The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at Barclays Center. They are one of two NBA teams located in New York City, the other being the New York Knicks.
The club was established in 1967 as a charter franchise of the NBA's rival league, the American Basketball Association (ABA). They played in New Jersey as the New Jersey Americans during their first season, before relocating to Long Island, in 1968 and changing their name to the New York Nets. During this time, the Nets won two ABA championships (1974 and 1976), led by Hall of Famer Julius Erving. In 1976, the ABA merged with the NBA, and the Nets were absorbed into the NBA along with three other ABA teams (the Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs), all of whom remain in the league to this day.
In 1977, the team returned to New Jersey and played as the New Jersey Nets from 1977 to 2012. Led by star point guard Jason Kidd, the Nets reached the NBA Finals in two consecutive NBA seasons (2001–02 and 2002–03), but failed to win a championship. In the summer of 2012, the team moved to Barclays Center in Brooklyn, becoming the first major sports franchise in the borough since the departure of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team in 1957. Since moving to Brooklyn, the Nets have qualified for the playoffs on eight occasions, including trips to the conference semifinals in 2014 and 2021.
Led by Hall of Famer Julius Erving, the Nets won two ABA championships in New York before becoming one of four ABA teams to be admitted into the NBA as part of the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. Unlike the other three ABA teams entering the NBA, who played in cities without any NBA presence, the Nets were required to pay an "invasion fee" of $4.8million (equivalent to $million in ) to the New York Knicks. The team was forced to finance that payment by selling Erving's contract to the Philadelphia 76ers; and the Nets went from winning the last ABA title in 1975–76 to having the worst record in the NBA in 1976–77. The team then moved back to New Jersey in 1977 and became the New Jersey Nets.
During their time in the state, the Nets played in two consecutive NBA Finals in the 2001–02 and 2002–03 seasons, led by All-NBA point guard Jason Kidd, whose arrival helped transform the team into a perennial playoff contender. The later acquisition of Vince Carter further strengthened the core that kept the Nets competitive in the Eastern Conference through the mid-2000s. After playing 35 seasons in New Jersey, the team moved back to the state of New York, changed its geographic name to Brooklyn, and began playing in the new Barclays Center, starting with the 2012–13 NBA season. The team's move from New Jersey to Brooklyn was approved unanimously by the NBA Board of Governors on April 13, 2012. Since the relocation, the team has struggled to achieve consistent success, as major roster overhauls, including the trade that helped bring Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, and the later acquisitions of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, ultimately fell short of expectations.
On November 28, 2012, there were indications that the rivalry might be rekindled when an altercation occurred on the court, resulting in the ejection of Rajon Rondo, Gerald Wallace, and Kris Humphries. Rondo was suspended for two games in the aftermath, while Wallace and Kevin Garnett were fined. The story was revisited on December 25, when Wallace grabbed Garnett's shorts and the two had to be broken up by referees and players alike.
In the 2019 NBA off-season, the Nets signed point guard Kyrie Irving. Coming off two seasons with the Celtics, Irving was described as selfish by many critics. This impression caused many Celtics fans to blame him for the Celtics' inability to get through to the playoffs.
During a regular season game in the 2019–20 season between the Celtics and Nets, the Celtics' fans displayed their displeasure with Irving by chanting "Kyrie sucks" in TD Garden. When the series returned to Brooklyn two days later, the Nets' fans chanted "Kyrie's better" in response to the chants in Boston. The "Kyrie's Better" chants reference to how the Celtics signed Kemba Walker after Irving left for the Nets.
On May 30, 2021, after Kyrie Irving stomped on the Celtics center-court logo, a fan threw a water bottle at Irving at TD Garden following a Nets victory and a 3–1 lead in the series.
