March 22, 1997 - (AP) If it seems there are more people cheering the New Jersey Nets than there are fans in the stands, there's a simple explanation: The basketball team pumps up the atmosphere with crowd noise from loudspeakers.
Team officials acknowledged the deception yesterday after it was reported in the New York Daily News, but they would not provide details on how it's done or when it began.
"Some of this stuff is embarrassing," coach John Calipari told the newspaper. "I just shook my head. I said, 'Do we need to do that?' "
The team plays it home games in Izod Center, which seats 20,049. But with the team mired in 13th place in the NBA's Eastern Conference, empty seats are not uncommon.
The artificial cheers were noticeable during the Nets' 99-98 victory over Chicago on March 14, 1997. They drowned out booing by Chicago fans trying to distract Xavier McDaniel, who made four foul shots in the final minute to clinch the victory for the Nets.
"I didn't notice that," McDaniel said. "Is that true?"
Said guard Kevin Edwards: "I guess it's like a game show, where they have those applause signs."
While sports teams often use organs, driving rock music and scoreboard signs to get the crowd pumped up, the Nets appear to be alone in admitting to using fake crowd noise.
NBA spokesman Brian McIntyre said he knew of no other teams that used artificial crowd noise. He said the practice would violate NBA rules if the noise was blared during free-throw shooting. Otherwise, the home team can broadcast whatever it wants over the public address system.
Calipari said the Nets' bogus cheers will eventually be silenced.
"One day, you'll say it was only three years ago that they were pumping in fake crowd noise. You'll say, 'How far has this organization come?' "
Directions to Izod Center
(From Newark Airport) Take the New Jersey Turnpike North to Exit 16W (Sports Complex). Once you have exited, follow signs for the Sports Complex. The arena will be in front of you.
(From New York City) Take the George Washington Bridge to the New Jersey Turnpike (local or express lanes). Exit 16W (Sports Complex) to the arena.
(Bus from New York City) Port Authority Bus Terminal, located at 42nd and 8th. Take New Jersey Transit. Buses leave 2 hours before game continuously, and return up to 1 hour after the game. $3.25 one-way fare. 20 minute travel time. For more information call 212-564-8484.
The Will Call window is number 17 and located in the Box Office Lobby at the South Entrance of the arena (right under the Izod Center sign).
NETS TO BANK ON NEW NEWARK ARENA
May 13, 1999
Copyright 1999 MediaVentures
The New Jersey Nets will move ahead with plans to build a new arena in Newark and will leave the Izod Center in the Meadowlands in 2003. It also means the team won't support a state plan to build a replacement for the Izod Center. The arena's other tenant, the NHL Devils, have already said they want to build their own arena in Hoboken.
In notifying the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority (NJSEA) of their plans, the Nets invited the Authority to participate, but did not specify what role it might play. Authority officials had no comment on the proposal.
Gov. Christie Whitman objected to the plan, saying both the Nets and the Devils need to share an arena for it to be economially viable. Whitman said whether the arena is in Newark, Hoboken or the Meadowlands, two teams must share the venue to cover the overhead. While the team are willing to share a venue, they cannot agree on where a new arena should be located.
The Devils have made their pitch for a new 18,500-seat arena in Hoboken as part of a $270 million entertainment and retail development. The arena would have 100 luxury suites, 3,000 club seats and theme restaurants. It would open by 2003.
The Devils say they will invest $200 million in the project and want the public to pay $30 million. Private investors will put up parking structures, retail and theater space. The Nets are asking for $100 million in public financing and also want to build a new stadium for the MLS MetroStars. Both groups feel they can make it work without the other team, but they would also like to share a venue. However, the Devils feel their best prospects are in Hoboken.
The NJSEA proposal calls for a new $200 million arena that includes another $100 million for renovations to Giants Stadium. NJSEA hopes the teams will want to play in the new building, but it has been designed to be viable even if the Nets and Devils leave. The arena would be supported by $165 million in commercial development including restaurants and retail shops in a plaza central to the arena, Giants Stadium and the Meadowlands Race Track. The area would be able to generate revenue from all the venues when crowds are drawn to the area.
