniform style. But they changed the city and team names. The white uniforms had a fancy "Nets" writing with a tail. The red uniforms had "New York" in block letters, like the New York Knicks. Over time, the letters and stripes changed a little.

1972–1977

The Nets changed uniforms when they moved to Nassau Coliseum. The white uniforms had a thick blue stripe with white stars on the left. They also had a red stripe with a white outline. The team name was in red block letters. The blue uniforms looked similar. They had "New York" in white block letters.

New Jersey Nets

1977–1981; 1983–1990

The Nets brought their "Stars and Stripes" uniform to New Jersey in 1977. The white uniform stayed the same. But the blue uniform said "Nets" on the front. Later, the blue uniform added "New Jersey" in white block letters inside the red stripe.

1981–1983

When they moved to the Meadowlands in 1981, the Nets briefly changed their uniforms. The white uniform brought back the fancy "Nets" writing from the old New York Nets uniforms. The colors were blue with red trim. The blue uniform had "New Jersey" stacked in a similar fancy style. The letters were red with white trim.

1990–1997

The Nets changed their look before the 1990–91 season. The white uniform had a modern "Nets" writing in red with white and blue trim. It also had red and blue stripes. At first, the Nets wore light blue road uniforms that looked like tie-dye. But they changed to a solid blue uniform after just one season. Both blue uniforms had the same "Nets" writing in red with blue and white trim. They also had red and white stripes.

1997–2012

The Nets updated their look again before the 1997–98 season. They used darker red and navy blue colors with silver accents. The white uniform stayed mostly the same. It had the team name in navy blue with silver and red trim. The navy blue uniform had the city name in silver with navy and red trim. They also had a dark grey alternate uniform until 2006. It first had the city name in navy blue. Later, it changed to white with red and navy trim. This uniform was the only one with the "NJ" logo on the neckline. The red alternate uniform replaced the grey one. It became the main dark uniform in 2009. It had the team name in white with navy and silver trim. All these uniforms had thick navy and silver diamond-shaped stripes.

Brooklyn Nets

2012–2017

When the Nets moved to Brooklyn in 2012, they chose a simple black and white uniform design. Both the white and black uniforms said "Brooklyn" on the front. They also had three different alternate uniforms. One was a grey uniform with sleeves. It had "Brooklyn" in blue, like the old Brooklyn Dodgers team. Another was a white uniform with sleeves. It had the team name in black and looked like the "Stars and Stripes" uniforms from the 1970s. A dark grey uniform without sleeves looked like the 1980s New Jersey Nets uniforms. It had the team name in white and the city name in white inside a black stripe.

2017–present

When the Nets switched from Adidas to Nike in 2017, they kept most of their uniform design. The white uniform became the "Association" uniform. The black uniform became the "Icon" uniform. The Nets have had three different "Statement" uniforms. The first was dark grey with "BKLYN" in white. It had the same stars and stripes look from the 1970s. In 2019, this uniform was updated to a lighter grey with black and dark grey stripes. "BKLYN" was written in a cool graffiti style. In 2022, the "Statement" uniform changed again. It was black with black letters and silver trim. It had a subtle grey pattern and three black stars.

The Nets also have a fourth uniform option called the "City" uniform. The 2017–18 black "City" uniform had the full team name in white. It had grey details inspired by the Brooklyn Bridge. The next season, it was replaced with a black uniform that had Brooklyn camo patterns. This was a tribute to the rapper The Notorious B.I.G.. For 2019–20, the Nets wore white versions of the "Biggie" uniforms. They had "BED-STUY" graffiti lettering on the front, referring to where The Notorious B.I.G. grew up. The 2020–21 "City" uniform honored Brooklyn artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. It was mostly black and had "BKLYN NETS" written in Basquiat's unique style. It also had multi-colored stripes. The Basquiat-inspired "City" uniform returned in 2022–23, but in white.

In the 2021–22 season, the Nets' "City" uniform had parts from their past uniforms. The navy blue color and white and silver diamond stripes were like the 1997–2009 uniforms. The "Nets" writing came from the 1990–97 uniforms. A red stripe with white stars honored the "Stars and Stripes" uniform of the 1970s and 1980s. A changed version of the 1980s New Jersey Nets logo, with a map of Brooklyn, was added to the right leg. The 1997–2012 shield logo, updated with the current "B" logo, was added to the waist.

