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April 10, 2009
It's over; They make the playoffs next season
I'm back.
Thanks for all your concern when I made a reference to "family matters.'' Things are fine. Spent Spring Break with my kids. I wasn't in Oklahoma City but I do have some thoughts, after watching the game on television:
-- Don't they so need a quality backup who could play some shooting guard and some small forward? I keep thinking Anthony Parker from Toronto. Raja Bell should be this team's starter, but not without reliable (and healthy) backup.
-- Sure glad they retain the lottery pick, because the rotation is a long way from complete. If you show up in October with nothing more than re-signing Felton, plus the first-round pick, they're a playoff lock. Doesn't mean they're there yet.
-- D.J. Augustin is a big-time basketball player. I'm not yet sure he's an NBA point guard. He makes big shots. He gets to the rim. But he doesn't make the game easy for others, and that's going to be his job, if he's he long-term solution.
Posted by Observer Sports on April 10, 2009 at 11:22 PM | Permalink
Comments
Hi RB - good to have you back and glad that all is well with you and yours.
I really like Parker as a suggestion. I've seen a lot of him over the past 3 years and agree that he would be a wonderful back up SG. He brings vet know how, very high BBIQ, high character and all round skills - but I see him as the perfect back up to a gun starting SG, the same way as I see Raja a perfect back up to a gun SG. My point is - we don't need to vet back up SG's. One would cancel the other IMO.
If we wanted to trade Raja to a contender over the summer then bring in AP for sure. Outside of that, draft someone like Terrance Williams or Gerald Henderson and have them back Raja until the time is right to switch them out from starter and back up.
What do you think our most pressing need in the draft is and, more importantly, WHO do you think would fit us (LB's style, our positional needs etc) the best?
Posted by: Slam | Apr 10, 2009 11:59:41 PM
P.S. Not hating, but............all things considered (age, contract, ability/strenths, LB type player, fan appeal etc) - Radmanovic Vs Herrmann. Who do you take?
Posted by: Slam | Apr 11, 2009 12:04:09 AM
Putting your KIDS before the Bobcats? Somebody needs to reassess their priorities....
Posted by: DeLaQuest | Apr 11, 2009 12:28:27 AM
Slam, Not that you asked MY opinion, but I'll throw in my 2-cents. We seriously need to do our homework on this draft. Unlike last year's fantastic crop, this draft is possibly mediocre.
The clear-cut number 1 (Griffin), is far from a guaranteed All-Star. The accomplished players (Harden, Thabeet, Blair) have serious question marks. The players that appear to have NBA athleticism and tools (Ty Evans, DeRozan) are unproven.
I know it's unpopular, but I lean towards just taking the best NBA prospect available, even though we CLEARLY need a SG. The good news is, there a lot of SG's to choose from, so the best player available might be a SG anyway. But I think we should consider an Earl Clark even though he plays the same role as Diaw/Radmonovich. Just add assets and figure it out later.
Posted by: DeLaQuest | Apr 11, 2009 12:40:41 AM
Just kidding, Rick. Don't lambast me.....
Posted by: DeLaQuest | Apr 11, 2009 12:41:55 AM
Hey Rick. Welcome back. Let me throw a name into the mix - Ben Gordon. He signed a one-year deal with the Bulls and will become a free agent this summer. Quality person but could he fit under the salary cap? Your thoughts?
Posted by: Big Money | Apr 11, 2009 12:57:01 AM
"Big Money" I have been wanting Gordon and asking that same question for two years now. I dont understand why MJ has not gone after him with how the team has been toying with the idea of keeping him or not keeping him. Especially since he is from his old team the Bulls. You are right on it Big Money . I would love to see him here. He will be Browns Rip for us. You have my vote! Flat out scorer and in the right system. I say go after him!
