story<\/a> behind the Nets\u2019 nearly becoming the \u201cSwamp Dragons\u201d in an exclusive ESPN feature, revealing a treasure trove of photos of uniforms, logos, court designs and merchandise created for the proposed rebrand that had never seen outside dusty trademark applications.<\/p>\nAppropriately, Lowe broke the news before the Nets sent out official word\u2026<\/p>\n
The Nets were struggling to attract fans and sell merchandise in New Jersey, and then-team president Jon Spoelstra was searching for a way to give the franchise a new identity. The idea he landed on? The Swamp Dragons \u2014 inspired by the Meadowlands and the era of colorful, cartoonish NBA logos.<\/p>\n
And the Nets didn\u2019t just kick the idea around. They went all the way in.<\/p>\n
The NBA spent $500,000 protecting the Swamp Dragons name and related marks. The team settled on a teal, purple and black color scheme, commissioned new logos and developed uniforms, court designs, shooting shirts and warmups.<\/p>\n
Then, it all fell apart because of the Nets! Even after the NBA\u2019s Board of Governors voted 26-1 to approve the name change, the Nets themselves had voted against it. The one dissenting vote was their own!<\/p>\n
More than three decades later, the Swamp Dragons are finally getting their night in Brooklyn. Will they play in Swamp Dragon uniforms? Bet on it!<\/p>\n
The Brooklyn Nets Era Nights Series<\/p>\n
The Brooklyn Nets\u2019 2026-27 Era Nights series will celebrate six distinct periods in franchise history, from the team\u2019s ABA roots and Julius Erving era to the move to Brooklyn and the back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals appearances of the early 2000s.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the full Brooklyn Nets Era Nights schedule\u2026<\/p>\n
ABA Night \u2014 November 18 vs. Chicago Bulls<\/p>\n
The Nets will celebrate their ABA roots, including their championship teams, league innovations and the Julius Erving era that helped establish the franchise as one of basketball\u2019s most forward-thinking organizations.<\/p>\n
80s Night \u2014 December 18 vs. Orlando Magic<\/p>\n
The Nets will look back at their move to New Jersey and stars like Buck Williams, among others who helped lay the foundation.<\/p>\n
90s Night \u2014 January 9 vs. Houston Rockets<\/p>\n
The 1990s brought some of the most influential players and moments in Nets history. The night will celebrate Dra\u017een Petrovi\u0107\u2019s lasting legacy, as well as the era\u2019s impact on the franchise and the global game.<\/p>\n
Swamp Dragons Night \u2014 Jan. 29 vs. Los Angeles Clippers<\/p>\n
One of the strangest \u201cwhat ifs\u201d in NBA history will finally get its night in Brooklyn. Expect merchandise to pop off the shelves for this one \u2014 Nets fan or not.<\/p>\n
2000s Night, presented by Ticketmaster \u2014 March 15 vs. Indiana Pacers<\/p>\n
The Nets will celebrate the most successful era in franchise history, honoring the back-to-back Eastern Conference championship teams and the players who helped put New Jersey on the national basketball map. So many fans now are present because of this team.<\/p>\n
Hello Brooklyn Night \u2014 March 31 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers<\/p>\n
The series concludes by celebrating the Nets\u2019 move to Brooklyn. Hello Brooklyn Night will mark the franchise\u2019s arrival at Barclays Center and the return of major professional sports to the borough after a 55-year absence.<\/p>\n
As for the future, we\u2019ll know more then than we do now.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Taylor Swift had the \u201cEras Tour.\u201d Now, the Brooklyn Nets have \u201cEra Nights.\u201d For Nets fans of all…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":336204,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[98,100,99,389,9,24,63],"class_list":["post-336203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-nets-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336203","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=336203"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336203\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/336204"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=336203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=336203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=336203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}