Tag: Joe Tsai

Nets owner Joe Tsai ‘lost belief’ in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving

Reports indicate that Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai “lost his belief” in the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving experiment.

While the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving era is coming to a disappointing end, Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai stopped believing in the experiment.

NBA insider Brian Windhorst of ESPN reports that Tsai, “lost his belief that this could work.” Windhorst even inferred that Tsai and company feel a breath of relief following Durant’s trade request.

“They [Durant and Irving] lost the billionaire, and that’s Joe Tsai. He lost his belief that this could work. He attempted through Sean Marks the General Manager to re-negotiate not just the contract of Kyrie Irving… The last straw to me was when Kyrie said, ‘see you in the fall.’ That was sort of a declaration of[by Irving], ‘alright I’m going to give you one more year, you’re going to get one more year.’ I think Durant saw the writing on the wall too… I actually think there’s is an immense sense of relief across that river in Brooklyn.”

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The WNBA punishing the Liberty for flying its players on chartered flights is just the league getting in its own way

This doesn’t make any sense

The WNBA is one of the best, most interesting sports leagues in the world right now.

Yet, its players aren’t treated that way. And, what’s more, when an owner within the league tries to give their team first-class treatment, they get punished.

That’s what happened to New York Liberty team owner Joe Tsai who was fined $500,000 for flying the Liberty via charter during the second half of last WNBA season, Sports Illustrated’s Howard Megdal reports.

The Liberty flew on chartered flights for five games last season — five that they all happened to lose, by the way. They were also given a trip to Napa, California during Labor Day weekend in which they also flew charter on.

Technically, per Megdal, those things are violations of the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement.

WNBA teams are not allowed to fly charter because the league doesn’t want to foster a competitive disadvantage. Some teams say they cannot afford to pay for charter flights for their players.

The logic is that allowing one team to pay for a chartered flight while another can’t would give that team an advantage over the other. So, in essence, it’s same big market vs. small market argument we see throughout all of pro sports.

But the punishment is what makes this scenario strange. Not only were the Liberty levied the largest fine in league history, but the team was almost nixed, per Megdal.

“After someone alerted the WNBA to the Liberty’s violations, possible remedies floated by the league’s general counsel, Jamin Dershowitz, ranged from losing “every draft pick you have ever seen” to suspending ownership, even “grounds for termination of the franchise,” according to a Sept. 21, 2021, communication between the league and the Liberty reviewed by SI.”

Travel issues have been a problem for the W for essentially as long as the league has existed. Back in 2018, the Aces had to forfeit a game against the Mystics after 25 hours of travel.

In that same story, Mystics Head Coach Mike Thibault recalled a story from 2003 where the Connecticut Sun made it to a game against the Liberty just 52 minutes before tip-off because of travel issues.

The WNBA champion Chicago Sky expressed similar frustrations just last season during their series against the Connecticut Sun where the team was separated on commercial flights.

This is something the WNBA’s athletes constantly face despite the problem being relatively easy to solve. There are ways to do this and there’s lots of money flowing through the WNBA’s ownership groups — five of the league’s 12 owners also own NBA teams.

The Liberty even offered up a proposal to make it happen for the next 3 years, per Megadl, that was met with opposition from a majority of owners because once players got used to it, “there’d be no going back.”

You can’t make that up. Owners are so worried about a potential competitive disadvantage that they’d block a leaguewide improvement to make sure it doesn’t happen.

This is a league in its own way. The WNBA’s owners are cutting off the league’s nose to spite its face.

This completely validates everything Liz Cambage had been saying about the league and its collective bargaining agreement. There are owners out there who want to do better for their players. The WNBA just has to let them.

Clearly, that’s not happening. At least not anytime soon. And that’s a shame.

Nets owner Joe Tsai speaks out on the Kyrie Irving situation

Joe Tsai says Kyrie is “entitled” to his stance on vaccination, but he doesn’t personally understand it.

The Nets are sitting with a 3-3 record to begin the season, but the team’s offense has been struggling and Kevin Durant has already noted that Kyrie Irving is clearly missed.

Nets owner Joe Tsai sat down with NetsDaily and opened up on the conversations he’s had with Irving about his vaccination status, and the team’s outlook on his future with the organization. Tsai made sure to let fans know that he is in this for the long haul. “I have all the patience, he’s on the team right? He’s just not on the court.”

When asked if he tried convincing Irving to get the vaccine, Tsai admitted that he is not at all trying to impose his beliefs onto Irving. Though, Tsai says he doesn’t understand Irving’s stance.

“I didn’t want to impose my views — What I respected was the choice he made after investigating all the pro’s and con’s and the facts. People are entitled to their own opinion and choice. So that’s something I respect. But, you know, do I understand why he’s not doing it? Not really.”

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Joe Tsai, Jarrett Allen and DeAndre Jordan react to Joe Harris re-signing with Nets

Joe Harris is staying with the Brooklyn Nets for the foreseeable future after agreeing to a deal with the franchise on Friday.