The new arena would feature 88 to 100 luxury suites, compared to 29 at Izod Center which would be replaced in the deal. Eight suites would be rented for single events and they would hold up to 300 persons total. Restaurants, bars, team offices and 2,666 club seats would be added. There are no club seats now. The arena would seat 18,436 fans for hockey and 19,136 for basketball.
The MLS MetroStars may be the deciding factor in whether a new arena for the New Jersey Nets is built in Newark. Because the MetroStars' lease at Giants Stadium expires in 2001, the soccer team is under pressure to start construction on the venue. If that is delayed, the team would either have to work out a deal to stay at Giants Stadium or accept an offer from developers in Elizabeth, NJ for a new home there. The loss of the MetroStars' stadium would be a loss to the Newark plan because the arena and stadium are part of a plan to revitalize the downtown.
NETS GET FINANCING FOR NEW ARENA
July 8, 1999
Copyright 1999 MediaVentures
Prudential Insurance has promised to lead an investment group that will provide up to $170 million in financing to the New Jersey Nets in their effort to build a new arena in Newark. The financing, which includes a two year construction loan and a 20 year mortgage, is contingent on a feasibility study of the arena and local infrastructure. The team hopes the announcement will boost interest in the $290 million arena by other investors. Prudential will put up to $80 million of its own money into the project.
In its pitch to Prudential, the Nets say the arena will house the NBA team plus an NHL or IHL team. That would mean the Nets hope to persuade the Devils to abandon their plan to build a new arena in Hoboken. The Devils have already brought Cablevision Systems in on their deal as a sponsor. Another arena proposal has been made by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority which is willing to replace Izod Center at the Meadowlands with a new venue for the teams. Both the Nets' and the Authority's plans require public funding. The Devils say they only require public funds for infrastructure work. Prudential says its proposal is not contingent on getting the Devils or another team into the arena.
June 6, 2003
Devils-Nets Home doesn't Look
Like Home of Champions
By Rick Hampson, USA Today
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Sometimes sports is more than a game. Sometimes it seizes hold of a community, enthralling it, uniting it, making fans and non-fans feel part of something bigger than themselves. That's how it was in New York in 1969, when the Mets, after years of epic futility, won the World Series. Years later, the columnist Pete Hamill said it was the last time when everyone he knew was happy.
That's how it should be here in the Meadowlands, where the New Jersey Devils and the New Jersey Nets have a chance to become the first teams from the same place to win NBA and NHL championships in the same season. It's a chance to step out of New York's shadow, to stop those stupid New Jersey jokes about the mob and the air, to give an amorphous suburban region with dozens of cities, boroughs, towns and villages a common cause.
But it's just not happening.
The problem isn't on the ice or the floor. It's on the airwaves, at the bars, on the streets. Devils-Nets fever is not highly contagious. For every one person excited by the confluence of possible championships, there seem to be seven who don't care.
Listen to Matt Angrist, a senior at Northern Valley Regional High School in Demarest: "Every year near this time I see the Devils hanging around. After a while, it just gets monotonous seeing them always win. As for the Nets, I hope they lose. Every Nets fan jumped on the bandwagon and probably couldn't name five players three years ago. Disgusting."
If Angrist had spoken like that about the Pirates in Pittsburgh in 1960, or about the Bruins in Boston in 1970, he would have had to eat dinner with a spoon.
But even the mayor of the town where the Nets and Devils play sees little sign of Jerseymania.
Not like 'Giants in Super Bowl'
"It's not like the times the Giants were in the Super Bowl," says James Cassella, referring to the NFL team that plays in the Meadowlands but still has "New York" in its name. "People who had no interest in sports were interested. You had the office pools, the parties. I'm a Nets and Devils fan, but this year just isn't like that."
This year the Devils are tied with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim at two games each in the NHL's best-of-seven-game Stanley Cup Finals. The Nets, meanwhile, trail the San Antonio Spurs one game to none in the best-of-seven NBA Finals.
