Mikhail Prokhorov Calls James Dolan ‘That Little Man’

There’s a big feature about the Nets moving to Brooklyn and the whole mess that’s accompanying them up on NYmag.com this morning, but here’s a solid nugget: Nets owner/Russian multi-billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov refers to Knicks owner/American multimillionaire as “that little man,” which is some quality owner-to-owner trash talk. Here’s some more info on the total rebrand of the Nets organization: “The Nets are trying to make you forget they ever were in New Jersey. Everything about the team now screams premium. The centerpiece is Jay-Z, who has been intimately involved in glitzing up the operation, from polishing the logo to redesigning the uniforms to choosing which forks are used in the private suites. The Nets are rebranding with Jay-Z class. They are more about the ambience than the food. (Though—and Ratner wants to make sure you know this—they are bringing in all sorts of Brooklyn cuisine to the concessions.) In addition to the Vault, there’s also the Legends Lounge on the Main Concourse and the signature Barclays Center feature, the ‘Loft Suites.’ These are private boxes like any other private box at an arena, but with fewer seats (ten), thus making it (theoretically) more affordable for smaller businesses. (By ‘theoretically,’ I mean ‘$275,000 for the season.’) The loft-suite licenses also provide ‘use of the suite on nonevent dates.’ The team says over 80 percent of its corporate boxes have been sold already. The one corporate box that’s off-limits? The ‘Prokhorov Suite,’ sitting at the center bowl of the arena, larger than any other private box and reserved for the mercurial Russian owner. (Prokhorov told me back in December that he plans on attending a quarter of the regular-season games and ‘all the playoff ones.’ He also made sure that I heard him call Dolan ‘that little man.’) The Nets frequently note that a minimum of 2,000 seats a game will cost $15 or less, at least for the first season. Still, it’s clear that the Nets did not move to Brooklyn to be Pepsi to Jim Dolan’s Coke: They want to be Veuve Clicquot.”