Since joining the Brooklyn Nets four seasons ago, Joe Harris has turned into one of the NBA’s best 3-point shooters — at a time where long-range shooting is more important than ever.

Harris could’ve easily taken his talents elsewhere, but the sharpshooter decided to stay in Brooklyn, with Harris’ agency, Priority Sports, confirming reports that the wing had agreed on a deal with the Nets.

Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Harris’ deal was worth $75 million, and he is set to call Brooklyn home for another four years.

Among those excited to see Harris re-sign with the franchise was none other than Nets governor Joe Tsai, who weighed in on Twitter:

Nets big man Jarrett Allen was also excited to see Harris earn the huge deal.

Brooklyn’s other big man DeAndre Jordan was pumped for Harris, too.

Even former Nets big man Demarre Carroll made sure to congratulate Harris.

RELATED: Garrett Temple agrees to one-year deal with Bulls

RELATED: Sean Marks having honest conversations with Nets players in midst of James Harden rumors

NBA 2020-21 salary cap, luxury tax agreement includes amendment that benefits Nets

NBA free agency finally has a start date, and it comes shortly after the 2020 NBA draft.

Less than a week after the NBPA tentatively agreed upon NBA’s proposal for a 72-game regular season that would start on December 22, the league announced the negotiations had been officially agreed upon in full as of midnight on Tuesday.

In addition to the start date and the season length, the NBPA and NBA agreed the salary cap for 2020-21 will be the same as it was in 2019-20 at $109,140 million, as will the $132,627 million luxury tax level.

More importantly for the Brooklyn Nets, the NBA and NBPA agreed that in the event player compensation were to exceed the players’ designated share in any season, necessary salary reduction beyond the standard 10% escrow would be spread across that season and potentially beyond the following two seasons — with a 20% salary reduction in any season being the absolute maximum.

While Nets general manager Sean Marks was still expected to have money to spend on Joe Harris, this adds a little monetary relief for Nets governor Joe Tsai across the board.

ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim Bontemps are also reporting another way in which the NBA is trying to “ease the tax burdens of teams that had been planning on the salary cap and luxury tax continuing to steadily rise.”

“…the NBA will reduce the luxury tax bill for teams at the end of the 2021 season by the percentage amount that the league’s Basketball Related Income declines from initial projections.”

The NBA and NBPA also free agency negotiations can officially start on November 20 at 6 p.m. EST and signings can happen at midnight EST on November 22.

Nets donate 14k pounds of food to feed over 30k New Yorkers

The Brooklyn Nets continue to give back to their community, recently donating a significant amount of food.

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The Brooklyn Nets continue to go the extra mile for those in their community.

On Saturday, the team announced a major donation that hade been made earlier in the week, tweeting:

This week we donated 14,000 pounds of food from our arena to City Harvest, Food Bank for New York City, and The Campaign Against Hunger. Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have been honored to work beside these organizations and together feed more than 30,000 New Yorkers.

Earlier in the month, it was reported Nets governor Joe Tsai had decided to pay the part-time Barclays Center staff through the end of the year, which would cost him an estimated $10 million.

Like Tsai, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and DeAndre Jordan have also lent a helping hand throughout the pandemic, providing either money or food for those in need.

RELATED: Kyrie Irving facilitates another donation to help with hunger relief

RELATED: Kevin Durant, DeAndre Jordan helping those in need amid COVID outbreak

Report: Joe Tsai to continue paying PT Barclays Center staff through 2020

Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai is still doing what he can to help the event staff at Barclays Center.

Went the COVID-19 pandemic forced all pro sports to shut down in March, Brooklyn Nets governor Joe Tsai was among those who made a commitment to continue paying his home arena’s part-time arena staff.

Initially, Tsai committed to pay those employees through May, with there being no prospect of events taking place at Barclays Center during that time. According to Norman Oder of the Atlantic Yards Report, Tsai wound up extending that commitment through June.

And, once again, Tsai has extended his commitment. He is now going to pay the part-time Barclays Center staff through the end of the year, Oder reports.

If the Nets maintain the same pay rate they did when the pandemic first struck, Oder indicates Tsai will be committing roughly $10 million to the Barclays Center’ part-time workers.

RELATED: Joe Tsai: NBA doesn’t anticipate having full arenas ‘anytime soon’

RELATED: Nets owner reacts to claim Steve Nash becoming Brooklyn’s HC is example of white privilege

Joe Tsai: NBA doesn’t anticipate having full arenas ‘anytime soon’

Brooklyn Nets governor Joe Tsai thinks the 2020-21 NBA season is ‘going to be a little bit tricky.’

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The restart of the 2019-20 NBA season was a huge success. Yes, there were a couple of hiccups along the way with players breaking rules regarding COVID-19, but the virus never became a problem in the bubble.

The next big hurdle for the league: the 2020-21 season.

Getting fans back in the stands next year has been a priority for the NBA, forcing the league to push back next year’s official start date.