Both New Jersey teams play at Izod Center, whose site occupies a vast swath of this borough of about 9,000 people. It's the first time in a decade that teams from the same place have made the NBA and NHL finals in the same season.
Mayor Cassella says his constituents are excited by the prospect of dual titles, then adds, "We're just as excited that the high school baseball team is playing for the state championship on Saturday."
"The average man in the street in Jersey isn't caught up in this," says Serge Krikorian, an insurance agent who holds Devils and Nets season tickets. "It's a disgrace. It breaks my heart that these things happen. I've discussed this with hundreds of friends. ... And I still can't figure it out."
The scapegoats
There are many explanations for why the Nets and Devils aren't the talk of the mall. Some of the more prominent scapegoats:
•Their arena. Izod Center is a charmless, cramped, early Reagan-era building that strikes many visitors as sterile as well as decrepit.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman calls it "outdated and inaccessible." NBA Commissioner David Stern says it "needs to be replaced." New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority President George Zoffinger says it "just doesn't work."
Translation: It has too few luxury suites and too little concourse space for stalls selling memorabilia, team gear and food.
•Their location. The arena is surrounded by a sea of asphalt and a river of highways. It is virtually unreachable by mass transit, and thus a tough commute for Manhattanites, many of who are too cool to drive.
•Their attendance. Despite having the NHL Eastern Conference's second-best record this regular season, the Devils had 3,622 empty seats at their home playoff opener against the Bruins. They logged three sellouts during the season.
The Nets averaged about 15,000 fans a game in the 20,000-seat arena, making them 23rd out of 29 NBA teams in home attendance. Nets forward Richard Jefferson has said the team plays before more people on the road than at home. At Izod Center, star guard Jason Kidd has told The New York Times, "The seats stand out because there's no one in them."
•Their owners. Both teams are owned by YankeeNets, a company headed by New York Yankees principal owner George Steinbrenner and partners. They have said they want a new arena in nearby Newark partly financed with public funds. That has tended to undercut local support.
"If they both win, are they going to move the teams?" asks Teaneck's Billy Willets, who says he has gone to 10 Nets games and 10 Devils games this season. "Why should we support a team that's going to move?" His fear: The teams will play well, the owners will get a new arena, ticket prices will rise and the fans "will never be able to go to a game again."
•Their community. Or their lack of one. Unlike most big-league teams, the Nets and Devils have no substantial local or regional political entity with which to identify. Although the arena is in East Rutherford, the borough's population could fit inside it two times.
Rob Lang grew up in New Jersey. Now he's an expert on urban areas. His view: "It's hard to be Titletown, USA, when there is no town."
"We don't have a real city for this team, I guess," Devils defenseman Tommy Albelin says with a shrug.
•Their competition. In the northern part of the state, the Devils and Nets compete for fans with the New York Rangers and Knicks; in the south, they face the Philadelphia Flyers and 76ers.
The city teams have been in their present locations longer. The Devils hear it all the time: "You're great, but I'm a Rangers fan." Others aren't as subtle. Devils fan Mike Miserendino of Staten Island says Rangers fans "will try to jump on anything. 'You can't even sell out a playoff game. Your style of play is boring. You don't know anything about hockey.' "
•Their fans. There are Nets fans and there are Devils fans, and rarely do the twain meet. You see relatively few Devils bumper stickers at Nets games, and vice versa, and there's not much overlap between season ticketholders.
•Themselves. Why should fans be swept up in cross-sport enthusiasm when the players aren't?
Although some Devils know something about basketball, the Nets seem to casually follow the Devils but not hockey in general.
"I always wonder why they fight so much," the Nets' Dikembe Mutombo says of pro hockey players. "I wouldn't want to leave my house and go to work where someone beat me up in my face and I end up in the surgery room every night."
Nets coach Byron Scott, forward Brian Scalabrine and Jefferson have attended at least one Stanley Cup Finals game. Guard Lucious Harris says he never has been to a hockey game. He'd like to go, sort of, but says "most of the time, on your day off, you just want to rest. You say you're going to go, but all of sudden that day off looks a lot better."
