Swamp thing: Nets’ departure from Meadowlands just what they need

A V-C-Free throw Contrary to what you’ve heard – or even seen – New Jersey’s a pretty great state.

I’ve been accused of rampant hyperbole about my home state before – correctly – but hear me out. If you get far enough up Route 46, away from the sleazy Teterboro Airport motels and “spas,” you find the mountains. And if you get far enough down the Parkway, you find a beautiful shoreline – and not the sort inhabited by “The Situation.”

My theory about why people get the idea that Jersey is horrible is that most people only see it when they pass through. If you land at Newark Airport and head up the Turnpike to NYC, you see a Godforsaken stretch of highway and smoke-belching factories. If that’s all you see, I can understand thinking it’s the worst area in America.

Which brings me to the Nets, who I went to see against the Orlando Magic last night. In my opinion, they can’t get out of the Meadowlands soon enough. I can’t blame the building entirely for their absurd 6-55 record, but it’s not the proper environment for a professional sports team.

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Kings of New York? Jay-Z the wrong choice for Yanks’ pregame anthem

Jay keeping it gangsta with his sweater and Kate HudsonIf you’ve been reading, you know SportsAngle is largely in tune with the hip-hop community. (As recently as this month, I shook hands with the great Ghostface Killah) So I watched with keen interest as the Yankees announced that Jay-Z – who has carved out more and more of a presence in sports lately as part-owner of the Nets and celebrity friend of LeBron James – would perform his new song, Empire State of Mind, at Game 1 of the World Series.

And I’m here to tell you the Yankees made a lousy pick.

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