Nets' Brooklyn opener to be played Thursday as scheduled
The NBA announced Tuesday that the Thursday night game between the Nets and the New York Knicks in Brooklyn will be played as planned, despite the city dealing with the effects of Hurricane Sandy.
Earlier in the day, the New York Times reported the league was considering cancelling the contest, which is set to be the regular-season debut of Brooklyn's new $1 billion Barclay's Center.
The league made the announcement to ESPNNewYork.com after looking at the damage to the New York City borough Tuesday.
One of the factors was how fast mass transit can be restored. The Nets are also scheduled for home games Saturday (against Toronto) and Monday (against Minnesota).
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said earlier Tuesday he hoped the game would not be canceled.
"I plan to go," he said during a press conference. "It's going to be tough to get there, because one of the great things about the Barclays Center is the great mass transit that runs under it.
"Unfortunately for the moment, not a lot is running under it. What they're going to do, I don't know. But if it's scheduled I will go, and I think it's going to be a great arena and it's a great thing for Brooklyn."
