In our  forums Proudiddy breaks down his reasons for why this is the best Bobcats team yet. Take a look.

This is our best team yet, simple as that. That being said, I’d like to point out why, with our strengths.

*Felton and Augustin have to be among the top PG duos in the league, if not the best. They both look great.

*The SF position looks REAL good. We all know what GDub brings to the table… IMO, probably the most underrated and under appreciated player in the league, yet still one of the best night in and night out. The real surprise here is Stephen Graham. The recent articles about him on the Observer, I chalked up to just being fluff.

The guy is good. I figured he would be the intensity, energy, come-off-the-bench, defensive specialist guy. Well, he is. And more! The guy can play offensively. He has range, and is athletic. He can drive and get to the basket. And best of all, he’s smart about his shots, they’re taken within the offense, yet he seems to recognize when to push the issue and create his own shot. I don’t see a lot of drop-off at all from Gerald to Stephen.

*I am shining up my knife and fork right now… Getting my salt and pepper out… And preparing to eat my crow. Why? Lexy may be a legitimate NBA player. I thought he was a bum when we drafted him and it was a wasted pick. I thought when LB came out and trashed him to the media, that was the final straw. Well, LB is a smart guy… And that apparently was more to challenge Lexy than anything else.

Lexy looked like a legitimate big last night. He has stepped it up. When I saw him play last year, he looked like exactly what I thought he would be on draft night – nothing. Watching him last night, he looked great. Despite his slight frame, the few times I focused on him in the post defensively, he was holding his own. He was fronting DJ Mbenga without losing position consistently. He was beating Mbenga for position.

Another positive to his game, is the guy has a stroke. I saw a few ill advised shots, but that just comes with experience. If he’s ever in the game late, he will definitely be an asset in terms of the free throw line. He caught an awesome alley-oop from Ray on one play last night, and just seemed to be in good position for rebounds. All around, other than Boris, he looked like our best big on the roster.

*Our rookies. Didn’t see Derrick Brown at all last night, so, I don’t know what that was about… I’ve heard all the great things about him and was eager to see him in action. I don’t know if LB was just giving him a rest or what, but I didn’t see him at all last night. Hendo had a few bad plays offensively with turnovers. But, there are flashes of hope. He made a couple shots. And he’s gonna get to the free throw line, bank on that.

I even saw several times where he was dribbling and the lane came wide open, yet he stepped back outside and passed it. I think it’s a rookie complex thing and he doesn’t want to step on anyone’s toes still. He’ll get out of that, and he’ll be dunking on opponents in no time.

*Vlad looks better. Defensively, he has really stepped it up and his offense is expanding as well.

Click here for the full thread

So what do you think? In this case I think Proudiddy is right on the money, ignore the preseason record because preseason is… well, its preseason. I think we’ve seen enough improvement from Ajinca, enough potential from the rookies Henderson and Brown and enough growth from the core unit under Larry Brown that I firmly believe that we are going to see good things from the Bobcats this season.

In case you didn’t get a chance to see last night’s pre-season game,  here are a few highlights for you to enjoy.

Even though the Cats lost, there were a couple of positives to take away from this game.

• Gerald Wallace was solid with 18 points and 5 boards in only 18 minutes.
• Alexis Ajinca had a one man coming out party ( no, not this kind of coming out) with 15 points, 7 rebounds. 2 blocks in 18 minutes off the bench.  He also did most of his work in the paint which had to make Larry Brown very happy.

It’s baaaack. The NBA has finally tipped off, if only for preseason action. That means LeBron and Shaq are playing together, AI and the Grizzlies aren’t, and Charles Barkley is back to being paid to murder the English language. On Tuesday, Bobcats fans from across the Carolinas, across the country, and around the world (just go on the forums and take a look at our international flavor!) were thrilled as our beloved Charlotte Bobcats were back in action against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Ohio. Thursday brought the ‘Cats back to North Carolina, but this time in Greensboro where they played the Hornets, and then tonight, Saturday, again against the Cavs but this time in Charleston, South Carolina, the second and final of the “Taste of the Carolinas” tour.

