Bobcats fans had a feeling that their team could be a little better with the return of big man Byron Mullens after a 19-game layoff. It took five games, but boy were we all right.

Mullens lead the way by far in Monday night’s impressive win over the Boston Celtics, as the Bobcats snapped a seven game losing skid with a close 94-91 victory. Mullens was just abusing Boston in the paint on his way to 18 rebounds, as well as a solid 25 points off of 10-of-16 shooting. While his shooting touch (4-of-5 from three) was worth talking about on its own, it was the intensity on the boards that got attention, and Mullens was pleased with that.

”I just have to show the league and this organization that I can rebound,” said Mullens after the game.

It’s not like Mullens can’t hit the glass. He averages over eight boards per game, but at seven feet tall, he and just about everyone else is probably shooting for over 10 rebounds per game. It’s clear with this rebounding outburst that he has the potential, and it’s also evident that he has a bit of a chip on his shoulder and is dedicated to improving his rebounding craft.

We get it, the Spurs are the better team. The much, much better team. They’ve won won nine straight now and their record (37-11) basically is a mirror image of the Charlotte Bobcats’s record (11-34). But that doesn’t excuse a sorry offensive effort that saw just three Charlotte players score in double figures, and a guy off the bench (Ramon Sessions) leading the way with 22 points.

Plain and simple: the Bobcats stunk on Wednesday night. I should probably be used to it by now, but I just don’t understand still how one guy in the starting five can top 10 points. In fact, Kemba Walker only scored 16 points, and no one else in the starting lineup could muster up more than seven.

That’s pathetic.

Another tough NBA fight, another difficult loss for Bobcats fans to swallow. Sure, Charlotte gave Houston a run for it’s money on Monday night, but in the end dropped their second straight game and (once again) started what could develop into another lengthy losing streak.

Despite forcing James Harden into difficult shots (he shot just 5-for-20 from the floor), Charlotte couldn’t figure him out defensively, as he penetrated at will and reached the charity stripe an incredible 21 times. When a player like that gets there that often and hits 19 of his tries, you know you’re in for a long day.

Fortunately, the Bobcats actually made a game of it, though, as point guard Kemba Walker abused Jeremy Lin and dropped a game-leading 35 points on the Rockets. In fact, he single-handedly kept the Bobcats within striking distance, as he hit 6-of-7 three balls to help Charlotte head into the final period with a seven-point lead.

After living in Indianapolis and suffering through the last NFL season with the Colts I learned how to do one thing really well—enjoy the small victories that come with sucking. If there is one thing that the Bobcats have done real well this year it has been sucking, but on Saturday night they gave us a little something to cheer about.

They actually won.

In case you were not aware, the guys played the Toronto Raptors at home and won by the score of 107-103 (another rare 100-point game). What makes the win remarkable is the way that they did it.

Toronto out-shot the Bobcats, .521 (38-73) to .507 (36-71). The Raptors hit eight of 18 three-pointers; Charlotte only four of nine. The Bobcats were out-rebounded 35-28. So Toronto shot better, shot more, rebounded better, and nailed more threes. Typically when that happens a team is going to win. That is unless they totally blow in one other category.

Fouls.

Toronto could not stop sending the Bobcats to the line. On the night the ‘Cats were sent to the line for 34 free throws, 10 more than what Toronto had. Of course what makes it even better is that they made most of them (31 of those 34).

Coaches at every level of the game always preach fundamentals. If you can get the fundamentals right, then you have a solid base from which to work from. Too often fundamentals are forgotten by players. Since the ‘Cats remembered theirs on Saturday they were able to notch their seventh win of the season.

(AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

Box Score

When considering the Bobcats lottery prospects this loss will likely help in ensuring a higher draft pick. In the here and now however, it raises a few concerns.

Firstly, there are few players on the Bobcats who aren’t defensive liabilities. For as much as Augustin gives on offense (26 points, 9 assists), he gives up as much on the defensive end. DJ White is more or less in the same boat. This isn’t a new issue for either, but it’s too bad considering both are off to the best starts of their careers. The rest of team has trouble defending as well, with the Cavaliers scoring 56 points in the paint, and at other times getting too many open looks. The size disadvantage contributes to this, so the return of Tyrus Thomas is needed quickly if this team wants any chance of defending down low.

This was supposed to be Kemba Walker vs. Kyrie Irving, but Walker had his worst game as a pro. Two points on 1-6 shooting compared to Irving’s 20 points and six assists. When looking back, the absence of Walker made a difference. In both of the Bobcats close games, Walker had stretches of play that kept the Bobcats in the game. He may not be a starter, but if the Cats are going to win any games this year he will need to show up.

Diaw has crashed down to Earth after his good start. He looked tired, unfocused and still out of shape. He was scoreless with five rebounds and five fouls, and it was hard to find any justification for him being in the game in the 2^nd half.

After a scoreless first half Henderson got hot in the 2^nd finishing with 16 points and seven rebounds. These numbers are what you want from him, but not necessarily all in one half. The next step for him is to become more consistent.

Apparently getting embarrassed in Orlando, Denver and Los Angeles wasn’t enough. The Charlotte Bobcats, missing captain Stephen Jackson, made it a perfect 4-for-4 of disgrace on their road trip, being trampled by the Portland Trail Blazers 93-69. Gerald Henderson led the Bobcats with 16 points, and that’s all you need to say to know it was a bad night.