Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov somehow found a fence to sit on yesterday afternoon outside Nello’s restaurant at 62nd Street and Madison Avenue.
Just two days after meeting with LeBron James in Cleveland in an attempt to sell the Nets as the best place for the most sought-after free agent in history, Prokhorov was reticent to make a comment.
“I would love to comment,” he told The Post, “but this is not the time to talk about it. Must wait until [the] fifth.”
The fifth is tomorrow, the date James has said he would like to make a decision by.
After spending the past three days being courted by the Knicks, Bulls, Heat, Clippers and hometown Cavaliers, as well the Nets, James is now presumably making his decision.
According to an employee at Nello’s, who wanted to remain nameless but spent some time talking with Prokhorov, the 45-year-old Russian billionaire told him that the chances of signing James were, “50 percent.”
“He said it looks 50-50,” the employee said. “I said, ‘50 is a lot.’ And he said, ‘It’s 50-50.’ I said, ‘So many things are 50-percent.’ And he said, ‘Yea, we’re about 50 percent.’”
After heading into the posh eatery around 3:40 p.m., Prokhorov had three deserts and two cups of tea with the tall blonde woman.
He then chatted with a couple of employees, talking about other things besides LeBron, like how he likes Germany in the World Cup final.
As Prokhorov and his woman friend were leaving, they were speaking in Russian to each other before hopping in a black Mercedes and heading up Madison.
The employee at the restaurant said Prokhorov left $1,500 in cash on the table before he left. Whether it was for a bill or just a tip is not known.
bcyrgalis@nypost.com