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, W–L% = Winning percentage
| Playoffs |
| Lost in first round, 0–4 (Boston Celtics) |
| Lost in first round, 0–4 (76ers) |
| Did not qualify |
| Did not qualify |
| Did not qualify |
The Nets also employed a fourth uniform option: the "City" uniform. The 2017–18 black "City" uniform featured the full team name spelled in white along with grey accents inspired from the Brooklyn Bridge. The following season, it was replaced with a black uniform featuring stylized Brooklyn camo patterns as a tribute to the Notorious B.I.G. This uniform was later brought back for the 2025–26 season. For 2019–20, the Nets wore white versions of the "Biggie" uniforms, but with Haze-designed "BED-STUY" graffiti lettering in front (a reference to Bedford–Stuyvesant where the Notorious B.I.G. grew up). The 2020–21 "City" uniform, which honors Brooklyn-born artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, is predominantly black and features "BKLYN NETS" written in Basquiat's style along with multi-colored striping. The Basquiat-inspired "City" uniform returned in 2022–23 but in a white base.
In the 2021–22 season, the Nets' "City" uniform featured visual references to the Nets' uniform history. The navy base and white and silver argyle stripes recalled the 1997–2009 uniforms. The "Nets" wordmark and lettering were taken from the 1990–1997 uniforms. A red stripe with white stars honored the "Stars and Stripes" uniform of the 1970s and 1980s. A modified version of the 1980s New Jersey Nets logo, replacing the New Jersey outline with the map of Brooklyn, was added to the right leg. The 1997–2012 shield logo, also tweaked to feature the current "B" alternate logo, was added on the waist.
The "City" uniform for the 2023–24 season featured a collaboration with Brooklyn-based artist Kaws. The predominantly dark grey design featured splashes of light grey, blue, turquoise and pink inspired by Kaws' "Tension" series. The stylized "Nets" wordmark was also influenced by Kaws' graphic style. The design was slightly tweaked for the 2024–25 "City" uniform, this time with the color splashes relegated to the "Brooklyn" wordmark as part of an outer trim, with the base now featuring greyscale splashes.
A fifth uniform option, the "Earned" uniform, is released occasionally and is exclusive only to the teams who qualified in the NBA playoffs the previous year. The Nets, by virtue of qualifying in the 2020 NBA playoffs, were given an "Earned" uniform. The design featured the parquetry style of the Barclays Center court in shades of black and grey, with Helvetica lettering inspired from the signs found at the New York City Subway.
In 2024, Brooklyn unveiled a streamlined brand set that retired the shield logo and elevated the "B" basketball mark to the primary logo, which also included the "B" basketball mark replacing the shield on the uniform shorts. The global roundel was updated to a crisper "Brooklyn Nets" circle seal around the central B. New secondary marks include an arched “BROOKLYN” wordmark and a script “Nets” mark, expanding typography beyond the previous block-only system.
After the Nets' move to Brooklyn, the team introduced a new superhero mascot named BrooklyKnight (a pun on the demonym "Brooklynite") on November 3, 2012. In his first appearance, he was lowered from the ceiling of Barclays Center amid sparks and fanfare and introduced by Nets public address announcer David Diamante: "Here to defend Brooklyn, he's the BrooklyKnight." The mascot was co-created by Marvel Entertainment, a sister company to NBA broadcasters ABC and ESPN. The character also starred in a 32-page comic book published by Marvel titled BrooklyKnight #1, written by Jason Aaron with art from Mike Deodato. After the Nets' second season in Brooklyn, the BrooklyKnight mascot was retired, leaving the Nets mascotless.
The Brigade was not yet based in Section 114. Instead, Edemeka would purchase tickets in whichever section he could, which often included . The Brigade initially did not get much recognition from the Nets. Edemeka met with the CEO Irina Pavlova (of the ONEXIM Group), who was fond of the group's antics. Although Pavlova was a supporter of the group, other members of the organization were resistant to showing support for the Brigade. During the 2014–15 season, however, the Brooklyn Nets organization began assigning seats to the Brigade in Section 114 of the Barclays Center. This section is adjacent to the press booth and gave the Brooklyn Brigade exposure on a regional level and then eventually on a national level.
During the conference semifinals in 2014, while the Nets battled the Miami Heat, Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center CEO Brett Yomark noticed the Brigade's effect on the arena, and he started to visit Section 114 distributing Nets' apparel. In 2016, the Nets hired Sean Marks as their general manager, who became an immediate supporter of the group. During the 2018–19 season, the Nets reserved section 114 for passionate fans, and called it "The BK Block." Although the Brigade is an independent fan group of the Nets, The Block comprises mostly Brigade members.