While preseason means starters are given bench minutes, this still gives us a look at the team before the season and a good look at the bench. With Tyson Chandler and Boris Diaw out, Vladimir Radmonivic and Nazr Mohammed joined regulars Raymond Felton, Raja Bell, and Gerald “Crash” Wallace in the starting lineup. Crash wasn’t his usual self in this one, playing ten minutes and going 0-5 from the field, although he did have two free throws. The real story in this one, though, was center Nazr Mohammed. Going up against Shaq, Nazzy had 10 points on 5 of 7 feild goals, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, and no fouls in 18 minutes. In 16 minutes, Shaq had 6 points, 3 boards, and 1 block with 3 fouls. Which one of those looks like the one worthy of the SportsCenter highlights? Well, tell that to ESPN. Not a single Bobcat highlight was shown on ESPN. Not even Alexis Ajinca’s alley-oop. Speaking of the Frenchman, he was also impressive. In 19 minutes, he went 3-6, scored 9 points, had 7 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and a block. And this wasn’t even his best game. Other notable stories were Flip Murray, Raja Bell, and Gerald Henderson making the shooting guard trio’s total from the field a miserable 6-24, Derrick Brown scoring 10 points in just under 23 minutes, and Stevie Graham looking like a real energy guy off the bench for Larry Brown. After the game, Larry Brown spoke about the replacement referees. “They’re learning,” Brown said. “It’s not an easy game to officiate and I understand that. I’m on them because all you do as a coach is want consistency. They don’t need to be hearing it from me, but I want my young kids to have a chance to win. We’ve got a lot of good people who are going to try and train these guys. They’re doing the best they can. Hopefully it gets settled and everybody benefits.” Brown received a technical foul from the crew, and may well be a regular offender this season.

Thursday brought Emeka Okafor back to the team that traded him this offseason, although he was sidelined with an injury, as was Tyson Chandler, who he was swapped for. Before the game, Mek said he was “shocked” to be traded from the team where he was the foundation, even though Larry Brown said at the end of last season he wanted Okafor to focus more on basketball and was repeatedly on Mek’s case during the year. But enough of that, on to what matters. The game redeemed Crash from his poor showing two days before, having him put up 14 points, 2 boards and a steal in 24 minutes. While Nazr Mohammed wasn’t as impressive at first, putting up only 4 points, his defensive presence was impressive, with four rebounds, two blocks, a steal, and +/- of +17, compared to backup center Gana Diop’s -8. The next highest on the team were Ray Felton and Derrick Brown at +9. Whatever Nazr did in the offseason, it seems to have paid off in gold. After playing just under 14 minutes, Felton left with a minor injury and did not return, but was back in the linuep against the Cavs. DJ Augustin manned the point from then on, scoring 22 points on just 2 field goals, shooting 18 free throws and making 16. Augustin said, “Coach told us to drive and not settle for jump shots, and that’s what I tried to do.” It didn’t hurt that the replacement officials were whistle happy, calling 77 fouls in all. Swingman Stevie Graham scored 15 points and 6 boards along with an assist, and Derrick Brown once again had 10 points.

Tonight it was back to playing Lebron, Shaq, and the rest of the Cavs, this time in Charleston. However, thanks to a bunch of greedy tv executives, most of South Carolina and a good deal of North Carolina couldn’t even see the game, per usual. Crash set the tone for the Bobcats in the first half and part of the second, dropping 18 points and grabbing 5 boards and a steal. But this was The Alexis Ajinca show. Lexy came into his own in the second half, putting down 15 points, 7 rebounds, a steal and two blocks. But it wasn’t just the stats, it was how he did it. Ajinca scored via mid-range jump shot, hook shot, alley-oop, dunk, lay-up, and putback. He was all over the Cavs bench, and if the Bobcats get half of this from him in the season, the worries about power forward depth are totally unnecessary. This kid has some real talent, and he’s finally starting to show it. Maybe he won’t be the tallest person in Maine this winter after all! In other notes from the game, Raja Bell and Flip Murray are still looking for their stroke, if you find it, please call 704-BOBCATS right away, they are offering a reward. Just Kidding. I think. Also, Stevie Graham came back down to earth a little tonight, with just 2 points, 4 rebounds, a block, and 5 fouls and turnovers. Shannon Brown, anyone? Anyways, I’m very encouraged by the first three games, and I’m looking forward to the next bunch.

- For those of you trying to listen to WFNZ’s broadcast of Bobcats games online, according to someone at WFNZ, that’s because the NBA and the Bobcats own the rights to all games broadcast online, and no othe entity can legally put the games online, whether in audio or video format. Why the game is being broadcast locally but not on NBA.com, who knows.

