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September 4, 2012
Politics may trump Nets players’ wishes
Crain's Insider
Team officials for the Brooklyn Nets apparently hesitated to commit to building a new practice facility in Brooklyn last year despite weighing three sites in the borough, a real estate insider told Crain’s. The decision not to pursue those opportunities came as key players who reside in New Jersey lobbied to practice closer to their homes, the insider said. The Nets, who will play at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn this season, have a lease on an East Rutherford, N.J., practice facility through 2015.
Those players’ wishes, however, might be no match for the political sway of Marty Markowitz. Sources said the Brooklyn borough president has been pushing the team to relocate the remainder of its New Jersey operation to Brooklyn, a move that could ultimately prove to be a financial windfall for the city.
“A Brooklyn training complex would provide a great assist to the arena,” said Markowitz. “The team that plays together should practice together—in their home city of Brooklyn.”
Well, that settles it, then.
With the Barclays Center and a practice facility in Brooklyn, Nets players would have a stronger incentive to move to the city, which would be able to tax more of their income.
Regardless of where players live, however, income they earn from playing games in the city will be subject to city taxes and taken as a credit against taxes imposed by their home states.
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Crain's Insider, At A Glance: Moving On
Crain's also announced that reporter Daniel Massey, who a month ago authored a rah-rah, puffball piece on the Brooklyn Nets, is joining political consulting firm BerlinRosen, which works for — wait for it — the Brooklyn Nets.
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Posted by eric at September 4, 2012 10:37 AM