Embattled Brooklyn apartment dwellers have taken their fight against the proposed site of the new arena for the "Brooklyn Nets" all the way to Athens. A group called Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn unveiled a banner on one of the endangered apartments which reads "Dr. Rogge and the International Olympic Committee, Please Don't Destroy Our Homes." If New York City is awarded the Olympic Games in 2012, the proposed basketball arena would be used to house the gymnastics competition. Local residents hope that by appealing to the International Olympic Committee, a new space for the arena can be found where the current populace won’t be forced to give up their apartments via eminent domain. more ›

The New Jersey Nets, still recovering from the KMart trade, are trying to salvage next season before it begins through trades and free agent acquisitions. more ›

Bruce Ratner may soon regret not ponying up the dough to keep Kenyon Martin in Jersey. Jason Kidd is contemplating demanding a trade, Richard Jefferson is no longer a lock to resign with New Jersey, ditto for Rod Thorn, whose contract expires in two years. more ›

Rod Thorn threw in the towel last night and started discussing a sign and trade with the Nuggets that would ship Kenyon Martin out West. "You guys will find out soon. Something is going to happen soon," said Martin. more ›

At 12:01 AM this morning, NBA free agents finally became eligible to put their John Hancock on the deals they agreed to over the last two weeks. While most of the press is focusing on where Kobe Bryant will land, local hoops fans are waiting with baited breath to find out what Kenyon Martin decides to do. more ›

The NY Post and ESPN are reporting that the New Jersey Nets have reached an agreement in principle with the Portland Trailblazers to send the 22nd pick in Thursday's NBA draft to Portland for backup PG Eddie Gill and $3 million. Due to league rules, the trade cannot be officially announced until Thursday night. more ›

Last Friday was the deadline for teams in the NBA (except for the Pistons and Lakers) to turn in their list of unprotected players that will be made available for the expansion Charlotte Bobcats during the expansion draft. Charlotte will form the core of their new team during the draft, to be held on June 22, assuming the NBA Finals do not reach a seventh game. In that case the draft will be held on June 23. more ›

Last night, the Nets lost the 7th and deciding game to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Why did we all know this would happen? Maybe because the Nets were blown out in their first two games and had to return to the scene of the crime? Or was it the fact that Jason Kidd was held scoreless in the playoffs for the first time in his career because of his back and knee ailments? Or was it just that the Pistons were the better team? Whatever it was, the Nets lost the game 90-69 (box score) and will not return to the NBA Finals this year. Chauncey Billups scored a game-high 22 points, with his teammates Richard Hamilton and Ben Wallace adding 21 and 18 points respectively. The Pistons now move on to play the Indiana Pacers to see who goes to the NBA Finals. more ›

Gothamist wonders what's going through the minds of Pistons players right now. They thought they had the Nets all figured out, but you can never count out a champion. The two teams meet again Friday at The Palace for game 5. We're liking the Gothamist/Whatevs Smackdown a little more now that the series is even. more ›

Okay, maybe Gothamist was a bit optimistic about the Nets/Pistons series yesterday when we said, "Gothamist thinks it could be an excellent series," or "this series is as good as the Eastern Conference gets," but we did say "could" and that "we don't typically get too excited for NBA action since it's not that fantastic anymore." So we're off the hook, right? We'll pin everything on the Nets, who played an ugly, ugly game, losing to the Pistons, 78-56 (box score), halting their 14 game playoff win streak within the conference. The Nets were stifled by the praise-worthy Pistons defense, who stopped almost everything the Nets attempted. more ›

The Times also has a Julian–Niccolini drawn seating chart for the Four Seasons and while we expected to see Anna Wintour, Harvey Weinstein, and G.Pa(ltrow) on it, we were surprised to see Kerry Kittles, Nets guard. For some reason, basketball players seem more steak–oriented, like at Smith and Wollensky, Sparks, or Michael Jordan's. more ›