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July 25, 2009
Politi: NJ Nets owner Bruce Ratner knows damage, not damage control
The Star-Ledger
By Steve Politi
Here is strong commentary on how the New Jersey Nets have fared under Bruce Ratner's ownership.
Bruce Ratner inherited a championship team and gutted it. He stumbled into a growing fan base and alienated it. Now, for his final act, he is seeking anyone rich and dumb enough to help him rip the Nets from this community.
Congratulations, Bruce. You make the Secaucus Seven look like the Rooney family.
The real estate magnate, as first reported in The Star-Ledger, is desperately trying to sell his crumbling vision for Brooklyn to a reclusive billionaire, a Russian businessman and his co-investors. But at some point, don't you think they'll ask what, exactly, that vision is?
There is no blueprint for his arena. There is no world-class architect designing the complex. There is no financing in place for the project, and there is still the messy matter of the Court of Appeals hearing that, if lost, would sabotage the entire Atlantic Yards deal once and for all.
Other than that, it's a great investment.
...
Sadly, we should have known all along where Ratner's heart is. It was never in fielding a winning basketball team. It was never with the fans who saw a glimmer of hope with those back-to-back trips to the NBA Finals, only to have their team turned into a laughingstock again.
Ratner gutted the Nets, chased away fans, and for his final act, he is looking for somebody rich and foolish to help him back up the moving vans. There is only one positive for Nets fans.
At least if he sells, the next guy can't be any worse.
Posted by steve at July 25, 2009 8:25 AM