Other notables include; Ronnie Price,Matt Barnes,Andre Miller,Rashard McCants,Desmond Mason,Caron Butler,Travis Outlaw,Antoine Wright,Monte Ellis,Devean George,Channing Frye,Linas Kleiza,Martell Webster and AI.:)
Posted by: Bobcat Fan D | Apr 11, 2009 2:34:15 AM
We have a better version of Gordon in Augustin. Give him some time and he will be one of the top five point guards in the NBA. They need an athletic and explosive two and a bigger, stronger finisher at the rim at the five. Hermann would be a better fit than Radman. They both can shoot but Hermann is a better defender and cheaper. Scam Vincent was an idiot.
Posted by: D.W.G | Apr 11, 2009 5:53:28 AM
It's Over. Again to remind most of you guys here, also you Rick, we won 32 games last year w/o D.J., J. Howard, coach brown and all these expensive player aquisitions (Diop, Valde, Bell n Diaw). Had we continue on w/ dj as our backup pg these season and stayed w/ our line up last year could we have won 35 games also or even more w/ lesser money and more room for free agency this summer???
Expect Diaw to show up overweight next season like he always does every year in phoenix, expect Bell to be in-out of injured list because of age. And Don't expect the Bobcats to be in the playoffs again next season.
Posted by: Wil | Apr 11, 2009 6:42:33 AM
It's Over. Again to remind most of you guys here, also you Rick, we won 32 games last year w/o D.J., J. Howard, coach brown and all these expensive player aquisitions (Diop, Valde, Bell n Diaw). Had we continue on w/ dj as our backup pg these season and stayed w/ our line up last year could we have won 35 games also or even more w/ lesser money and more room for free agency this summer???
Expect Diaw to show up overweight next season like he always does every year in phoenix, expect Bell to be in-out of injured list because of age. And Don't expect the Bobcats to be in the playoffs again next season.
Posted by: Wil | Apr 11, 2009 6:42:34 AM
Anthony Parker will be 34 at the start of next season... name one thing he does that Raja Bell can't do. The cats should add someone that could bring a little more energy off the bench (rookie). There's a great SG class in this years draft, no need to get another injury-risk SG vet in Parker.
Also with the trouble Felton/Augustin were having with the bigger backcourt from OKC, any reason why LB didn't give Jefferson or Martin a little more run? Yea, they're d-leaguers... so were Shaun Livingston and DJ White until a few weeks ago.
Posted by: David | Apr 11, 2009 7:38:41 AM
could we have won 35 games this year with last year's team?
Yikes, what, are you kidding?
The first part of the season was essentially the same team that ended last season, and we were 7-18...and that was the easier part of the schedule (a lot of home games.)
Now, what does concern me is that given the contracts we have with these players, what you see now is basically what we'll start with at the beginning of next year (assume sign Felton, let Sean go) as we are over the salary cap. So we can play .500 ball and that gets us into the playoffs (assuming no major injuries).
Posted by: bobfan1 | Apr 11, 2009 7:51:17 AM
It would've sure been nice seeing the golden, flowing locks of Walter Herrmann streaming down the court last night and equally so next year. Take some pressure off Felton who seems to be the 'go to' guy for last second game changers.
Posted by: eduardo | Apr 11, 2009 8:24:20 AM
Here comes the Famous Will again. How are Jason Richardson and resurging Suns doing. that trade helped us. Jordan said it best. we have to trade for our talent because a lot of people aren't going to sign here. We are looking good for next year as long as we can get sean may out and resign felton. take a 6-5, 6-6 shooting guard and we should be good to go. we could use aanother center too.
Posted by: dougie | Apr 11, 2009 10:38:07 AM
Wil,
To reiterate what others said...Have you checked the records before and after the big Diaw trade? Puh-lease. We were going nowhere with that sorry, unbalanced roster. We finally got a big man with mobility and ball skills. It made all of the difference in the world.
Gerald Wallace was still having to play a lot of PF leading up to the Diaw trade. And that is simply not a sustainable situation.
Posted by: DeLaQuest | Apr 11, 2009 11:48:47 AM
We are in better shape than we were last year. Sure a few changes will be made. Trade Nazr and a 2nd for Crawford and their 2nd which should be higher than ours, sign Frye outright, draft Derozan, or Evans and then Earl Clark. May will come back on the cheap but most of all resign Felts first.
