There is no meteorological explanation for the warm and fuzzy front moving east to west across the Hudson. Not even Sam Champion can tell us why the George Washington Bridge is enshrouded in mist. What, pray tell, is the reason for the dense, low-lying cloud of sentiment extending from Manhattan to Moonachie?

The fog crept in on little fans feet. Little Knicks fans feet.

	The best thing from Jersey since Satriale's prosciutto.

Basketball fans in the major metropolitan area are now talking up Kidd, Kerry, Keith and Kenyon as if they were the second coming of Clyde, Bradley, DeBusschere and Reed. Those schoolyard Sprewell, Houston and (still) Ewing singlets have given way to Kidds, Van Horns and Martins. Headline in The New York Post: "Bring On The Lakers" -- like the Nets played in Madison Square Garden.

If I were the sports editor of, say, the Newark Star-Ledger, I might compose another headline: "Nets To New York: Drop Dead." C'mon, Marcus Camby's plantar fasciitis got more play in the New York papers during the regular season than the Nets' playoffs prospects.

New Yorkers suddenly adopting the Nets is like me suddenly adopting Natalie Portman. Hey, she lives near me.

Say what you will about Rangers fans, at least they didn't go chasing en masse after the Devils bandwagon when the Stanley Cup Finals were being played out over the river and through the swamp. Maybe I should give Knicks fans a little more slack. After all, they're starved, and there's this nice little buffet at the other end of the Lincoln Tunnel.

But you know what? There is no E-Z Pass for allegiance. There's no hedging your heart. Either you're a Knicks fan or a Nets fan, a Yankees fan or a Mets fan, a Giants fan or a Jets fan, a Rangers fan or a Lou Lamoriello fan.

So what separates a true Nets fan from a poser? Well, count yourself in if you can claim any three of the following four:

1) Actual attendance at a game in the Continental Airlines Arena. (Given the lack thereof, Dave Matthews Band concerts in the Meadowlands also count.)

2) A New Jersey license plate. (Bonus point for the old yellow kind.)

3) Knowledge of the correct pronunciation of Ian Eagle.

4) A paper crown from Medieval Times.

But how can you tell if the person sitting next to you at the bar or at the Continental is really a Nets fan, or just some Woody-come-lately? Here's a simple 10-item litmus test to tell you if he or she really knows -- and loves -- the Nets:

1. Which of the following No. 1 draft picks scored the fewest points as a Net?

A. Yinka Dare; B. Jeff Turner; C. Dennis Hopson; D. Tim Thomas

	Stinka to his close friends.

2. What do Eric Montross, Benoit Benjamin and Evan Eschmeyer have in common?

A. They all wore 00; B. They all were zeroes; C. Both

3. Which player did the Nets get in the 1976 ABA dispersal draft?

A. Al Skinner; B. Jan van Breda Kolff; C. Nate Archibald; D. John Williamson

4. Phil Jackson played in 75 games in his two seasons with the New Jersey Nets. How many of them did he start?

A. 75; B. 50; C. 25; D. 1.

5. Which one of the following has not had his jersey retired by the Nets?

A. Julius Erving; B. Wendell Ladner; C. Bill Melchionni; D. Jayson Williams

6. What former Net could actually contain former Nets Rory Sparrow, Bird Averitt and Mark Crow?

7. What did the Nets get when they traded Julius Erving to Philadelphia in 1976?

A. Draft picks; B. Bob Love; C. Eric Money; D. Cash and 26 years of futility

8. Art Heyman: Discuss.

9. Who scored more points in the 1987-88 season, Dwayne Washington or Duane Washington?

And finally:

10. Do the Nets have a chance against the Lakers?

[Answers: 1. D, 2. C, 3. B, 4. D, 5. D, 6. Michael Cage, 7. D, 8. too painful to discuss, 9. Dwayne and 10. yes -- because only Nets fans believe they do.]

Steve Wulf is executive editor of ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at steve.wulf@espnmag.com.