STEINBRENNER STARTING TO PUT HIS PEOPLE IN NETS FRONT OFFICE

          Though the YankeeNets merger has yet to be finalized
     and is still awaiting MLB approval, Yankees Owner George
     Steinbrenner "has already begun making minor inroads" into
     the Nets front office, according to Don Burke of the Newark
     STAR-LEDGER.  It has "been said" that Steinbrenner "will
     have nothing to do with the day-to-day operations" of the
     Nets once the merger closes, but he recently named Yankees
     Strength & Conditioning Coordinator Shawn Powell as
     Assistant to Nets GM John Nash.  Burke writes that Powell's
     hiring "raised a few eyebrows within the Nets organization"
     due to the way the Yankees and Steinbrenner "have operated
     in the past."  But Nash says he "suggested" that Powell
     "might be an asset to the Nets."  Nash: "When we reorganized
     the scouting department, we had the opportunity to hire some
     new people.  I was thinking of something part-time but this
     has evolved into a full-time position" (STAR-LEDGER, 10/20).