- Before the Cavs game, the Bobcats exercised their option for 2010-2011 on DJ Augustin’s contract. Larry Brown said “I think it’s a no-brainer.” The Bobcats have until after the third regular season game to decide whether to exercise Alexis Ajinca’s option.

- The Bobcats are hosting a free Open Practice on Thursday the 15th. You can sit anywhere you want outside the first five rows, and all who show up get a free soda and popcorn.

- Monday the Bobcats head to Atlanta to face the Hawks, then are off until the weekend when they head to Los Angeles to play part in the Lakers preseason tournament. They come back to Charlotte to play host to the Bucks on the 20th, then the Grizzlies on the 23rd, then the preseason is over and it’s time to get going.

While I don’t pretend to be Chevy Chase, Norm MacDonald, Seth Meyers, Amy Poehler, or any other SNL anchor, I am here to bring you the news, and it’s Saturday Night.

Boris Diaw was hurt today in Eurobasket Qualifiers while playing for the French National Team. While we don’t know exactly what’s hurt, it’s his ankle area and he’s expected to miss around a month, placing his return around the beginning of the season, possibly allowing him to play in a few preseason games. With the already lacking depth at the Power Forward position –only Diaw and second year player Alexis Ajinca are listed as Power Forwards on the depth chart, though rookie Derrick Brown will likely spend time there– this just makes those worried about the position even more uneasy.

On a similar note, there have been rumblings that Houston and the Bobcats are in trade talks. One would assume that one of the Bobcats’ centers, either Nazr Mohammed or Desagana Diop, as well as Houston forward Carl Landry are involved. The hold-up to a deal is that last year, around September 25th, the Bobcats submitted an offer sheet to Landry, and cannot trade for him until one year after they submitted paperwork to the league office. Other pieces in this trade could be Houston’s Joey Dorsey, who is a quality backup, and Brent Barry, who I believe has an unguaranteed contract that would save the Bobcats around one million dollars. Also possibly outgoing would be guard Dontell Jefferson, or Ajinca (though I doubt it).

Last Tuesday, bobcats.com posted an Interview with assistant coach Dave Hanners, and in that interview, Hanners talked about different things, but a couple things jumped out at me.

One, Gerald Wallace had surgery, and nobody covered it. Now, I know it was just have his wisdom teeth out, but that’s still a rather major thing to totally miss, and no local paper or national media outlet covered it. As far as I know I’m the first person to put it in print.

Two, this coaching staff seems really, REALLY, high on Derrick Brown. I know he was supposed to be a first round pick, but Hanners is super high on him, and Dave is a really good coach. Which brings me to…

Three, apparently either Scott Lauer is a kiss-ass or the Bobcats Front Office wants Hanners to succeed Larry Brown. I very much hope it is the latter, because after spending as much time around Coach Brown as Hanners has, something has to have impressed the Teacher. Larry has taught multiple Head Coaches in the league, like Mike Woodson and John Kuester. Hopefully Hanners will be not only the next but the most successful.

A couple random notes:

RIP to Skipper Beck. I met Skip’s son through the arena racing stuff at Cricket Arena, nice kid, prayers to the family.

To anyone who’s upset about MJ’s speech at the Hall of Fame, that’s who MJ is, and he’s fine with that, why can’t you be? He worked to be the greatest player ever, let him enjoy it how he wants to.

Also, MJ is NOT going to play again. He was too old last time, and he knew it. He’s beyond too old this time. This isn’t the PGA, where there’s an Old Guys tour.

And lastly, Alexis Ajinca likes playing Rock Band. I’ve never seen a 7’0 drummer before…

Alexis Ajinca has been down in the NBDL for a little less than 3 weeks now, lets take a look at how he is has been doing.

