Jay-Z Is Big Behind The Scenes With The Nets; Steph Curry Is Nearly Full Strength

Did you know how small Jay-Z‘s ownership of the Brooklyn Nets is? It’s got to be decent, you’d think, what with his face on billboards around Manhattan, being at the shovel ceremony for the Barclays Center and having about four of his other business interests tied into the team’s new arena. Actually, it’s tiny: one-fifteenth of one percent, reported The New York Times today. But if teams want to lure in a big fish celebrity to co-own a pro team (even if they’re not spending relatively much — Mr. Carter put down $1 million) you can be sure they’ll watch this other Brooklyn blueprint. There are a bunch of great anecdotes in the story but some include him telling arena operators to not play much Jersey boy music (sorry Springsteen, sorry Bon Jovi); that he personally got approval from the NBA for a black-and-white uniform and logo scheme; and that principal owner Bruce Ratner warmed to Jay’s investment when he learned there were — we kid you not — “radio versions” of his songs that left out the cussing, etc., making him more palatable for the other investors and David Stern. Perhaps the best part that brings this whole thing full circle is that Jason Kidd, the new point guard of the New York Knicks — the very franchise the Nets are trying to woo fans away from — came up with the idea for Jay-Z to buy the franchise to begin with. … John Salley today said MJ wasn’t in the top five players of all-time, an omission made worse by putting Kevin McHale ahead of him. McHale: Great player. Better than MJ? No, no, no. If this goes back to some Pistons-Bulls beef we’d have to say, take off the Detroit-colored glasses and acknowledge MJ’s rightful spot among any and everyone’s top two. … STAT is looking nice with his post-game improvement, his new champion, Hakeem Olajuwon, is saying. Saying that Amar’e is staying for two weeks with Olajuwon outside of Houston instead of the typical three or four days other stars do, the Dream referenced Stoudemire’s spin move that is becoming lethal. “He could spin all day,” he told the New York Times. But is that change, necessary as it is, too much too late? … The KD IV ‘Gold” colorway is dropping Saturday, a month after being announced, but don’t tell that to sneakerheads in New York City. According to a sighting by our Dime fam co-founder Josh Gotthelf, there is already a line for these kicks on 34th Street on Thursday afternoon. KD seems like the superstar who would totally go stop by and hang out with those fans, too, maybe shoot the breeze or play a little flag football. Will you cop? … Andrew Bynum continues to endear himself to Philly fans with his latest round of interviews today in the city of Brotherly Love. He went on the radio to say: “I don’t like to jump around, jump ship, a lot. I was with the Lakers for seven years. I want to be here for that or even longer.” Like we said last night here, there is zero percent chance he leaves Philadelphia in the next offseason. The biggest worry you could have as a Sixers fan is whether the player who has everything he wants uses the power for good (making teammates better, becoming a player management can trust) or bad (taking 30 shots a game, indiscriminately). Maybe he even undergoes a Kobe-like maturation, where the volume takes precedence early, but then he begins to be more of a facilitator and leader later who does anything for another title. … Hit the jump to see how Arron Afflalo found out he was traded…

… One of the more hilarious and heartbreaking tweets we saw today was how Arron Afflalo, one of the centerpieces for the Magic in the Dwight Howard trade, learned he got traded when he was in Barcelona by checking ESPN.com. Denver or Orlando, pick up the phone! If you needed one more sign that this game is a business in the NBA, you’ve found it. That tweet came from the Orlando Sentinel’s Brian Schmitz, who was the author of the “Dwightmare” book that came out in July. How are sales for that going, we wonder? … Good news for Warriors fans that Steph Curry is nearly full strength after re-twisting his right ankle badly last March. He missed all but 22 of the team’s games but believes he’s “getting myself ready for camp.” He blames the return of issues with his health last season on not enough time to rest, and rushing back after his prior injuries. He didn’t rush into it this year, waiting until June 1 to get started. Now that, Andrew Bynum, is how you take care of offseason health work. … All New York fans are tough on their teams, but in a cross-sport twist, “Bleacher Creature” Yankee fans have taken a liking to Knicks coach Mike Woodson. Woodson and assistant coach Darrell Walker went to Wednesday’s Rangers-Yankees game and sat in the famed rowdy Section 203. One ESPN dispatch on the event said a fan yelled out to Woodson: “I didn’t want Phil Jackson, either!” Sure you didn’t. What would be the best cross-sport mashup in an NBA city? We’ll have to go with one of the Warriors hanging out in the Raiders’ army of darkness end zone seats as No. 1. Can you see the Warriors’ Curry in silver and black face paint wearing shoulder pads with spikes on them? … And the NBA preseason begins Oct. 5 in Turkey … We’re out like John Salley‘s memory.