Brooklyn Nets fans lined up outside the Barclays Center on Thursday to be among the first to don the team’s new limited-edition jersey, which honors both Bedford-Stuyvesant and the legendary rapper Biggie Smalls.
“Pretty f—–g fresh,” said former Bedford-Stuyvesant resident Sam L. as he was waited outside Barclays Center to snag a jersey.
The uniforms are emblazoned with “Bed-Stuy” in all caps across the chest, while pay homage to Brooklyn’s own Notorious B.I.G., one of the most influential voices in hip-hop.
“If you’re a hip-hop person it makes you feel included,” said Bedford-Stuyvesant resident Glen Wallace. “You don’t have to be from Bed-Stuy to enjoy it.”
The Nets themselves will debut the jersey at their Nov. 29 matchup against the Boston Celtics, and will sport the limited-edition uniform for 28 games this season.
The Kings County basketball club made a big splash this offseason with the acquisition of two of the top free agents available this summer — Kevin Durrant through a trade and sign that saw the Nets sending D’Angelo Russell to the Golden State Warriors, and Kyrie Irving through free agency.
But the Nets’ dazzling new lineup hasn’t always translated to on-court success, and the franchise is currently sitting seventh in the east with a measly 6–8 record.
Irving has lead the squad as top scorer, averaging 28.5 points per game. He also set a franchise record opening night by scoring 50 points in his home debut in a loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Durrant, meanwhile is out for the season due to the injured achilles that he suffered last season during the NBA Finals, but is expected to play a big role when he makes his return next season.
The Nets made pre-season headlines with the announcement that billionaire Alibaba mogul Joseph Tsai would become the sole owner of the NBA team, as well as the owner of their home arena at the Barclays Center.
And while the e-commerce magnate may now own Brooklyn’s pride and joy, Tsai showed that his true loyalties like with Beijing when he condemned Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey for tweeting his support for the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, claiming that 19th-century atrocities like the Opium War give China carte blanche to commit human rights violations without facing criticism from the west.
