The Nets swung big and missed a couple times. They went hard after Carmelo Anthony, but he ended up in Manhattan. They wanted Dwight Howard — there were even tampering rumors — but the Magic would not play along so he ended up on the other coast.
Nets majority owner Mikhail Prokhorov is not a man used to not getting his way.
But the business of the NBA is a little different than other businesses, because of the market restrictions (salary cap, etc.…) and the limited supply of elite talent. So after owning the Nets for two years and promising a title within five, what has he learned?
Details Magazine asked him exactly that.
I generally draw lessons from a broader set of goals I set for myself. The NBA is a very competitive league, and there’s an intense battle not only for players but for fans and advertising as well. So the stronger the competition, the more interesting it is for me. We were never working from a single game plan. The whole time we had Plan A, B, C, and D. These plans may intersect at some point, but our goal remains the same: Build a championship team and win the title within the first five years. Two years have already passed, so we have three years left. My plans haven’t changed.
Well, that’s vague.
Details asked him a lot of other questions, ranging from running for president of Russia to electric cars. And about women.
And about Nets minority owner Jay-Z.
First of all, my family was never rich. We never had a car or a country house, though we were solidly middle-class by Soviet standards. But what Jay-Z and I share is that we’re both self-made. We both achieved a certain level of success, thanks to our own talent and hard work. We definitely have that bond.
There is a lot more stuff in the Q&A.
