I’ll give you three guesses, but if you need more than one then you must not follow the NBA or watch FOX on Sundays (or any other day thanks to syndication; love them reruns). What’s the answer? Easy—

Low expectations.

Whether you are the optimistic or pessimistic type it is kind of hard not to agree with that. Coming into this season it was pretty easy to see that this season was likely going to be a rough one for the guys. While all the young talent is something to be excited and encouraged about, the team has no definitive leader or focal point.

The good thing is that in time a leader can develop. The problem is going to be in figuring out whom it will be and how long will it take for him to step up. Hence the theme of the post—low expectations (go ahead comedians let me have it).

I would not want to do this often, and I’m glad it is happening in a strike shortened season, but I don’t mind having a year like this. It may sound crazy, but hear me out a little.

Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson was deeply perturbed that his team lost to the Bobcats. “We didn’t show up,” Jackson said. “Somehow my guys didn’t come out ready to play.”  C’mon, Mark, your team’s not better than that.  The Warriors have long tried to unburden free market offense by eliminating defensive uncertainty, and on Saturday the Bobcats took full advantage of the deregulation.  As much as I would like to think that coach Silas’s decision to insert Kemba Walker into the starting lineup stimulated our flow, I’ll be much more convinced when it works against a team whose defensive strategy doesn’t revolve around Nate Robinson taking ridiculous dives against DJ Augustin as if he had just tried to tackle Earl Campbell.

Not that I’m complaining!  After the previous night’s disembowelment at the hands of the Pistons, I’ll take what I can get.  Greg Monroe and Jonas Jerebko ate our front court alive on Friday, and for awhile on Saturday it looked like the only thing that had changed were the names—to David Lee and Andris Biedrins.  But Biedrins mysteriously vanished after just 14 minutes of playing time (Did he hurt his ankle?  Was he kidnapped by aliens and returned to his home planet of Ken Doll Hair?), and the Warriors foolishly abandoned going to Lee down low.  Why?  I don’t know, because when you check out his shot chart of makes in the first and second quarters, it looks like someone emptied a Tek-9 a foot away from the rim.

Stephen Jackson has rekindled his relationship with pressure, well when you do what he does to it, it may not be a relationship per se but hey, he did what he did to it and the Bobcats finished on top.  He also put on the belt.  In the way of first time Super Bowl quarterback Aaron Rodgers and many a WWE SuperStar before him he made the motion to put on the championship belt.  Kind of over and over, like it got awkward.  I guess when you get down by 16 in the third and battle back to be down by 3 with 15 seconds left, you hit the three pointer to tie with :00.6 on the clock, yeah you can go ahead and put on the belt.

Other than the end of the game, the story was Gerald Wallace, or lack there of.  He was, in my friend Shrader’s estimation, a complete ghost.  He didn’t attempt a shot until a minute and a half into the fourth quarter and that one got blocked.  He ended the game with 7 points, 5 in the fourth, 2 in overtime.  5 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks don’t make up for that antipathy towards scoring or attempting to score.  He somehow had the final shot and luckily DJ Augustin was there for the offensive rebound and kick out to Jackson for the tying bankshot.

DJ Augustin had 9 of the Bobcats’ 20 overtime points.  Seriously serious play out of the point guard.  27 points, 12 assists, 4 rebounds (including the all important to close the game) and 4 steals.  He played well against the stout Golden State backcourt on defense.  I wouldn’t attribute holding Monta Ellis below his average completely to him, but he certainly had the hands out on the perimeter to get in passing lanes and break up attempted passes.  DJ is really impressive under Silas.  You can tell he is one of those flow of the game/confidence guys who need the freedom that Silas allows.  Larry Brown taught him certain fundamentals, sure but the halting practice and minescule adjustments and working every play through to its completion, regardless of outcome, all added up to DJ Augustin not living up to his full potential under Brown and the team suffered.

If you had any question how well liked young Stephen Curry is in the Queen City, then that was certainly answered tonight. Returning home to Charlotte as a Golden State Warrior, the rookie received a standing ovation in player introductions and was cheered nearly every time he touched the ball. However, Gerald Wallace, DJ Augustin, and Boris Diaw helped the Charlotte Bobcats ruin his trip home, winning 101-90.