Posted by: mrtarheel | Apr 11, 2009 12:55:25 PM
...since when does Felton "make the game easier for others?" I guess since they don't get to shoot much, that's easier.
And, umm...isn't the often-mentioned "team as currently constructed" the same one that's been falling on its face? (See OKC, MIN, DET, BOS, and a whole host of other very winnable games they choked away.) I simply can't see how everybody is so certain they'll clean such tihngs up and make the playoffs.
Posted by: Michael Procton | Apr 11, 2009 1:04:52 PM
It's called optimism Procton, try it sometime. What the cats did this year was nothing short of remarkable, they easily could have floundered sooner since trades generally disrupt chemistry. I hope Larry "Next Town" Brown sticks around some more. Everyone's pretty on point, this team could use an athletic young 2 with size. An offensive center would be nice a la Frye. RE: Gordon, I'd love the instant offense and he would solve our 4th qt scoring problems but I'd prefer someone a bit taller. My 2 cents.
Posted by: Bro D. | Apr 11, 2009 2:03:04 PM
Welcome back, Rick!
I agree with your recent comments on Augustin and Felton (above, and the previous time). The problem is, the Bobcats need now to make use of DJ's shooting ability, especially when he's sharing the back court with Raymond. With the roster being what it is, you can't really wait for DJ to take his time to progress as a playmaker in this league, you need him to come off the bench as a scorer in the first place.
On Anthony Parker, I have to agree with David and Slam. He and Raja Bell are very similar players: good shooters, unselfish, great game savvy, but not aggressive enough, not high scoring players (maybe Raja is a little more aggressive, and AP is a little more content with setting up others). Also, the age starts being a factor for both of them, more so if you think on counting on any of them as a starter; any of them can still be an excellent back-up SG.
Most fans seem to agree that we'll need to bring in a new SG for next season. Ben Gordon sounds great, but I doubt he'll be affordable for this team. D.J. Augustin is a very talented shooter, he's also very quick in penetration, but having a starting Felton-Augustin back court for next season is undesirable, because of the defensive liability that would come with it.
The need for a go-to scorer at SG might be filled through the draft, or through a trade. I'd like to wait some more, to know what our first round draft pick will be, before I'll form an opinion on this.
Posted by: Sandy | Apr 11, 2009 7:45:45 PM
I'll believe it when I see it. Yes, the team is better, but this franchise has not shown the ability to consistently make good decisions. Rest assured they'll trade Wallace and Bell for a pack of Ritz crackers and draft Tyler Hansbrough.
Posted by: TP | Apr 11, 2009 9:50:24 PM
Yeah we had a bad record because Let's face it, LB didnt gave the original roster a chance. If he really was doing his job we should have had a better start last year w/ vincent as our coach. He wanted to spend money to get noticed. Bottom line, last year 32 wins this year 35 wins w/ all the additions, how do you explain that???
Posted by: wil | Apr 11, 2009 11:37:19 PM
if you really think last year's team was better than this year's team you are smoking crap. Did you and J-Rich have some thing going on off the court? He did 0 for Phoenix other than 2 DUIs and one with his kid in the car! Great trade for the Bobcats and the City of Charlotte. 3 wins better this year and say we had raja this last week, maybe another 3 -4 wins and probably playoffs. you keep forgetting the quality of teams we beat this season too. this was a good team that ran out of steam. that team last year was atrocious. just like your posting skills.
Posted by: dougie | Apr 11, 2009 11:53:30 PM
There's nothing wrong w/ my posting, what's ATROCIOUS is the way your getting all excited and jumping for joy like the bobcats won the nba championship or something. It's 3 more lousy wins while they spend millions more in coaching change and personel. Phoenix got young and athletic too bad amare got hurt for half the season. All i'm saying is we could have had a 35 win season also w/ the addition of dj and j.howard to the original team had we let them jelled, and avoid being strapped in salary cap.
