« AY Report: ED In the Post, Cautions on Affordable Housing, Another AY Miss in The NY Times | Main | Bars of New York #5: Freddy’s Bar and Grill »
February 21, 2010
Move To Newark Will Not Work
Bleacher Report
By Leslie Monteiro
This skeptical post includes a somewhat over-the-top history of Bruce Ratner's ownership of the New Jersey Nets. Even on their worst nights, the Nets draw more than 500 fans to the Meadowlands.
Ratner talked about moving the team to Brooklyn when he considered buying the team. When the league approved his purchase of the team, the marriage ended between the Nets and the few fans in Jersey.
Under Ratner's stewardship, fans stopped going the games altogether along with watching it on television. It looked like the franchise was drawing only 500 fans at best even though paid attendance indicated they drew 1,000.
Ratner lost money obviously so traded his best players. He sold his team to Russian owner Mikhail Prokhorov few months ago once he realized it's hard to run a NBA franchise.
Posted by steve at February 21, 2010 8:25 AM