After a lengthy ownership of the franchise and numerous unsuccessful attempts to improve the financial situation of the team, the "Secaucus Seven" finally sold the team in 1998 to a group of local real estate developers led by Raymond Chambers and Lewis Katz, who called themselves the "Community Youth Organization" and wanted to move the team to Newark, New Jersey. The next year the group signed an agreement with New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner to form YankeeNets, a holding company that owned the two teams, and later also the New Jersey Devils, and increase leverage in future broadcast contracts by negotiating together. After receiving offers from several broadcast partners, including Cablevision, which held their rights at that time, YankeeNets decided to launch its own regional sports television called the YES Network.
YankeeNets failed in its attempts to secure a deal with Newark to construct a new arena in the city. By that point in time, tensions between the management of the Yankees, Nets, and the Devils had cause a rift between them, and a decision was made to split the group. With their plan to move the Nets dead, the Community Youth Organization placed the team up for sale. After a short bidding process, the group secured a deal in 2004 with real estate developer Bruce Ratner to buy the team for $300 million, defeating a similar offer by Charles Kushner and Senator Jon Corzine of New Jersey. Ratner had purchased the team with the intent of moving it to a new arena in Brooklyn, which was to be a centerpiece of the large-scale Atlantic Yards development.
Rapper Jay-Z owned a small minority stake in the Nets from 2003 until 2013. Jay-Z was a leader in the marketing for the team and helped encourage their move from New Jersey to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, in which he also held a stake. He relinquished his stake after registering as a sports agent with his new agency Roc Nation Sports, to avert any potential conflicts of interest. His shares were eventually sold to singer, rapper, actor and entrepreneur Will Pan, making Pan the first American of Taiwanese descent to own a U.S. professional sports franchise.
On September 24, 2009, Mikhail Prokhorov, Russia's third-richest man according to Forbes magazine, confirmed his intention to become majority owner of the Nets. Prokhorov sent an offer to the team owners requesting that the controlling shares of the basketball club be sold to his company, Onexim, for a symbolic price. In return, Prokhorov funded a loan of $700 million for the construction of Barclays Center, and attracted additional funds from Western banks. Prokhorov stated that he initiated the deal to help push Russian basketball to a new level of development. On May 11, 2010, following approval from the other owners of NBA teams, Prokhorov had become the principal owner of the Nets.
In late 2017, Prokhorov agreed to sell a 49% stake in the team to Joseph Tsai, with an option for Tsai to become the majority owner. The option was exercised in August 2019, with Tsai also buying the Nets' arena, Barclays Center, from Prokhorov for nearly $1 billion in a separate deal. The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale to Tsai on September 18, 2019.
| 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 |
| Meadowlands Arena originally 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 |
The team's previous practice facility was at the 65,000-square-foot PNY Technologies Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey, which opened in 1998. Prior to that, the team practiced at the APA Recreation Center in North Bergen, New Jersey, sharing their lockers and practice courts with truck drivers who used the facility, and at Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in November 2012, PNY Center suffered a power outage and extensive water damage due to flooding, and for several months, the team used the smaller training spaces and practice courts inside the Barclays Center instead.