But no matter how far NBA commissioner Adam Silver pushes the start of next season back, it may not be realistic to get fans back in arenas in 2020-21.

In fact, during the Delivering Alpha conference presented by CNBC, Brooklyn Nets governer Joe Tsai said 2020-21 is going to “be a little tricky because we don’t anticipate having a lot of fans or having a full … arena anytime soon.”

“But guess what?” Tsai added. “The following season, 2022-2023, we look for a very nice rebound. And the thing is, live sports [are] a rare commodity. You could tell during the COVID period when there [were] no sports on TV, people were just craving for it. And once you out the games on, people have come back to watch sports enthusiastically. So, I’m very, very positive, very excited about the future of live sports.

“So in the COVID era, with social distancing and people not being able to congregate in a place, that’s really going to prevent the economics. But these are challenges that can be overcome with time because we know…that there’s going to be a vaccine. You can have rapid testing programs before people come into the building. So at some point, that’s going to come back to normal.”

Nets owner reacts to claim Steve Nash becoming Brooklyn’s HC is example of white privilege

Joe Tsai doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with the conversation that ensued after the Brooklyn Nets hired Steven Nash as head coach.

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During his introductory press conference as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets, Steve Nash was asked about one of the conversations that ensued after he received the job despite his lack of coaching experience: that this move was an example of white privilege.

“Well, I have benefited from white privilege,” Brooklyn’s head coach said. “Our society has a lot of ground to make up. I’m not saying that this position (that) was a factor, as far as white privilege being a factor in this position.”

Nash elaborated on the matter of white privilege in the U.S., displaying his willingness to talk about those types of issues. Nets governor Joe Tsai thinks it’s important those conversations continue to take place.

“The example [Stephen A. Smith] uses in this particular case is misapplied, but having that conversation is important,” Tsai said to Yale students on a video call that was shared publicly on Friday (via Marc Berman of the New York Post). “So I think this is a very good example of, rather than just shouting at each other, we understand white privilege is an issue and needs to be talked about. But in this case, it doesn’t apply because Steve Nash is the best person for the job. But we’re not afraid to talk about it.”

Tsai also added that Nash’s handling of the issue in the press conference was “very sensible and sensitive,” and he further backed his new head coach:

Steve Nash is a two-time MVP — one of the most talented point guards that ever played basketball. It was an incredible get for us to be able to convince him to come in and coach our team. The problem is Steve Nash is white. In the context of social justice discussion in the nation, we came under a little bit of criticism.

RELATED: ‘Emotional conversations’ with Nets had big role in Joe, Clara Wu Tsai’s social justice initiative

‘Emotional conversations’ with Nets had big role in Joe, Clara Wu Tsai’s social justice initiative

Joe Tsai recently explained how he and his wife, Clara Wu, came to their organizational social justice plan back in August.

When NBA players put the 2020 Playoffs on hold in late August, one topic discussed among those players was the owners doing more for social justice causes.

As players looked to the league’s top decision-makers, Brooklyn Nets governor Joe Tsai and his wife, Clara Wu, were a step ahead, having already announced their social justice initiative just before the stoppage in play.

We stand in solidarity with the Black community, and all Indigenous people and People of Color, to end racism in our organization and in our society.

The Plaza at Barclays Center in Brooklyn has become a gathering space for Black Lives Matter. We are proud of our players’ leadership in speaking out against racism and advocating for social justice.

Racial injustice continues to be pervasive in society, and systemic imbalances must be addressed by the government, the private sector, and individuals. We plan to address the inequities by focusing first on our organization and our community in Brooklyn. We believe Barclays Center, the Brooklyn Nets, and New York Liberty can become symbols of how we move forward together as a country. We will provide the resources to accelerate change. We hope to lead by example by supporting our athletes, employees, and community in anti-racist work.

Our mission is to use our platform to bring people together around a shared commitment to inclusiveness, justice, and equal opportunity. Our goal is to promote a society where people of all backgrounds can acknowledge differences and share common values without fear. We will promote a culture of belonging, and our community will be a place for dialogue, respect, and empathy.

In a conversation with Yale students earlier in September, Tsai talked about how he and his wife came to their plan (via Nets Daily):

“I’ve never come across this, but when I see a policeman on the streets, I don’t run away. There’s no fear, but as I have conversations with our players and also some friends, people that we know who are black, they start to pour out.

“I mean they … it’s a very, very emotional conversation. We’ve been in a lot of these emotional conversations about the kind of life that they lead that’s different because certain people see other people by the color of their skin and not by what they do and what they accomplish…

“So that’s why my wife and I started an initiative to say that we’re not only going to put money resources behind a social justice program but also look inward and look at our own organization. ‘Are we diverse enough? Are we doing everything we can?’ to promote the social justice cause, especially the issue facing the black community today.”

As part of the Tsai’s five-point plan, the Nets governor committed $50 million over 10 years to “social justice initiatives and community investments that will benefit the BIPOC.”