And What's your man-love for raja all about? He is an old dude, period. He is way past his prime, maybe, so are you??:)
Posted by: wil | Apr 12, 2009 3:28:13 AM
Wil,
No, we couldn't have had a 35-win season with the early roster. Remember how desperately we needed a PF? Vincent patched together a lineup to win 32 games last year, but it wasn't a sustainable lineup. We couldn't have Gerald Wallace playing minutes at the PF for yet another season. That would have been abuse and misuse of our most valuable asset. And please don't say that Juwan Howard could have been our PF solution over the course of 82 games. And yes, we DID gain DJ, but a lot of teams added valuable rookies this season. There were plenty to go around. So we can't assume that gaining DJ was some significant advantage.
Like it or not, we got Larry Brown. He's a far superior coach to Sam Vincent. He put together a roster that worked for him. We finally got a big with mobility and ball-skills(Diaw). We finally got 5 starters playing their correct NBA positions. Last summer we desperately needed a starting PF. This summer we just need to find a backup SG--which shouldn't be too difficult.
Making these trades was part of the Larry Brown package. If you wish we still had Sam "no offensive sets" Vincent, well....
Posted by: DeLaQuest | Apr 12, 2009 12:14:32 PM
Rick,
DJ Augustin is not an NBA point guard? Let's see: he makes big shots. He's a confident ball-handler. He's a phenomenal free-throw shooter. And he's not the guy you want manning the point on an NBA team???
The way I see it, Larry Brown's system does not demand a play-making PG like Chris Paul, for example. Just look at the sets they run, ESPECIALLY the sets they run when DJ is playing the point. They do their curls, their screens and at some point someone gets a good shot. The system is designed for the team to have a lot of assists, not for the point guard to have them all.
I still don't understand what's wrong with DJ playing the point and Felton playing the 2. Yes, they're smalll and Felton can't really stop the big 2s in the league (or a small one like Gordon), but having Raja Bell come off the bench for defense, along with another much needed combo guard that could sub in at either guard position, could be nice.
Saying that last year's 32 wins meant anything is crazy. Didn't they go on a 5 game winning streak when they were already eliminated from the playoffs? Wasn't this the first year the Bobcats were playing for something in April?
I fully believe this team can make the playoffs next year. Give them a full training camp together, and add a usable combo guard to come off the bench, and we're good to go.
It's also worth noting that learning how to win takes time. This team is not used to play in games that matter. They gained loads of experience this year, through those painful losses, as well as the big wins. All signs are there for this team to be relevant next year.
Posted by: Juan José | Apr 12, 2009 1:55:22 PM
If Rick is right that DJ is not a true NBA PG, then maybe long, 6'5" Tyreke Evans would be the perfect complement in our future backcourt. He can handle some of the playmaking duties since he played PG in college, and he should be able to guard NBA SG's. It would be fun to see those 2 grow old together.
Posted by: DeLaQuest | Apr 12, 2009 2:48:44 PM
All the posters here are really immature and clueless...excluding me of course.
Posted by: MajorLeague | Apr 12, 2009 3:58:30 PM
@CHI: Augustin-41 MP, 8 AST, 2 TO
Felton-41 MP, 7 AST, 5 TO
Yeah...Felton sure is MILES ahead of Augustin as a playmaker. Lock him up at $10 or $15 mil a year to keep those TarBaby fanboyz happy.
Posted by: Michael Procton | Apr 12, 2009 4:34:36 PM
I know this may sound crazy on the surface, but this team needs to sign Iverson or Ben Gordon. We can let Felton go. Provided it didn't come too expensive or long (and the market in a down economy might allow that) Iverson and Brown reunited would be a lot of fun, and it would also grow local interest. Finally, I think the team could be sucessful.
Posted by: HJ | Apr 12, 2009 10:43:44 PM
Wil, you're arguing an idiot's point. How can you look at the team at the start of the year and speak about them as if they're the same team that finished the season? 20+ roster moves and a .500 record since January means that this isn't the same team. Thus the season record is not as easy to interpret as you think it is.