The "City" uniform for the 2023–24 season was a team-up with Brooklyn artist Kaws. It was mostly dark grey with splashes of light grey, blue, turquoise, and pink. These colors were inspired by Kaws' art. The "Nets" writing also looked like Kaws' style. The design was slightly changed for the 2024–25 "City" uniform. This time, the color splashes were only on the "Brooklyn" writing as an outer trim. The main uniform had grey splashes.

A fifth uniform option, the "Earned" uniform, is sometimes released. Only teams that made it to the NBA playoffs the year before get one. The Nets got an "Earned" uniform after making the 2020 NBA playoffs. It had a pattern like the floor at the Barclays Center, in black and grey. The lettering looked like signs from the New York City Subway.

Team Culture

Mascot

The mascot for the New Jersey Nets was Sly the Silver Fox. He first appeared in 1997. Before that, the Nets' mascot was a dragon named Duncan.

After the Nets moved to Brooklyn, they introduced a new superhero mascot called BrooklyKnight. This name sounds like "Brooklynite," which is what people from Brooklyn are called. He first appeared in 2012. He was lowered from the ceiling of the Barclays Center with sparks and excitement. The mascot was created with Marvel Entertainment. BrooklyKnight also had his own 32-page comic book called BrooklyKnight #1. After the Nets' second season in Brooklyn, the BrooklyKnight mascot was retired. The Nets do not have a mascot now.

Team Anthem

On November 3, 2012, the Nets started using a new team song. It is called "Brooklyn: Something To Lean On." Brooklyn-born musician John Forté wrote and recorded it. The song is known for its repeating part, which has the "Brooklyn" chant. This chant is popular with fans at the Barclays Center.

Brooklyn Brigade

The Brooklyn Brigade is a group of Nets fans. They are known for their loud chants and strong support for the team. The group started in November 2012. It was founded by Udong "Bobby" Edemeka, a Nets fan from Brooklyn. Edemeka noticed the team needed a strong fan base in their new home. So, he bought tickets for about 20 fans he knew from an online blog.

At first, the Brigade did not have a special section. Edemeka bought tickets wherever he could. The Nets team did not give the group much attention at first. But Edemeka met with the CEO of the team's owner, who liked the group's energy. In the 2014–15 season, the Brooklyn Nets organization started giving the Brigade seats in Section 114 of the Barclays Center. This section is near the press area, so the Brooklyn Brigade became well-known.

In 2014, the Nets and Barclays Center CEO noticed how the Brigade made the arena exciting. He started giving them Nets gear. In 2016, the Nets hired Sean Marks as their general manager. He immediately supported the group. In the 2018–19 season, the Nets saved Section 114 for passionate fans. They called it "The BK Block." Most of the Brooklyn Brigade members are part of The Block.

Mr. Whammy

Bruce Reznick, also known as "Mr. Whammy," is a very famous 86-year-old Nets fan. Reznick has had season tickets since 1998. This was when the Nets played in Continental Airlines Arena. He is known for his special "whammy." He stands near the court when opposing players are shooting free throws. He tries to distract them by pointing, jumping, and yelling. Reznick does not "whammy" players who used to play for the Nets. He believes his "whammy" works. The Barclays Center often has one of the lowest free throw percentages for opposing teams in the league. For example, in January 2023, opposing teams only made about 70.3% of their free throws in Brooklyn. This was much lower than the league average. Nets announcer Ian Eagle gave Reznick the name "Mr. Whammy." Before that, he was called "Red Shirt."

Team Management

On September 18, 2019, Joseph Tsai bought full ownership of the Brooklyn Nets. Tsai is a leader at Alibaba Group. With this, Tsai became the main owner of the Nets. Also, David Levy became the CEO of the Nets and Barclays Center. However, Levy stepped down from the CEO job less than two months later. Oliver Weisberg took over as interim CEO.

Ownership History

The first owner of the Nets team was Arthur J. Brown. He started the team in 1967. The next year, Brown sold the team to Roy Boe. Boe moved the team back to New Jersey in 1977 because of money problems. A year later, he sold the team to a group of seven local businessmen. They were known as the "Secaucus Seven."

