History of the Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets, a professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, was founded in 1967 and initially played in Teaneck, New Jersey, as the New Jersey Americans, later the New Jersey Nets. They are a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as an original member of the American Basketball Association (ABA). In 2012 they moved to Brooklyn and were renamed the Brooklyn Nets.
Sports in Brooklyn
On January 23, 2004, developer Bruce Ratner announced that he had purchased the National Basketball Association's Nets franchise (then known as the New Jersey Nets) and started on his plan to move the Nets to the 18,000-seat Barclays Center as part of the Atlantic Yards development at Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues. After years of delays caused by community opposition and financial difficulties, the arena broke ground in March 2010 and opened in September 2012. The Nets officially changed their names to the Brooklyn Nets on April 30, 2012, and the move was made official. The Nets thus became Brooklyn's first major league sports team in 55 years.