Larry Brown will make life interesting

• We’ll find out once and for all if Raymond Felton is a point guard. Brown is hard on point guards, forcing them either to excel or fizzle out. I’m confident Phil Ford will remain on the staff, not just because all three (Brown, Ford, Felton) are ex-Tar Heels, but because Ford will be an important buffer zone between Brown and Felton.

• Sooner or later Brown and Michael Jordan will bump heads. That’s because Brown always bumps heads, at least a bit, with the front office. Managing Brown’s moods (as in wanting to trade half the team after a bad loss) is just Brown’s way.

• They’ll make a real playoff run. Brown’s teams almost always improve during his first season with a new franchise. In the Eastern Conference, a five-game improvement puts you right in the playoff mix.

• Emeka Okafor will know for sure if he wants to be here. Okafor is a restricted free agent who can sign a one-year qualifying offer to become unrestricted in 2009. People love or hate playing for Brown; Okafor – even-tempered, thoughtful – will have to gauge how his personality and Brown’s mesh.

• Brown will say five things that make you go hmmmmmmm. He knows and teaches the game as well as anyone. He voices much of what’s inside his head, sometimes in an unfiltered manner. He’s been reluctant in the past to count on rookies, but this team will have a lottery pick. It all will be quite interesting to monitor.