Bruce Ratner's Damage Control
A few days ago, prospective new Nets owner Bruce Ratner met with a few of the team's beat reporters, in a desperate attempt of damage control following reports that he will drastically slash the payroll and plans to dismantle the team.
Ratner claimed that he will try to retain Kenyon Martin, but refused to guarantee that he would match a contract offer for the maximum salary.
Even if the Nets do bring Martin back, and keep him, Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson, I'm not mollified. The Nets have been desperately looking to trade Kerry Kittles and plan to buy out the contract of Lucious Harris. That would leave them with no shooting guards. They will not use their $5 million cap exemption to bring in a solid veteran or a good backup point guard to allow Kidd to occasionally rest. They have already sold (yes, sold) their first round pick. Under the best circumstances, they will not improve their bench, despite their lack of depth when compared with teams such as Detroit and Indiana. At best, the Nets will be a pretty good team, but not a team committed to winning a championship.
When Ratner offered $300 million to buy the team, he knew that it was losing money, that attendance was sparse, that salaries were high. He bought them anyway, not because he cares about basketball (if anything, the weekend interviews further demonstrate his lack of knowledge or interest in franchise sports - he expressed shock that the players were upset after losing Game 7 to the Pistons), but as a way to gain approval for his Brooklyn real estate project.
posted on 7/07/2004
