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"Road to Brooklyn" latest: Kris Humphries visits Flatbush

Nets forward Kris Humphries, he of considerable reality show experience, is the latest Net to be highlighted on the Road to Brooklyn mini-series, following Coach Avery Johnson, who was bounced last month, as the team slumped. (They've been perfect since.)

His host is Brooklyn-born DJ Clark Kent, who has longtime ties to Jay-Z, whose YouTube channel the series is on. The best aspect: visits to stores in Flatbush, where the Caribbean immigrant employees require subtitles and Humphries tries to layer some toughness on his Minnesota-nice personality.



"I came back from Atlanta, because it was important to do this," says Kent, apparently referring to some DJ gigs. "You should only be shown Brooklyn by someone who understands it properly... you are the new pride of our city."

He explains that he wears his sneakers one day, then gives them away. "Coming form New York, being a Brooklyn guy, we always wanted to be fresh," he adds. So that's "Brooklyn"--conspicuous consumption melded with fashion and philanthropy.

Getting into Brooklyn

"I am a staple," Kent tells Humphries. "The key is for them to get to know you." So he takes the hoopster to the urban apparel chain Get Set in Flatbush, then nearby Shetty Sportswear, and finally to a barber shop called Family Affair.

Kent and Humphries get into an interesting--by the standards of the show--exchange on team loyalty. Kent admits he grew up as a Knick fan. "So, respectfully, I love the fact that you're in my city, but you also have to become my team."

Humphries seems a bit perplexed: "If you were saying Brooklyn is a whole entire separate entity from New York, you were like somebody who was living in Idaho being a Utah Jazz fan."

At Family Affair, "There's no filter in Brooklyn," Kent says. "You're going to get that reality all that time."

Moving ahead

How are you going to beat LeBron James, asks one customer.

"I look at everything from a day to day basis," Humphries replies diplomatically. "How do we become a better team."

"Now that we have a brand new friendship, you can hang out with me," Kent says in closing. "We hope you stay in Brooklyn... we hope you stay with the team, we hope you cultivate this new thing."

"We want to win, man," Humphries replies.

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