The Brooklyn Nets are apparently for sale. According to the New York Post, Mikhail Prokhorov has expressed interest in selling a minority share, but if the price is right, then he could sell a majority share. He is reportedly saying he would sell the team for $2 billion. As of now, the Nets are looking at Chinese investors.
Are the Nets worth as much as the Clippers?
Owner Steve Ballmer bought the Los Angeles Clippers for about $2 billion. Prokhorov believes that the Brooklyn market is similar to the market in Los Angeles. However, Forbes lists the Nets' value a little bit lower than $2 billion.
When it comes to market value, the two teams could be similar.
Think about it this way. The Clippers share the market with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers are a more storied franchise as they have won the second-most championships in NBA history. The Clippers have never won an NBA title. The Clippers play second fiddle to the Lakers and will continue to play second fiddle despite the Lakers being in worse shape.
Flip it over to New York. Despite the New York Knicks being terrible, the New York market has been favorable for the Knicks. Having Carmelo Anthony around certainly helps, but if he were to be traded, the fans will still lean toward the Knicks. When you think about it, both the Clippers and Nets share similarities in terms of their worth.
Prokhorov will go down as a terrible owner if deal happens
After becoming the owner in 2010, Prokhorov went public about how he wanted to win an NBA title. His impatience led to the demise of the Nets. Brooklyn has had losing seasons in five of the seven seasons their owner has been around. The only two winning seasons were when Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry were on the roster.
However, that trade led to the present-day Nets. Brooklyn has won 38, 21, and 20 games over the last three seasons. They lost the rights to their draft pick which ended up being the No. 1 overall pick. They also lost their draft pick for next season. The Nets could be a last place team for the next two to three seasons.
It was Billy King who made the deal, but it was the impatience of Prokhorov that led to it being signed off on.
The idea of pairing Pierce and Garnett with Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Brook Lopez was enticing. However, giving Jason Kidd the reigns to lead the team was also not the best decision, as he ended up leaving to go to Milwaukee. There's no reason to believe Prokhorov is going to sell the majority, but if he does, fans may not be that upset.
