The Brooklyn Nets‘ will have to wait a while to break in their new arena, the Barclays Center, as their scheduled game Thursday against the New York Knicks was postponed by New York major Michael Bloomberg in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.
“Mayor Bloomberg informed us this afternoon that after further analysis of the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy that he felt it was in the best interests of the city of New York, the teams and our fans that we postpone the Knicks-Nets game scheduled for Thursday night,” NBA deputy commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with all those affected by this devastating storm.”
A makeup date will be announced at a later time, the NBA said.
“The bottom line is, there just isn’t a lot of mass transit and the police have other things to do,” Bloomberg said.
Nets and Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark said all tickets for the Nets-Knicks game will be honored for the game when it is rescheduled.
“Our hearts go out to everyone affected by Hurricane Sandy,” Yormark said in a statement. “We know these are trying times for so many of you and our thoughts are with you.”
The NBA had announced Tuesday the game would take place as scheduled. But shutdowns of mass transit posed significant problems for fans trying to attend the game.
All of the Nets’ players showed up for Wednesday’s practice except rookie backup point guard Twyshan Taylor. who was stuck at his Hoboken, N.J., apartment building because of flooding in the area. Taylor tweeted Wednesday night that he had safely made it out of Hoboken.
Williams said a lot of the players suffered damage to their houses and cars, and many are still without power.
The Nets were practicing at Barclays Center because their East Rutherford, N.J., training facility is without power and was flooded as well. It is unknown when the Nets will be able to practice there again.
