The New York Knicks broke a 53-year championship drought back in June, and Nets owner Joe Tsai recently dropped a truth bomb on how that felt from across town. He flat out called the impact of the Knicks’ title on the Nets’ fanbase “embarrassing.” It’s a rough reality check for a franchise that finished last season 20-62, marking their third straight year outside the playoffs, and now they’re heading into 2026-27 with one of the youngest rosters in the entire league.
Tsai’s Stance: No Shame in the Rebuild Game
You might think watching your cross-town rival parade through the Canyon of Heroes with the Larry O’Brien Trophy would make an owner rethink everything, but Tsai says not so fast. In a recent interview with Nets Daily, he didn’t try to sugarcoat the sting. “Every year, some team is going to win a championship,” Tsai explained. “So it happens that this year that team is in the same city. It doesn’t make us feel very good. It irritates our fan base, and it is embarrassing.” But he’s adamant that the embarrassment won’t mess with his long-term vision. Tsai stressed that in competition, you can’t let that factor affect performance. He believes the Nets are “on a positive trajectory” with their rebuild, and this Knicks triumph doesn’t change “my thinking at all.” He’s still focused on growing the Nets’ fanbase, which is tough when the Knicks just drew over two million fans to their championship parade.
The Road Ahead: Draft Picks and a Young Talent
The Nets haven’t seen playoff action since the 2022-23 season, when they went 45-37 and got swept in the first round. Since then, it’s been a full-on demolition and rebuild, piling up losses to accumulate draft capital. The pivotal moment arrived in the summer of 2024: the Nets shipped Mikal Bridges to the Knicks in exchange for a haul of future first-round picks for 2025, 2027, 2029, and 2031, plus a 2028 pick-swap right. That move officially slammed the door on any short-term ambitions and kicked the rebuild into high gear. Last season, their 20-62 record was the third-worst in the league. They went into the draft lottery with a 14 percent chance at the first overall pick, and a 52 percent shot at a top-four selection, but they slid to sixth. They used that pick on Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr., who dropped 15 points in under 22 minutes per game during Summer League, though the team is managing him carefully due to some back issues. General manager Sean Marks is banking on all that draft capital and cap flexibility as the bedrock for what comes next.
The Nets and Knicks are set to clash four times in 2026-27, kicking off November 2 at Madison Square Garden. For Tsai, these aren’t just rivalry games; they’re a measuring stick for how far Brooklyn needs to go and a constant reminder of the future they are building towards.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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