March 13th versus the Reno Bighorns -22 minutes, 6-11 from the field, 12 points, 6 rebounds, 0 blocks, 4 personal fouls

March 14th versus the Utah Flash – 17 minutes, 2-7 from the field, 7 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block, 6 personal fouls

March 17th versus the Los Angeles Defenders – 29 minutes, 8-12 from the field, 18 points, 12 rebounds, 2 blocks, 5 personal fouls

March 18th versus the Anaheim Arsenel (coached by this dude) – 18 minutes, 4-6 from the field, 10 points, 4 rebounds, 1 personal foul, 1 blocked shot

March 21st versus the Bakersfield Jam – 14 minutes, 3-7 from the field, 8 points, 5 rebounds, 2 personal fouls, 1 blocked shot

The rate that he picked up fouls in his first three games was just crazy (15 fouls in 68 minutes of play), but that’s improved in his last two games. He has had some highs like his 18 pt/12 reb game against the Defenders and he has had some lows like his game against the Flash where he fouled out in 17 minutes after going just 2-7 from the field. He has shown some flashes on the offense end, but has still struggled defensively. Case and point the video below:

In this snippet you can see a nasty slam by Ajinca at the 28 second mark, but unfortunately on the defensive end he allows himself to be dunked on hard… twice.

Anyone who played Madden ’96 remembers 2 comments from John Madden “Hey…Heck of a Play” and “Gotta watch the snap.”  When the Bobcats won tonight all I could think was “Hey, heck of a game.”  Solid win, top to bottom.  As Larry Brown said post-game, “we’re playing at a very high level right now.”  The Bobcats got out to a pretty good lead to end the first quarter and really didn’t look back.  It got so good that Alexis Ajinca got in the game.  Lex the legs even got a tech when he got in a little shove back and forth with some crew cut scrub that Vinny Del Negro put in because it was just that over.  I knew it was going to be a statement game and it really was.  2 days off and then the Hawks at home on Friday?  Come on!  The way these guys look right now they might roll on through.
 
So here’s the big picture on tonight’s game:  Tim Thomas and Luol Deng were out.  Rumors were that Raja Bell might be out but he in fact started and had 10 points in the first quarter and all 18 of his points before halftime.  Whether or not he was still hurt or anything, not confirmed after the game by Larry Brown, but he’s probably still day to day.  How did he hit 7 of 11 and 2 for 2 from beyond 3, with a bad shoulder?  I don’t know, don’t care.  I appreciate the effort and the dedication.  He’s banged up, Wallace is banged up, Okafor tweaked his ankle last week.  It’s like I heard Brentson Buckner say on WFNZ “It late in da season.  Errrbody knee hurt.  Mek knee hurt, Gerald knee hurt, Diaw knee hurt, Ray knee hurt.  If yo knee ain’t hurt, you ain’t been playing.”  The lead was so cushy that the bench actually got some time in.  Everyone but Alexis Ajinca, Juwan Howard and Cartier Martin got double digit PT, and Cartier was less than half a minute short of 10 minutes.
 
Emeka Okafor is playing really well.  His first half enabled Larry to try Juwan Howard and Vlad and even a little bit of a small line-up.  The adjustments that Vinny made sort of held him back in the second half.  Rather than switching Brad Miller for Joakim Noah, he went with both and clamped down on Okafor.  Did I forget someone?  Oh yeah, Diop!  He Dioped it like it was hot, sorry.  I’m truly sorry for that.  Both forgetting his contribution (6 points, 5 rebounds and solid defense), and making that horrible, horrible reference to a 5 year old Snoop Dogg song.
 
Raymond Felton helped a pile as well with 18 points and 9 assists.  He and DJ Augustin have to be a very solid one/two punch for speed and for opposing PG and really the entire defense.  DJ had the 2nd most minutes to Ray but only 8 points and 5 assists.  The two combined for 4 turnovers, which isn’t horrible and a few passes that were stolen weren’t entirely their fault.  Mek still has stone hands and Juwan Howard wasn’t looking in the right direction.  Speaking of Mr. Howard.  His 3 minutes were quite uneventful, in any type of positive way.  It bothered me that the Bulls attacked his side of the floor while he was on defense.  The missed pass almost under the basket bothered me as well.  I know he’s great for veteran leadership but man, I think he’s lost 2 steps instead of just one for his age.
 
All in all, I feel really good about the win.  How can you not?  It was a 20 point win that ended up being 16, I don’t know why.  Maybe it was Alexis’s seeming embarrassment on the free throw line after almost coming to blows with Aaron or Alex or something with an “A” Gray.  I know Larry was smiling.  Hell, so was I.  Bring it Hawks!  I need to do some research on them and what they’re doing right now because I really didn’t care before we had a 4 game win streak for the first time in a year and them coming to town!