Barclays Center Finally Within Reach…I Hope…
After the groundbreaking of the Barclays Center, it looked like a Nets’ move to Brooklyn was a lock, but as it has been the case with the move, something got in the way. Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., a New Jersey congressman says was demanding a government inquiry into Mikhail Prokhorov, the Russian billionaire poised to buy the New Jersey Nets, for his extensive business dealings in Zimbabwe. Now, I am not going to pretend to be someone who knows the laws, but in my opinion this was just political grandstanding from someone looking to gain some popularity. It also should be mentioned that when the Nets leave New Jersey, so does a pretty large chunk of money. So while Mr. Pascrell Jr. might have had some good intentions about questioning the deal, I refuse to believe ethics was the sole (or most important) reason.
Mikhail Prokhorov and David Stern were quick to respond to these attacks (from Dave D’Alessandro)
Prokhorov’s corporation, Onexim Group, issued a statement calling the New York Post report that on which Pascrell based his allegation “erroneous,” insisting that “the company and all its holdings have always been in strict compliance with all United States and European rules regarding Zimbabwe and we have no dealings whatsoever with companies or individuals on the sanctions list.”
The NBA, which came under criticism by Pascrell for a lax vetting process, took it a step further: The league said Pascrell had the wrong interpretation of the law.
“U.S. companies are not prohibited from doing business in Zimbabwe; rather, they are prohibited from conducting business with specifically identified individuals or entities in that country,” the league said in a statement. “The NBA is aware of no information that Mr. Prokhorov is engaged in business dealings with any of these individuals or entities.”
The statement reiterated that Prokhorov’s application is “still on track to be voted on by the NBA Board of Governors once a firm date is set for the State of New York to take full possession of the arena site.”
After this issue was swept under the rug, that left one more thing in the way of Brooklyn for the Nets. Daniel Goldstein and Develop Don’t Destory Brooklyn. Yesterday, that “problem” seems to be taken care of as Daniel Goldsteinagreed to move out of his home May 7 after reaching a deal with Bruce Ratner that will pay him $3 million.