Curry, who was the leader of the miracle Davidson squad that made the Elite Eight in 2008, scored 25 points but went just 8-23 from the field, including an 0-3 start that featured an airball. The rest of his team didn’t help much either, with only Corey Maggette (19 points) and Charlottean Anthony Morrow (11) also reaching double figures.

The Bobcats, however, had a team game going and began to pull away in the fourth quarter, led by DJ Augustin’s 19 points on 7-10 shooting and 3 of 4 three pointers. Gerald Wallace, who was ejected with a minute left to go in the game for throwing an elbow that didn’t connect, had a spectacular game, putting in 18 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, dishing two assists, and blocking five shots. Augustin and Wallace were not alone, however, as Boris Diaw nearly had a triple double (14 pts/12rbds/9ast), Stephen Jackson had 12 points and 6 rebounds, and Theo Ratliff had 11 points and 5 rebounds in his 7th consecutive start. Tyson Chandler continued his impressive return from a foot injury, adding 2 points, 4 rebounds, and a block in 7 minutes off the bench.

Notes: When discussing Stephen Curry, Coach Larry Brown said “If I ever retire, I’d pay to see him play”…Gerald Wallace will likely receive a one game suspension for the “foul” he commited on Anthony Tolliver leading to his ejection, even though the elbow thrown did not connect and he denies any malevolence whatsoever: “It was not intentional. I wasn’t trying to hurt anybody, everyone knows I’m not that type of player”…Gerald Henderson once again saw meaningful minutes, going 1-4 from the field for 3 pts and 3 rbds with 2 steals…Centers Nazr Mohammed and DeSagana Diop once again missed the game, with back spasms and a right MCL sprain, respectively…Owner-to-be Michael Jordan sat courtside for the third straight home game, making him 3-3 since it was announced he was buying the team…the only players who entered the game and did not record a turnover were Derrick Brown and Tyson Chandler…Former Bobcats Raja Bell and Vladi Radmanovic, who were traded for Stephen Jackson, were on the Warriors bench. Bell currently owns a house in Charlotte…The Bobcats are now 22-8 at home and 30-31 overall, ninth in the East.

I don’t get Boos.  Unless I’m the one booing.  I can only remember booing referees and not them personally but the calls.  I could see booing a guy like Big Baby Davis.  Oh I’m sorry, he wants to be called Glen now.  Basically any Celtic deserves a boo anytime they make one of those plays that they’ve been known for.  Ray Allen in a walkoff, Big Fatty in a walk off.  Not because of the shot but because of the reaction.  The “Ohhh yeah, just as I expected.  I am just too cool to do anything but fist pump” or the “Ohhhhhhhhhh!  I am so excited I can’t even run on my own, I will push off of somebody, I don’t have time to check if the push off person is a kid!”

Those deserve Boos.  A guy coming into the game, one particular guy touching the ball, no, I’m sorry, you don’t get to boo.  Maybe if you’re Philadelphia, which makes you completely allowed to be an obnoxious person in general but particularly when we’re talking about sports.  But really, you can’t just give a guy what for by way off a “B” followed by a very long “oooooooooo” because of who he is.

I cannot think of a single guy, NBA, NFL any of it that that as soon as I see him I think “No, I don’t like you, the only way to vocalize this is through an extended non-word.  I shall BOOOOO ye.”

All this comes on the heels of last night’s tremendous determination shown by the fans in Golden State.  Strong and consistent boos for Stephen Jackson.  He was booed in the layup lines, he was booed every time he touched the ball.  I get it.  A guy demands a trade from your team and gets one.  It’s your perogetive but I just don’t get it.

Basketball, I’m learning this more and more, is a business.  There is so much money and a guy needs to feel like he’s in his place.  It’s all business and not a statement on a guy’s relationship to a fan base.  Stephen loved it in Golden State, he just wasn’t fitting into their plans on the court and wasn’t feeling things were going the way he wants and expects.  He demanded a trade, it’s not his fault that the Warriors got Vlade Radmonovic and that’s about it since Raja Bell elected for season ending surgery.

