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They met in a 1973 exhibition game, with the Nets taking a 98-87 victory before a sellout crowd at Madison Square Garden. It was, Erving recalls in his autobiography, a warning shot\u2014a \u201cnotice to New York basketball fans that there are two championship contenders in town.\u201d<\/p>\n
The intrigue quickly faded, with the Knicks going into decline and the Nets relocating to New Jersey, where they would lead a marginally relevant existence for the next three decades.<\/p>\n
Today, at long last, Erving\u2019s vision has become a reality. The Nets are in Brooklyn, gunning for a title and a piece of the Knicks fanbase. They are again serving notice.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing is going to replace the Knicks as Manhattan\u2019s team,\u201d Erving said in an interview with Bleacher Report. \u201cBut in terms of New York City, Brooklyn is formidable. There\u2019s more people in Brooklyn than Manhattan. It\u2019s the biggest borough. \u2026 \u00a0So if they have a championship team there, they are definitely a threat to the popularity of the Knicks.\u201d<\/p>\n
As talented as Erving\u2019s old Nets teams were, they were largely an afterthought in the marketplace.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though we won championships in Long Island, you still couldn\u2019t knock the Knicks off that mantle, because of Madison Square Garden and because they were in Manhattan,\u201d Erving said. \u201cWhen (the Nets) moved to New Jersey, it was no comparison. They were not a threat. But right now, they're close and they're going to be good. Both teams are going to be good.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Erving added, \u201cI\u2019m going to be pulling for the Nets, because that\u2019s my old franchise, my old team.\u201d<\/p>\n
He praised the Nets\u2019 summer roster makeover and the bold decision to hire Jason Kidd as head coach, saying, \u201cThey\u2019ve done a lot of things right, and it\u2019s going to be fun to watch.\u201d<\/p>\n
Erving has never attended a game in Brooklyn, but his No. 32 Nets jersey\u2014retired in 1987\u2014hangs from the Barclays Center rafters. He has had little interaction with the franchise in recent years, in part because of his role with the Philadelphia 76ers, who employ him as a strategic adviser.<\/p>\n
Erving had to decline an invitation to Kidd\u2019s jersey retirement last month because of a scheduling conflict. But he seemed eager to help celebrate the next big occasion: the 40th anniversary of the Nets\u2019 ABA championship. That anniversary arrives next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of these days, they're going to invite me back to the arena and I\u2019m going to accept,\u201d Erving said, smiling broadly, \u201cand we\u2019re going to have a grand old time.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Some other highlights from Erving\u2019s interview with Bleacher Report this week:<\/p>\n
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