After owning the team for a long time, the "Secaucus Seven" sold the team in 1998. A group of real estate developers bought it. They wanted to move the team to Newark, New Jersey. The next year, this group joined with New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner. They formed a company called YankeeNets. This company owned both teams. Later, it also owned the New Jersey Devils hockey team. They hoped to get better deals for TV broadcasts by working together. YankeeNets decided to start its own sports TV channel called the YES Network.

YankeeNets could not make a deal to build a new arena in Newark. Also, there were disagreements between the Yankees, Nets, and Devils management. So, they decided to split up. The group that owned the Nets then put the team up for sale. In 2004, real estate developer Bruce Ratner bought the team for $300 million. Ratner wanted to move the team to a new arena in Brooklyn. This arena would be a big part of the Atlantic Yards development.

Rapper Jay-Z owned a small part of the Nets from 2003 to 2013. Jay-Z helped promote the team. He also encouraged their move from New Jersey to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. He also owned a part of the Barclays Center. He left the ownership group to become a sports agent. His shares were later sold to singer and actor Will Pan. Pan became the first American of Taiwanese descent to own a U.S. professional sports team.

In 2009, Mikhail Prokhorov, a rich Russian businessman, said he wanted to own most of the Nets. Prokhorov offered to buy the team for a small price. In return, he would help pay for the construction of Barclays Center. He also brought in more money from banks. Prokhorov said he wanted to help Russian basketball grow. In 2010, after other NBA owners approved, Prokhorov became the main owner of the Nets.

In 2017, Prokhorov agreed to sell 49% of the team to Joseph Tsai. Tsai then had the option to become the main owner. He used this option in 2019. Tsai also bought the Nets' arena, Barclays Center, from Prokhorov for almost $1 billion. The NBA Board of Governors approved the sale to Tsai on September 18, 2019.

Team Facilities

Home Arenas

Source:

Arena	Location	Duration
Teaneck Armory	Teaneck, New Jersey	1967–1968
Long Island Arena	Commack, New York	1968–1969
Island Garden	West Hempstead, New York	1969–1972
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum	Uniondale, New York	1972–1977
Rutgers Athletic Center	Piscataway, New Jersey	1977–1981
Brendan Byrne Arena (1981–1996) renamed Continental Airlines Arena (1996–2007) renamed Izod Center (2007–2010)	East Rutherford, New Jersey	1981–2010
Prudential Center	Newark, New Jersey	2010–2012
Barclays Center	Brooklyn, New York	2012–present

Practice Facilities

The Nets' practice facility and main office are at the Hospital for Special Surgery Training Center. It is located in the Industry City area of Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The facility opened in 2016. It is built on the roof of an empty warehouse. It covers 70,000 square feet. The project cost about $50 million. Opening this training center completed the Nets' move to Brooklyn.

The team's old practice facility was the PNY Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It opened in 1998. Before that, the team practiced at the APA Recreation Center in North Bergen, New Jersey. They shared courts with truck drivers. They also practiced at Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey.

In 2012, after Hurricane Sandy, the PNY Center lost power and had a lot of water damage. For several months, the team used smaller practice areas inside the Barclays Center instead.

Team Personnel

Current Roster

Franchise Leaders

Bold means the player is still with the team. Italics means the player is still active but not with the team. "Name*" includes stats from both the ABA and NBA.

Points Scored (Regular Season) as of the end of the 2023–24 season

Other Statistics (Regular Season) as of the end of the 2023–24 season

Retired Numbers

Brooklyn Nets Retired Numbers

No.	Player	Position	Years Played	Date Retired
3	Dražen Petrović	G	1991–1993	November 11, 1993
5	Jason Kidd	G	2001–2008	October 17, 2013
23	John Williamson	G	1973–1980	December 7, 1990
25	Bill Melchionni	G	1969–1976	September 1976
32	Julius Erving	F	1973–1976	April 3, 1987
52	Buck Williams	F	1981–1989	April 11, 1999

• The NBA retired Bill Russell's No. 6 for all its teams in 2022.
• The Nets plan to retire Vince Carter's No. 15 jersey during the 2024–25 season.