| 2016 | 2 | 39 | G | Bursaspor Yörsan (Turkey) | Acquired from the Sacramento Kings (via LA Clippers and New Orleans) | |||
| 2015 | 1 | 26 | C | Olympiacos (Greece) | Acquired from the San Antonio Spurs | |||
| 2015 | 2 | 49 | F | Toyama Grouses (Japan) | Acquired from the Washington Wizards |
| 23,100 |
| 18,733 |
| 18,118 |
| 17,499 |
| 16,686 |
| 7,576 |
| 4,544 |
| 4,005 |
| 3,690 |
| 3,671 |
| 4,620 |
| 3,044 |
| 2,363 |
| 2,078 |
| 1,985 |
| 950 |
| 875 |
| 803 |
| 784 |
| 652 |
| 972 |
| 863 |
| 696 |
| 611 |
| 599 |
| + Brooklyn Nets retired numbers ! scope="col" style=";" | No. ! scope="col" style=";" | Player ! scope="col" style=";" | Position ! scope="col" style=";" | Tenure ! scope="col" style=";" | Date |
| + Players ! scope="col" style=";" | No. ! scope="col" style=";" | Name ! scope="col" style=";" | Position ! scope="col" style=";" | Tenure ! scope="col" style=";" | Inducted |
| 24 ! scope="row" | Rick Barry | 1987 | |||
| 1 ! scope="row" | Nate Archibald | 1991 | |||
| 32 ! scope="row" | Julius Erving | 1993 | |||
| 21 ! scope="row" | Bob McAdoo | 2000 | |||
| 3 ! scope="row" | Dražen Petrović | 2002 | |||
| 34 ! scope="row" | Mel Daniels | 2012 | |||
| 22 ! scope="row" rowspan="2" | Bernard King | 2013 | |||
| 1993 | |||||
| 33 ! scope="row" | Alonzo Mourning | 2014 | |||
| 55 ! scope="row" | Dikembe Mutombo | 2015 | |||
| 10 ! scope="row" | Maurice Cheeks | 2018 | |||
| 5 ! scope="row" | Jason Kidd | 2018 | |||
| 2 ! scope="row" | Kevin Garnett | 2020 | |||
| 34 ! scope="row" | Paul Pierce | 2021 | |||
| 15 ! scope="row" | Vince Carter | 2024 |
| + Coaches ! scope="col" style=";" | Name ! scope="col" style=";" | Position ! scope="col" style=";" | Tenure ! scope="col" style=";" | Inducted |
| + Contributors ! scope="col" style=";" | Name ! scope="col" style=";" | Position ! scope="col" style=";" | Tenure ! scope="col" style=";" | Inducted |
| 2000–2010 | ||||
| + Players ! scope="col" style=";" | No. ! scope="col" style=";" | Name ! scope="col" style=";" | Position ! scope="col" style=";" | Tenure ! scope="col" style=";" | Inducted |
| 3 ! scope="row" | Dražen Petrović | 2007 | |||
| 33 ! scope="row" | Alonzo Mourning | 2019 |
| + Coaches ! scope="col" style=";" | Name ! scope="col" style=";" | Position ! scope="col" style=";" | Tenure ! scope="col" style=";" | Inducted |
ABA All-Time Team
ABA All-Time MVP
ABA All-Star Game head coaches
ABA Slam Dunk Contest
On November 6, 2015, the Nets announced that they had purchased a new D-League team to be called the Long Island Nets. The team played their home games during the 2016–17 season at the Barclays Center and then at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, after renovations were complete for the 2017–18 season. The Long Island Nets became the twelfth D-League team to be owned by an NBA team.
Select playoff games air over-the-air on WWOR-TV instead of on YES, this is only when Yankees games are airing at the same time. Previously these games aired on WLNY-TV or WPIX.
The current flagship radio station of the Nets is WFAN, which took over the radio rights to the Nets after losing their basketball contract with the Knicks (who moved to WEPN). Prior to that, Nets games aired on WBBR, WMCA, WVNJ, WNBC, WQEW, and WOR.
In the club's early ABA years, some Sunday road games were televised in a package carried by WPIX. The team's later ABA tenure featured more frequent road telecasts on their current broadcast partner, WWOR-TV. Known then as WOR-TV, it continued airing road games for a time once the team joined the NBA in 1976.
As of 2024, Sarah Kustok, Ian Eagle, Ryan Ruocco, and/or Noah Eagle provide color commentary on YES Network broadcasts, and Meghan Triplett serves as courtside reporter.
Other broadcasters who have worked for the Nets include Howard David, Bob Papa, Bill Raftery, Kelly Tripucka, Albert King, Mike O'Koren, Spencer Ross, Mel Proctor, Joe Tait, John Sterling, John Minko and Mark Jackson.
Nets games have also aired on WBBR and WQEW in the past.
During the club's ABA years, announcers included Marty Glickman, Marv Albert's brothers Al Albert and Steve Albert, baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson, Bob Goldsholl, as well as Sterling and Vince DiTomasso. The latter two joined the club's move into the NBA.
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