The Bobcats' recent play proved that they weren't ready for the post season this year, but if you're not the least bit excited about the clear improvement, then I'm guessing you'll be on the self-loathing "we suck" bandwagon until Gerald is hoisting a championship trophy. That may never happen my friend, which makes your position one to pity.
Me and the rest of the realistic fans will continue to enjoy the improvement, and discuss how the team can get better. You keep nay-saying along w/ Procton, and we'll keep laughing at you
Posted by: Bobby | Apr 13, 2009 8:12:23 AM
Looking at the bobcats at a more realistic rather than fanatic perspective:
Yahoosports report:
"And now they do … what?
The Bobcats played their best basketball in franchise history the second half of the season. Yet they didn’t reach the playoffs, and they spent MILLIONS in future salary-cap responsibility to improve MARGINALLY.
What do they do next?"
It's not being negative but realistic, we made questionable moves and we need big help this off season if we really want to achieve that playoff dream. Personel needs to be accountable.
Posted by: wil | Apr 13, 2009 8:50:49 AM
I agree with mostly everyone else. Larry is excited about having this whole group together for training camp where you really build that unity and find out what everyone can do. I really expect Radmanovic to blossom after he's been here for a full offseason.
This may sound crazy, but Rick I agree with you on DJ. I think he has the talent to be someone special on the offensive end...in the mold of Iverson, a smallish type scorer. That's why Larry wants that big type of guard like he had with Eric Snow. I love Felton, he's my favorite player, but I'm not sure how he fits in unless he can stop dribble penetration on a more consistent basis.
Posted by: Matt | Apr 13, 2009 12:17:22 PM
Rick, I agree that retaining the lottery pick can be huge for the Bobs this year. Unlike some of the others posting here, I look at this year's draft and see plenty of players with great NBA potential. I'm personally hoping that the Bobs get a shot at drafting Tyreke Evans out of Memphis. I love his quickness and size, and I think he shows the desire to compete and improve.
My 2nd round sleeper is Jodie Meeks out of Kentucky.
Yes, the Bobs need a SG but if there is a quality big available when they get to pick, they should probably take the big. For example, if Thabeet should (somehow) slip to the Bobs, you have to take him. The Bobs can't afford to make the same mistake as in 2008 when they passed on Lopez--which in turn led to trading for Diop, who has been just as underwhelming in Charlotte as he was in Dallas.
Posted by: Deuce | Apr 13, 2009 1:04:45 PM
Let's see...every year these posts claim that the Bobs are good enough to make the playoffs, and next year will be their year. This team doesn't have the moxy nor do they have the basketball IQ to win on a consistent basis. You keep the same core group year after year, and expect different results. Any given night they have the talent to play with any team in the league, but the NBA is a grind and there is not one mentally tough player on this roster. The gusy getting all the minutes year after year (Wallace, Okafor, Felton) are used to losing, feel comfortable losing, and will continue to lose until they are flushed from this franchise. You will not win with that core, and they will continue to infect the rest of the roster until they are gone. We will not make the playoffs because the roster will stay the same, and that roster has been a consisten 10-12 game under .500 performer this entire season.
Posted by: Luckwarm for Bobs | Apr 16, 2009 10:43:37 PM
nobody has mentioned to Wil that it also takes time to learn Brown's complicated offense as well as to develop team chemistry. Our team sucked after 25 games, period. Brown made a change. I thought that trading J Rich was a little too pricey for the players they got, but it clearly turned out to be the right move. But it takes time for those guys to learn the offense, followed by the ensuing wrinkles and other complications made to offensive posessions. And then we lost our starting shooting guard for the final 5+games of the season. We may have only gained 3 wins on the season, but that doesnt give any indications as to the improvement this team made over the last half of the season.
Posted by: SF Bobcats | Apr 19, 2009 4:06:28 AM
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