I couldn’t believe the fans in Charlotte booing JJ Redick last week.  We’re Charlotte folks!  We don’t have enemies at this point.  Oh, what’s that?  This just in, all those folks booing were huge Douc-sorry, Carolina fans and don’t like JJ because he went to Duke and scored lots of points.  He plays for Orlando folks.  Why not boo somebody who it would have effect on?  Dwight Howard at the free throw line maybe?

You boo to make your disdain heard or to effect some one’s night.  You can boo a guy like Michael Vick in Atlanta, to the rest of us, he’s just a bad dude and he doesn’t mean that much anymore.  Although, the superman touchdown back in ’03 or whatever was total BS.

My point is, unless the guy made a terribly bad call (Dick Bavetta), threw a punch, fought with fans in the stands (see Detroit Mr. Jackson), or killed dogs and ruined your franchise, make a great reason for your boos.  Stephen Jackson has played for 5 teams in the league after a lot of traveling outside of it.  JJ Redick plays for Orlando now, not Duke and all he did at Duke was play the way you would expect any North Carolina player.  Don’t hate but if you do, have a good reason.

The last time a star Warrior was traded to Charlotte for almost nothing and returned to Oracle Arena in Oakland, he was given a hero’s welcome. This time, the Warrior fans had little love for their former swingman. You see, Jason Richardson not only didn’t want to be traded, but he was somewhat upset to be traded. Stephen Jackson, however, isn’t one to keep his mouth shut, and he let it be known that he wanted out of Oakland immediately if not sooner. So when he came back, the rabid fan base in Oakland quickly forgot all the heart, passion, and energy he played with and bombarded him with more boos than Jake Delhomme has ever had. But in the end, it didn’t matter. Captain Jack came to play, as did his First Mate and the rest of his Crew.

After a slow start, losing the first quarter to the Dubs 28-24 and being down by 5 in the middle of the second, the Bobcats asserted themselves, entering halftime up 6 and leading by as many as 21. The Stephen Jackson and newly-named All Star Gerald Wallace duo combined for an evenly split 60 points (almost 50% of the team total) and 17 rebounds, 13 of which were Wallace’s. 6 Bobcats were in double figures (Jackson, Wallace, Boris Diaw, Raymond Felton, DJ Augustin, and Flip Murray) and both Wallace and Nazr Mohammed grabbed double digit rebounds. The Bobcats utterly dominated the Warriors on the boards, grabbing 48 solo and 13 team rebounds to the Warriors 32 solo and 9 team, which comes out to a +20 mark. This was with center Nazr Mohammed playing just 16 1/2 minutes (despite those 10 rebounds, along with his 6 points) and backup DeSagana Diop recieving a DNP-CD. This meant Boris Diaw spent most of his night at the 5 spot, scoring 12 and pulling down 6 rebounds. DJ Augustin put in 14 points on 5-7 shooting, including 3-5 from 3 point range, along with 6 assists. We even had a Gerald Henderson mohawk sighting, for a brief 2 1/2 minute period where he scored 1 point. All in all, a stat sheet-stuffing performance, putting the Bobcats back above .500 at 23-22, tied for 7th in the East.

Tomorrow night the Bobcats play the Kings in Sacramento. Let’s just hope Crash stays away from Andres Nocioni if possible. Tomorrow is also DeSagana Diop’s 28th birthday, which could signal extra playing time if the game isn’t close.

Notes: Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia sat courtside. He grew up 30 minutes away from Oakland and is a good friend of Stephen Jackson….Bobcats color analyst Dell Curry spent the second quarter on the Warriors broadcast talking about his son, Stephen, who nearly had a double double with 22 points and 9 assists….Acie Law didn’t play against his former team….former Bobcats Cartier Martin and Vladimir Radmanovic came off the bench for the Warriors, scoring 4 and 6 points, respectively. Ex-Bobcat Raja Bell is out for most of the season with wrist surgery….After winning just 1 road game to 14 losses in 2009, the Bobcats are now 4-3 outside Charlotte in 2010. They are now ahead of Milwaukee and Detroit for 4th worst away record in the East, 7th worst overall….The Bobcats could reach 12-4 for the month of January if they win tomorrow. I think that’d be a franchise best.