Hey BROOKLYN: Welcome to New Jersey

The Nets may have changed their logo and their colors with their move to Brooklyn but they still have the tendencies and let downs of the good ole’ New Jersey teams.

Last night the Brooklyn Nets had a golden opportunity to make a statement in their inaugural season in New York and tie the cross town rival New York Knicks for the Atlantic division 16 games remaining.

Instead they decided to flash back to their wallowing days in the Garden State and put their fans through a lackluster, turnover filled display of basketball that made fans question whether or not this team has the internal fortitude to become a champion or at the very least a contender.

The expectations are high for this Brooklyn team that is filled with talent that has only been seen in a Nets uniform a few times with the likes of Jason Kidd, Kenyon Martin and Richard Jefferson.  Those teams in the early 2000’s were the exception and not the rule for all Nets fans.

Too many times the Jersey fans had to sit through mediocrity and talentless seasons only to be told to be patient and things will change.  Things have changed for the Nets organization with the move to Brooklyn but it seems the ability to look prosperity in the face and spit at it has not changed.

The New York Knicks are crumbling right before everyone’s eyes and last night was the first opportunity to take a big bite out of the fan base and rise up to make a statement.

This did not happen as the team that had watched the Knicks lose four straight games on the west coast and fall back to them laid a golden egg on the Barclays center floor in front of thousands of hungry Nets fans.

With a win last night against a mediocre Atlanta Hawks team, whom Brooklyn just beat in Atlanta for the first time in four years just one week ago, they threw that chance away with each turnover and missed shot.

Many longtime Nets fans made mention of their tendency to flop in these types of games on Twitter prior to the game and I was the leader of this as people were downright giddy prior to the game with pride.

My hesitation to believe this team had changed was correct and this was one time I wanted so bad to be wrong.

No one is saying that the Nets season is over by no means, although if the Nets organization really wants to put their past history of failures behind them they must win games like this.

With this home loss the Nets venture out into their longest road trip in franchise history today on this eight game, 17 day journey that will decide their seeding and season and hopefully change the minds of many long-suffering Nets fans.

Can these Brooklyn Nets seize the opportunity in front of them or fade into the past failures that so many previous New Jersey teams have?

“Hello Brooklyn” would have a nice ring with a division title next to it.