Pro athletes often attend pro games as guests of the house and get a nice hand when they enter. They probably don't even have to buy their own popcorn. If they don't want to go, why should anyone else?
Stuck in the middle
New Jersey always has been caught between New York and Philadelphia — "a valley of humility between two mountains of conceit," as Ben Franklin put it. Somewhere along the line, a sense of humility became one of inferiority. "We're used to playing second fiddle," Mayor Cassella says.
In politics, for instance, statewide candidates in New Jersey must hope New York- and Philadelphia-based television stations cover their campaigns, and they must raise enough money to advertise in both markets.
The Nets' arrival in the mid-1970s and the Devils' in the early '80s promised at least to raise the state's sports profile. But it didn't happen immediately. The Devils were denounced by the great Wayne Gretzky as a "Mickey Mouse" organization. The Nets, much worse for much longer at the Meadowlands, were known for piping canned crowd noise into the arena.
But the concurrent championship series promised to bury those memories like a mobster in cement. Gov. James McGreevey has hailed the arena as "the center of sports greatness" and said its teams "will bring increased pride and distinction to the state." According to state Sen. Paul Sarlo, who represents the Meadowlands' district, "The eyes of the nation are looking here, at the crown jewel of winter sports."
Forget the eyes of the nation; Mike Wallstein of Fair Lawn says the state, "with the Nets and Devils, is the center of the universe. Jersey finally is getting its due."
Even Wallstein's business partner is coming around. Drew Paterno moved to New Jersey from New York about 25 years ago but never fully reconciled himself to the fact. He's apt to tell people he's really a New Yorker — just staying here for the time being.
But with the Nets' and Devils' success, he says, "I'm tempted to tell folks I'm from Jersey!"
Chris Dolan, a high school senior from Demarest, feels the same vibe. "I was around when they both sucked. It's a great feeling to see them at the top," he says. "I take pride in the swamp now — and the Jersey Turnpike."
Maybe both teams will win and New Jersey finally will experience a transcendent sports moment. But — with Jersey there's often a but — there also are worries about the future.
• Will the teams move to Newark? The smart money says probably not, but Newark Mayor Sharpe James keeps touting the prospects of an arena in his city.
• Will Kidd, whose contract expires this summer, leave to play for another team? The smart money says probably not. One potential suitor, San Antonio, seems more smitten by the day with its own point guard, young Tony Parker.
• Where, in the absence of a local answer to lower Manhattan's Canyon of Heroes, would victory parades be held? On a highway offramp? In a shopping mall?
The smart money says probably not. Any parade most likely will be held where it was the last time the Devils won the Stanley Cup: the arena parking lot.
Devils defenseman Ken Daneyko says he doesn't know where the parade should be held, but he knows this much: "That's such a nice problem to have." And one not facing New York or Philly.
Contributing: Roscoe Nance in San Antonio, Jill Lieber, Tom Pedulla, Kevin Allen, Melissa Geschwind, Ian O'Connor, Michelle Oh, Julie Gordon
THE ULTIMATE SPORTS ROAD TRIP
By: Andrew Kulyk & Peter Farrell
| Izod Center Ranking by USRT |
| Architecture |  | 3 |
| Concessions | | 4.5 |
| Scoreboard | | 5 |
| Ushers | | 0 |
| Fan Support | | 2 |
| Location | | 3 |
| Banners/History | | 7 |
| Entertainment | | 5 |
| Concourses/Fan Comfort | | 4 |
| Bonus: Sly the Mascot | | 2 |
| Total Score |  | 35.5 |
January 20, 2001 - Opened in 1981, The Continental Airlines Arena is the home to the NHL New Jersey Devils and the NBA New Jersey Nets, as well as to the Seton Hall Pirates college basketball team and numerous minor sport franchises. The facility was also home to the NCAA mens basketball Final Four in 1996. This arena i part of the Meadowlands Sports Complex which includes Giants Stadium and the Meadowlands Racetrack. The building is surrounded by expressways and surface parking. There is no adjoining neighborhood and no ambience around the facility whatsoever - just pavement. The building itself still looks somewhat futuristic and modern, with the corporate name emblazoned across the roof and a tall dot matrix marquee along the highway.
