In a nod to current economic conditions, the basketball team will give unemployed fans who submit their resumes to the Nets Job Bank up to four free tickets, plus access to a Nov. 22 career fair at their home arena, team president and chief executive Brett Yormark said yesterday. The team also will distribute applicants' resumes to its sponsors.... "Hopefully they'll come out and experience the Nets, and then when times get better they'll invest in us, because we invested in them," Yormark said. "No other team is doing that, and I think it's the appropriate thing to do, because times are tough.".... To those who register for the program, the team will make 300 tickets available for each of five selected games at Izod Center in East Rutherford.
You have to know that the economy truly is circling the drain when an NBA franchise starts assisting fans in looking for work. Yes, that's right; the New Jersey Nets are getting into the matchmaking business...in the sense that they're going to assisting with hooking up their unemployed fans with prospective suitors...uh, employers.
Of course, there's apparently no truth to the rumor that the Nets will be tapping fans to fill out their roster if injuries become a problem as the season wears on. I'm not a Nets fan, but once upon a time I played point guard...and if all I have to worry about is feeding Vince Carter...well, sign me up. Not only that, I'll do it for a whole lot less than whoever their current point guard is. 'Course, my knees aren't what they used to be, but I could probably give the Nets a good 20-25 minutes a night without too much difficulty. Hey, if you want a point guard with a 2" vertical jump and who you could time with a sun dial...well, I'm your man! I'll even agree to live in New Jersey if I have to.
For those of you Nets fans who actually ARE out of work, I'm impressed that the team recognizes the importance of their fans. Frankly, if fans are out of work, they're not going to be able to pay NBA ticket prices for long, and it's nice to see that the Nets recognize that people are suffering and need whatever help they can get. Would that more teams would follow the Nets' lead and show that they care about more than simply emptying their fans' wallets as quickly and efficiently as possible.
