Suddenly, The Nets Are Fabulously Wealthy

(Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

The New Jersey Nets are a realistic 2010 destination for LeBron James.

I'll start with that. Think about it this way: until today, the Nets were partially-owned by LeBron's buddy Jay-Zed, who had some sort of plan in place to move to Brooklyn, and were poised to have more available cap space than any other team. Those three factors alone made them a potential destination, even if speculation had James landing elsewhere.

But the Nets got some shiny new assets today, thanks to Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov. The dude is going to facilitate the move to Brooklyn, putting to rest all the rumors that Bruce Ratner wouldn't be able to seal the deal. But more importantly, the guy's got more money than just about anyone in the NBA. And that takes the Nets from "potential" LeBron suitors to "realistic" ones.

That's right. The Nets are one of the richest teams in the NBA, if not the richest. They have more money than anyone, including the Knicks.

How did this happen? How did the Nets suddenly win the lottery?

I don't know, and I don't care. The NBA will (in all likelihood) approve the deal, and the Nets will be poised to become a powerhouse organization. Thank you, Mr. Prokhorov. I raise a shot of vodka to you.

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