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July 15, 2012
Bellowing Markowitz welcomes "Brooklyn's Backcourt" at pep rally, hypes rivalry with "Manhattan Knicks", goes out on weird anti-temperance limb
Atlantic Yards Report
Funny how these things go. When the arena developer gets an extra $105 million in subsidies, loses a major lawsuit, and squeezes the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for a sweeter deal, the news is presented parenthetically, at best.
But when Borough President Marty Markowitz holds a pep rally at Borough Hall for "Brooklyn's Backcourt"--one of whom (Deron Williams) was halfway out the door less than two weeks ago, and the other (Joe Johnson) with an albatross contract in Atlanta--he and the team pull out all the stops, with cheerleaders and posters, and the Nets' Experience van, and the cameras and scribes come out in force.
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Actually, the video doesn't quite capture all of Markowitz's frenzy or exactly how far he went out on an anti-temperance limb, not the wisest choice, given the scads of schoolkids.
Starting at about 2:00, he made a strained 1986ish effort to "tell you the difference between Brooklyn and Manhattan," the latter "prim, proper, classy," drinking a string of high-end wines and liquors, such as Dom Perignon.
"But lemme tell ya about Brooklyn," the Borough President bellowed, rousing the crowd with that identifier. "We love our Brooklyn liquor," he said listing several more presumably down-to-earth libations, including Hennessy Black and Courvoisier.
"We're scrappy. We're in your face," Markowitz continued. "We wear our hearts on our sleeves and we're not afraid to speak our minds. If we love you, you'll know it. And if we don't, you'll know it even more."
No wonder Nets beat writer Tim Bontemps of the Post tweeted:
Marty Markowitz is about to explode as he's rattling off reasons to like Brooklyn and the Nets. Joe Johnson seems baffled by him.
Posted by steve at July 15, 2012 6:43 PM