Paul Pierce – The Brooklyn Game

Durant

Celtics

Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving highlight Brooklyn’s landmark free agent class

By Elizabeth Swinton

Brook Lopez Star Wars

VC Nets

Happy Birthday, Brook!

By Jacob Gruber

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Celtics

Shifts in Eastern Conference can help Brooklyn Nets exceed expectations

By Sandy Mui

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Nets

2017 was a Nets audition and opportunity for McDaniels and Goodwin

By Charles Maniego

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Nets

Former Net Joe Johnson has the Clippers on the brink

By Justis Doucet

Harris, Kidd

Nets

The Brooklyn Nets’ Top 5 Trade Deadline Deals

By Andrew Hughes

Billy King, Deron Williams

Nets

Patience is Paramount: Revisiting Billy King’s first year with the Nets

By Charles Maniego

Marks

Nets

Sean Marks: The First 367 Days

By Charles Maniego

Lin, Hollis-Jefferson

Analyzing the Nets’ Offensive Woes

By Charles Maniego

Bench

Nets

The Importance of Keeping Things in Perspective

By Benny Nadeau

1. Joe Johnson (3 seasons, 231 games) Joe Johnson has been close to very good, and for the Brooklyn Nets, that’s enough to be the best. Throughout injuries and moping and 141 wins and low-impact playoff runs and four coaches and general disappointment, Joe has been the main reason that it’s not that bad here. While his stats have been as pedestrian as his name—15.5 points on 43% shooting, 3.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 0.7 steals per game—he has been the closest thing to a superstar the Brooklyn Nets have had for the most cumulative minutes. Deron Williams had a few games, Brook Lopez had a few games, Paul Pierce had his moments, Andray Blatche a few quarters. But Joe Johnson looked the part more often than anyone else. He was the most important player in the Brooklyn Nets' only playoff series win to date, where he beat up on Toronto's young wings like an older brother dominating pool basketball on a summer afternoon. He had the stretch of games in January 2014, starting with the OKC nail-biter that kickstarted Jason Kidd’s redemption run and prevented that second season from becoming too much of a disaster. In general, preventing the Nets from completely falling off has been Joe Jesus' main role. And for the most part, he's succeeded. The Brooklyn Nets are the Large Hadron Collider. I’m not sure what their purpose is, but the people involved claim they are important, and catastrophe always seems imminent. But Joe has been standing by, making sure every decimal point is in the right spot and everyone is wearing their safety goggles. Joe also hit a bunch of clutch shots after arriving in Brooklyn, cementing himself as the guy who kept getting the ball at the end of games. This is surely an anachronistic way to measure achievement (and a fairly nihilistic long-term strategy on the court), but it also says something positive about how the team has perceived Joe's talent and nerves. The guy who keeps getting asked to take the most important shots at the end of games is some sort of superlative, whatever that may be. While not the most advanced way of thinking, this gives Joe some "I know it when I see it" level of superstardom. And with the Brooklyn Nets' lack of actual superstardom, degrees matter. Spiritually, Joe Johnson has been the Nets true mascot—even before the Nets shipped the BrooklyKnight off to the big practice gymnasium in the sky. Coming to the Nets, Joe was couched in a stratospheric contract, six All-Star appearances and the promise of being the second half of a blue chip backcourt. This pedigree positioned him as a gaudy piece of Brooklyn's business model, but Joe ain’t gaudy. Despite his garish contract and any brash claims made by the Nets, Joe has been nothing but an efficient, consistent, blue-collar employee of the Brooklyn franchise. And this has been enough to make him the best player in Brooklyn franchise history. -Andrew Gnerre

Nets

Joe Johnson returns to Brooklyn, will receive video tribute tonight

By Jerry Kane

Prokhorov

Nets

Mikhail Prokhorov to sell minority share in Nets, will remain majority owner

By Benny Nadeau

(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Nets

New-look Nets open the season against Al Horford and the Celtics

By Andrew Hughes

Nets signings

Nets

2016-2017 Brooklyn Nets Season Preview: Up From Below

By Benny Nadeau

Landon Donovan

Nets

Landon Donovan, Julius Erving, and the unretirement

By Benny Nadeau

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Nets

Bondy: Kris Humphries has a strong possibility of returning to Nets

By Benny Nadeau

News from Around NYC

NYPD officers at crime scene in Queens

Murder in Queens: Woman stabbed dead in possible domestic dispute, sources say

Brooklyn Children's Food Festival

Brooklyn Children’s Food Festival celebrates the borough’s farmers, chefs and future food lovers on July 25

This Grocery App Can Help You Save Up to 70% on Food

New York Family

This Grocery App Can Help Families Save Up to 70% on Food

Schneps Podcasts

Jeffrey Finkle, Chair Emeritus of WellLife Network, on Leadership, Legacy & Community Impact