There’s lots of dry wit in this interview, and I can’t decide whether it’s incredibly awkward, or two friends riffing off of one another. Nevertheless, later in the interview comes the good stuff: Jay talks about the franchise’s plans for a stadium in Brooklyn, and also joins in to speculate on ‘Bron’s plans for 2010.
Jay-Z Talks Nets, Stadiums, and Lebron
On the Nets stadium:
“We’re trying to get to Brooklyn... I think early December is the new date when we’re trying to break ground. Hopefully it happens.”
On whether Lebron might come to the Nets:
”If we have a great team around him, hopefully he’ll come to Brooklyn. He’s my friend first, so, I wouldn’t do that to him if we didn’t have a chance of winning. You know, ‘cause he’s going to be great. I want him to be great, you know. Whatever team lands him.
He also shared his thoughts on Shaq-to-the-Cavs, and trades some laughs about the Knicks with Dave. All in all, Jay the interview about as cool as you possibly could--which is why Cleveland fans should be worried. Jay-Z is Lebron’s friend, yes, but before that, he was his idol. He’s played the crossover from hip-hop superstar to business mogul just about perfectly, and that’s an impression that’s certainly not lost on Lebron, a 24-year-old kid who’s got designs on leaving an imprint far beyond basketball arenas across America.
Lebron’s transparent ambitions for world stardom may make him damn near insufferable, but in assessing this 2010 circus, it also makes him a good bet to follow his idol/mentor/friend Jay-Z to New Jersey Brooklyn. That New Jersey has a far better foundation than either Cleveland or New York--with heightened flexibility, to boot--only makes this scenario more likely.
Cablevision may give him a TV channel, and Cleveland might be home, but Jay-Z is Lebron’s dream in the flesh--that might be the most persuasive angle of all.
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