Mark Heisler: Time for Prokhorov to get off the yacht

Mark Heisler, writing for Forbes, takes off from a quote from Irina Pavlova at the All-Star Game announcement and lands squarely on Mikhail Prokhorov's reputation.

Heisler thinks it's time Prokhorov comments on the Nets sad season, quoting what Pavlova, his New York rep, said, obviously tongue in cheek, at the press conference announcing the 2015 All-Star game.

Mitch Lawrence asked Pavlova why her owner didn’t attend. "I don’t know where he is," replied Pavlova. "There are ways to check to see if he is on his plane or on his yacht and some people do that. Maybe you should try to find him that way."

Well, writes Heisler, that's typical of Prokhorov. "who's rarely around the Nets" and "has little interest" ... a seemingly odd description for a guy who's spent hundreds of millions of dollars on his team.  "Nothing guarantees his presence." Heisler claims. He also suggests that the Nets owner made a big mistake in hiring Jason Kidd, "a fresh face" but without NBA experience.  Now, writes Heisler, formerly of the L.A. Times, after spending lavishly and watching Kidd, he has a team that's deservedly become "a laughingstock."

He's not the only one taking shots at Prokhorov Monday.  David Aldridge writes that Prokhorov has followed the Knicks model straight into the abyss.

The Nets will find it extremely hard to extricate themselves from their current contract commitments, though Brooklyn's always maintained this group might only be together two years, anyway, with the possibility of cap freedom possible as soon as 2015, when the contracts of Garnett, Terry and Andrei Kirilenko come off the payroll.

But, that's in two years.

"They're in a trick bag at the wrong time," the former team executive said. "They're just in a tough spot."

• Can Someone Get Mikhail Prokhorov on His Yacht and Say His Nets Need Him? - Mark Heisler - Forbes