Sports

Brooklyn’s Barclays Center set for first big boxing card

The Nets are more than likely a few years away from contending for a title, but that doesn’t mean world championships won’t be in play right away at the brand new Barclays Center.

In fact, a few will be at stake Oct. 20 – but they will be decided in a boxing ring not a basketball court.

Three world title fights, presented by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions and shown live on Showtime, will be held in the inaugural boxing card at the downtown Brooklyn arena, the first time a world title has been on the line in Brooklyn since 1931.

“It’s a long time coming,” De La Hoya said at a press conference to formally announce the card Thursday morning at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge. “Brooklyn will get a championship taste of boxing at its highest level.”

The card will feature undefeated Unified Super Lightweight champion Danny “Swift” Garcia defending his title against veteran Erik Morales in a rematch of Garcia’s unanimous decision back in January. In the co-main event, Brooklyn product Paulie “Magic Man” Malignaggi will be defending his WBA Welterweight crown for the first time against Pablo Cesar Cano.

“For me, it’s extra special to come home and defend a world championship so close to the place I was born,” Malignaggi said.

Malignaggi (31-4, 7 KO’s) has a come a long way since joining Golden Boy Productions, winning four straight fights after moving up to 147 points. He remembered attending the press conference two year ago about the deal with the Barclays Center, and now he’s part of the co-feature after his memorable ninth-round TKO of former champion Vyacheslav Senchenko in April in the Ukraine.

“I went on the other side of the world and knocked out a world champion in his hometown,” Malignaggi said. “Brooklyn, stand up.”

The event will have a distinct local flavor, featuring Malignaggi and fellow Brooklynites Danny “The Golden Child” Jacobs, Dmitriy Salita, Boyd Melson and Luis Collazo, Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin of Manhattan and highly thought of prospect Eddie Gomez from The Bronx. Quillin will be looking to unseat unbeaten Hassan N’Dam for the WBO Middleweight title.

Garcia (24-0, 15 KO’s) isn’t from the immediate area, hailing from Philadelphia instead, but he figures he’ll have the support of Brooklyn against Morales from California. He sees the card as a peak into the future of high level cards on the east coast.

“Brooklyn and Philly, it’s gonna be a collaboration,” Garica said. “We’re going to bring east coast boxing back to where it was.”

Golden Boy Promotions and the Barclays Center have a 12-fight agreement per year and De La Hoya said he plans to make high level cards such as this one a tradition.

“This is just the beginning for us,” Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark said. “We plan on being players in the area for boxing.”

He added: “When you think of Brooklyn, you think of basketball and boxing. We want to be big players in both these area and we I’m sure we will.”

zbraziller@nypost.com