Basketball Hall of Famers

Players

No.	Name	Position	Years Played	Inducted
24	Rick Barry	F	1970–1972	1987
1	Nate Archibald	G	1976–1977	1991
32	Julius Erving	F	1973–1976	1993
21	Bob McAdoo	C	1981	2000
3	Dražen Petrović	G	1991–1993	2002
34	Mel Daniels	C	1976	2012
22	Bernard King	F	1977–1979	2013
30			1993
33	Alonzo Mourning	C	2003–2004	2014
55	Dikembe Mutombo	C	2002–2003	2015
10	Maurice Cheeks	G	1992–1993	2018
5	Jason Kidd	G	2001–2008	2018
2	Kevin Garnett	F	2013–2015	2020
34	Paul Pierce	F	2013–2014	2021
15	Vince Carter	G/F	2004–2009	2024

Coaches

Name	Position	Years Coached	Inducted
Lou Carnesecca	Head coach	1970–1973	1992
Chuck Daly	Head coach	1992–1994	1994
Larry Brown	Head coach	1981–1983	2002
John Calipari	Head coach	1996–1999	2015
Bill Fitch	Head coach	1989–1992	2019

Contributors

Name	Position	Years	Inducted
Rod Thorn	Assistant coach	1973–1975, 1976–1978	2018
	Executive	2000–2010
Del Harris	Assistant coach	2009–2010	2022

FIBA Hall of Fame

Players

No.	Name	Position	Years Played	Inducted
3	Dražen Petrović	G	1991–1993	2007
33	Alonzo Mourning	C	2003–2004	2019

Coaches

Name	Position	Years Coached	Inducted
Chuck Daly	Head coach	1992–1994	2021

Individual Awards

NBA Awards

ABA Awards

NBA All-Star Weekend

ABA All-Star Game

ABA All-Star Game

• Julius Erving – 1974–1976
• Bill Melchionni – 1971–1973
• Billy Paultz – 1973–1975
• Rick Barry – 1971, 1972
• Larry Kenon – 1974, 1975
• Brian Taylor – 1975, 1976
• Tony Jackson – 1968
• Walt Simon – 1969
• Levern Tart – 1970

ABA All-Star Game Head Coaches

• Kevin Loughery – 1975, 1976

ABA Slam Dunk Contest

• Julius Erving – 1976

NBA G League Affiliation

The Nets have a partnership with a minor league team called the Long Island Nets. This team plays in the NBA Development League. The Nets bought this new D-League team in 2015. The Long Island Nets played their home games at the Barclays Center in 2016–17. Then, they moved to the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, after it was renovated in 2017. The Long Island Nets became the twelfth D-League team to be owned by an NBA team.

Team Media

The Nets' games are shown on the YES Network. The team helped create this network when they were part of a company that also owned the New York Yankees. After that company split up, YES signed a long-term deal to keep showing Nets games. Before YES, the Nets' TV home was Fox Sports Net New York and SportsChannel New York.

Some playoff games are shown on regular TV channels like WWOR-TV. This happens if Yankees games are on YES at the same time.

The main radio station for the Nets is WFAN. They started broadcasting Nets games after losing their contract with the Knicks. Before WFAN, Nets games were on other radio stations like WNEW and WOR.

In the team's early ABA years, some Sunday road games were shown on WPIX. Later, more road games were shown on WWOR-TV. This continued when the team joined the NBA in 1976.

Television

Ian Eagle has been the main TV play-by-play announcer for the Nets since 2011. Eagle became the lead voice in 1995. Marv Albert joined the Nets in 2005 and was the lead announcer for a while. But Eagle took over the main play-by-play spot again in 2009. Ryan Ruocco fills in for Eagle sometimes.

As of 2024, Sarah Kustok, Ian Eagle, Ryan Ruocco, and Noah Eagle provide commentary on YES Network. Meghan Triplett reports from the sidelines.

Radio

WFAN is the Nets' main radio station. Chris Carrino does the play-by-play, and Tim Capstraw is the analyst. Games are also broadcast on other stations if WFAN has other programs.

Other people who have announced for the Nets include Howard David, Bob Papa, and John Sterling.

During the team's ABA years, announcers included Marty Glickman and Bob Gibson.

See also

In Spanish: Brooklyn Nets para niños