The Nets’ addition of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving can change the landscape of basketball in New York City — but it may not come easily.

The Nets added two of the NBA’s best players to a young team coming off the franchise’s first playoff berth in three years. They hope it’s the next step toward contending for a NBA championship.

“They hit the Mega Millions and the Powerball,” former Knicks star Charles Oakley said.

One of the few times they came close to stealing the spotlight from the Knicks was when Kenyon Martin and Jason Kidd led the Nets to consecutive NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003. Martin believes his former team — which during his time was stationed in New Jersey and unable to fully escape the Knicks’ shadow — could be on the verge of something similar and this group has an advantage his didn’t. Being in Brooklyn means a lot.

“I think it’s a different day and age because they’re in New York. Like, nobody has to cross the river to come see them play,” Martin said. “What we were doing and no matter how much we were winning, we’re still in the Meadowlands.

“So I think that was a deterrent to people, and then the Knicks’ historical brand, it’s always going to be that. No matter what the Nets do, the Knicks’ staple, that’s always going to be there. But I think if they come in and win a championship that will change.”

Joe Johnson, who played three-plus seasons with the Nets, said the current team also has the luxury of their practice facility being in Brooklyn. When Johnson accepted a buyout during the 2015-16 season, the Nets were just beginning to move their practices out of East Rutherford.

“A lot of guys were staying in Jersey so the commute over here was tough, man,” Johnson said. “Riding in a car for two, two-and-a-half hours and then get out and have to warm up and play. That was tough.”

But to lifelong fans, this could be the same old song and dance. The big players have come to the Nets before, and the organization has continued to come up empty since 1976 when it won its second and final ABA championship.

Johnson was acquired in 2012 and paired with Deron Williams, but despite reaching the playoffs for the first time in five years, the Nets lost in the first round. The following year, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett came over from the Celtics. The Nets won their first playoff series since 2007 before losing in the second round.

That hasn’t deterred people from being hopeful about the Nets’ latest championship push.

“I think they’re going to be great,” Johnson said. “I think it’s a lot different now.”

Reggie Evans, who played on both the 2012-13 and 2013-14 squads, believes the team without the Celtics castoffs was better. He admired Pierce, Garnett and Jason Terry, who was also part of the trade with Boston, for their tremendous effort and professionalism, but admitted that they were at the end of their careers.

Garnett was 37 when he was acquired by the Nets, while Pierce and Terry were set to turn 36 before the start of the 2013-14 season. That’s not the case with the Nets’ new additions. Durant is 30 and Irving 27, both still in their primes.

“So what we got was smart, wise guys who know the game,” Evans said. “Very smart, you know what I’m saying? … So it’s two different scenarios, but I like what they’ve got going on.”

Another reason why Evans believes Durant and Irving will succeed is their ability to handle the New York spotlight.

“I love D-Will, I just think it’s a lot of pressure being up under these lights in New York,” Evans said. “It takes a real, real soldier to play here. KD and Kyrie ain’t going to have no trouble playing in front of these bright lights, period.”

— with AP