Nets don’t measure Mexico City success just in wins
MEXICO CITY — The Nets would have preferred to head back to Brooklyn with a clean sweep. But other than losing to Miami on Saturday, they claim they accomplished everything they could have hoped, from team bonding to team branding, from being tourists to basketball ambassadors.
“The experience has been extremely pleasant. The guys have enjoyed it,” general manager Sean Marks told The Post. “These are those type of experiences where I’m not sure you can really put your hands on what it means until [later]. Maybe it’s two weeks from now, maybe it’s a month from now, maybe it’s six months from now that you look back and you say, ‘Hey, remember when there was a turning point there?’ Or relationships were formed there, team solidified or something there?
“We’re all cognizant of what a bonding trip these can be, especially when you’re down here. And there’s a great fan base down here, so let’s not forget that. It’s nice to come down here. We know the NBA is pushing it, but from our standpoint, it’s come down here and spread the Nets franchise. So it’s great for us, too.”
It could have been greater if — after winning in Atlanta and then beating the Thunder on Thursday in Mexico City — they’d found a way to beat the Heat.
“Besides not being 3-0, I think this trip went about as good as possible. Team bonding. … Obviously, we miss our guys that were traded. But we went 2-1, which obviously is a winning record and we bonded. Overall a success,” Spencer Dinwiddie said.
“Overall, I thought this was a positive trip, beating Atlanta and then Oklahoma City. We would’ve liked to get [the] third one,” said coach Kenny Atkinson, who encouraged his players to be wide-eyed tourists for the week.”
There was point guard D’Angelo Russell swapping jerseys with rising Mexican national team defender Edson Alvarez, who plays his club soccer at local Mexico City powerhouse Club America.
They skipped shoot-around Thursday to walk in Chapultepec Forest — twice the size of Central Park — and went to the renowned zoo in the same park. Several players and front-office members even toured the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon on Friday.
“Yes, some of players went and enjoyed it. I know for a fact that our players were out and about, in restaurants,” Atkinson said. “A bunch went to the zoo — also in the same park — which we encourage: Absorbing the culture, grabbing the culture and really enjoy it.
“Normally I’d say stay off your feet, stay in your room. But this is a unique opportunity, so I’m happy they got out. The feedback from the pyramid was fantastic. The feedback from the zoo, that was great too.”
There was even time for charity.
Players hosted basketball activities for students and working with locals at Maestro Miguel A. Quintana Elementary School to paint murals and beautify an area hammered by the recent earthquakes.
Dinwiddie teamed up with artist Louis Carreon on one-of-a-kind pieces to benefit both the guard’s foundation and the kids of Mexico City.
Dinwiddie created a show called PERCEPTION, and had Carreon paint and customize several pairs of sneakers, which will be auctioned by The Dinwiddie Family Foundation. The guard — who debuted the shoes in Thursday’s win over the Thunder — will match the bids, with the money going to help educational programs for the Boys & Girls Club Mexico.
“Just another extension of philanthropy, honestly,” Dinwiddie said. “He’s done several art shows out here and it’s an area of passion for him and an area of passion for me, and so we’re trying to come together and do a little co-activation for a one-on-one shoe and helping my foundation, scholarship program and seeing where we can take it from there.”