If you enter at the ground level where the ticket offices are, there you will find a handsome display of the New Jersey Sports Hall of Fame. The wide single concourse which surrounds the building is all skylit to the outside, providing ample natural light during the day. Concession stands and merchandise venues are very bright and attractive. We could not find a main team merchandise store, but there is a ground floor restaurant/lounge called Winners for premium ticket holders.
Premium Seats
Being an 80's arena, there are no club seats, but there are some suites at the top of the 100 level.
The Bowl
The arena bowl is broken into two levels, both accessed from the single concourse. A four sided scoreboard with video boards is in the center, and there are four additional video boards hanging from the rafters in each corner. In each end zone are two huge dot matrix boards, and along the balcony are small information boards for out of town scores, shots on goal, etc. From a distance this information was hard to see. The bowl itself is vertical and cavernous, and does not lend itself to an intimate feel at all, especially with oceans of empty seats at the Nets game (the Devils game was a sellout).
Concessions
The best item we could find was the hand carved sirloin and turkey sandwiches. A tall draft beer is still only $3.00!
Banners/Retired Numbers
The Devils proudly display their two Stanley Cup banners along with smaller divisional titles. The Nets have 5 retired numbers and two ABA titles..(have we not seen all 10 ABA title banners between here and Indiana???) sadly for them, their best days were played when they were on the Island and their icon was a man named Dr. J. Also, Seton Hall has banners honoring their '89 run to the Final Four along with Big East title winners. Finally a banner honoring Ashbury Park, NJ's contribution to the popular music world, The Boss- Bruce Springsteen.
Deductions
We will try to keep this short... we were given major hassles by the Nets people, and this was regarding the same problem we have had in some other venues..namely, the quest to take a simple picture of the playing surface and logo from the center 100 level seats. The ushers would not let us pass.. we went to "customer service" for assistance, explained who we were and our project, only to encounter four scowling faces who were unsympathetic and told us to "write a letter". We did manage to take our photos after the game, only after some skullduggery on our part to get downstairs for our shots, and as we were finishing up, we caught the sight of a security guard and two ushers from the corner of our eyes, converging on us as they were talking into their walkie talkies. We hightailed it out of there fast! Our suggestion to the New Jersey Nets is this... why don't you guys furnish each of your ushers and your customer service people at Gate A with a mean german shepherd on a leash. That would complete the scene nicely.
Things that Caught our Eye - in each section there is an alcove leading to the bowl. Outfitted in every alcove is a television monitor mounted from the ceiling. Fans returning to their seats and waiting for a whistle miss nothing. Nice, nice touch! We are amazed that we have not seen this done anywhere else.
"Sly's Candid Camera"
Sly is the mascot for the Nets, and they produce a hilarious clip modeled after the old Candid Camera show. In the skit we saw during a media timeout, Sly was in a shopping mall pretending to be a mannequin. Every time a child or a teenager ventured closeby he lunged after the kid. The fans were in stitches! Allen Funt would have been proud.
Sly's House. Sly has a set out in the concourse. Children can line up and have their picture taken during halftime. Nice photo op for the fans.
Summary
This arena is a classic example of what was expected of a sports facility during the time that it was built. Number one, to get fans into the building and into their seats to watch an event and give them the ability to purchase basic necessities such as concessions, souvenirs etc.. (Unlike today's more modern facilities that offer a more complete interactive entertainment and shopping experience). Number two, the in-house revenue is to come from those who buy tickets to watch from the main seating areas. While today we see more and more of an emphasis on club seating (almost non-existent at the time) and many more suites all with its amenities (in seat customer service, opportunities for fine dining and the like) Finally, the idea that an arena is simply a structure and the main event being held within its confines is the attraction. Unlike today in which the newer facilities are as much a part of the experience as the events themselves. There is talk about a new building here, but it will be a while yet before a shovel goes into the ground. If you are looking for the ultimate NHL or NBA experience, we would definitely steer you away from the Continental Airlines Arena.
