I see your argument re Boston, but not Jersey. The team is awful and it's best player is rumored to want out, having been there less than one full season. Plus they will always be second fiddle to the Knicks in a way that is harder to make-up than the Lakers-Clippers dynamic. I don't see why the Nets have a harder time making up ground than the Clippers. The Clippers were synonymous with losing, and the Lakers are one of two legendary franchises in the NBA. The Knicks haven't won in a million years, and the Nets are going to at least be new to the area. The Nets without DWill still aren't in as pathetic a shape as the Knicks were before D'antoni went there.