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Before the biggest game of the season for the Brooklyn Nets, the team has not been able to focus all of their attention on the Play-In contest versus the Cleveland Cavaliers. There was an unexpected tragedy in NYC Tuesday, and a subway shooting has left upwards of 29 people injured, at least 10 shot, and a city that relies completely on mass transit in shock.
The Nets issued a statement:
Our thoughts are with those who have been impacted by the tragic event at the 36th St. subway station in Brooklyn this morning. pic.twitter.com/jeymgM3fWh
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) April 12, 2022
According to USA Today:
“The shooting occurred before 8:30 a.m. on a Manhattan-bound N train in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighborhood, Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said at a news conference.
The train was waiting to enter the 36th Street station when the man put on the gas mask and opened the canister. The train filled with smoke as the man fired, Sewell said.”
And it all hits way too close to home for the Nets. The 36th street stop is in Sunset Park and is a few blocks from the HSS Training Center where the team practices. It's also close to the BSE Global business office.
According to NetsDaily “it’s the closest subway station for the hundreds of employees who work in basketball and business operations for the Brooklyn and Long Island Nets as well as the New York Liberty.”
The New York Times has all of the live updates.
Second-year Nets head coach Steve Nash took a moment to reflect on the incident and its impact on the surrounding community. He admitted he had not had the chance to speak with the team about it formally, aside from a few of his fellow coaches. But with a heavy heart, coach Nash talked about how close to home this all was.
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“Clearly, our community was affected this morning, in a tragic and unfortunate, senseless way. That's the subway stop for our practice facility and for our office,” Nash shared. “My kids go to school, not exceedingly far, so it does hit home and you just feel for all those affected. And you recognize that we have a lot of growing to do as a society and a community and you just feel for everybody in our community that was affected. We saw a side of life today that is ugly, disappointing and can, I think, at times be worrisome for people in a community. But it's more important now for our community to look at how to support each other and continue to live with conviction and find ways that we can overcome.”
"That's the subway stop for our practice facility and for our office. My kids go to school not exceedingly far, so it does hit home and you just feel for all those affected."
-Nets coach Steve Nash was asked about today's horrific subway shooting in Brooklyn pic.twitter.com/oDkIgAraoh
— DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) April 12, 2022
The Nets will do all they can to focus on the moment. They play host to the Cavs, as noted. The winner of this game will earn the 7th seed for the playoffs and a trip to TD Garden to face the Boston Celtics. There will be several days off for the winner. The loser will have one more chance to make the playoffs in a do-or-die game. The winner of that subsequent game gets the 8th seed and the loser is eliminated.
But there will clearly be some heightened security getting to and from the stadium and likely at Barclays Center, too.
This isn't the first time Steve Nash has spoken out regarding societal problems he feels need changing. He expressed hurt and disappointment following the controversial Kyle Rittenhouse not-guilty verdict earlier this season. Nash has also spoken out on racial injustice.
Recently Kevin Durant praised his head coach from a basketball perspective. But one gets the sense Nash's courage and willingness to speak out on broader themes that impact players, fans and the Brooklyn community also earn him the respect of his peers and of his team.
