After reading further through the forums I have to say that I am impressed with most of the comments; the readers here are obviously well informed about their team and are not shy about sharing their thoughts.

That being said I have a question or more of an observation of sorts that I would like to present; I will be very curious and a little eager even to read your comments.

The concerns at point guard are clear. Whether or not the team should have let Raymond Felton go we will not truly know until the season gets going and we see what D.J. Augustin and Shaun Livingston are able to accomplish.

Stephen Jackson appears to have found a home after his first season with the team. Last season he had career highs in points per game (21.1) and rebounds (5.1; tied with 2008-09 season for career high), and seemed to compliment Gerald Wallace well.

At the forwards, with Wallace and Thomas, the Bobcats should be deadly next season. Anyone that averages a double-double over the course of the season is just a joy to watch in my book (18.2 points and 10 rebounds). In Tyrus Thomas’s short time with the team he showed some real signs of promise, and will likely be even better after going through his first training camp with the team. With Boris Diaw coming off the bench the Bobcats will not be hurting for quality play at the forwards.

However (and this is where the question comes in), I don’t know if I could say the same for the center position.

I was a little surprised that they traded for Erick Dampier from the Dallas Mavericks for one. Many of you in the forums have referred to his salary; while I recognize that as a concern, I think his play is questionable as well. His best days are well behind him (2003-04 with Golden State). His numbers have been in a steady decline along with his health. If the Bobcats could dump him on someone else through a trade I don’t think anyone would cry.

Then again the other options the team has on the roster really aren’t much better. Nazr Mohammed is obviously not a scoring threat for the team nor would he likely to be called upon to do so with players like Wallace and Jackson on the court, but he does not exactly provide the team with many second chance opportunities (2.0 offensive rebounds and 3.3 defensive rebounds last season).

DeSagana Diop is a big ole’ boy and maybe he’ll produce better than he has with more minutes. In 11 seasons in the NBA he has never averaged more than 19 minutes a game and has had the lack of production to go with it. He is definitely a much bigger body than two of the guys that the team has let go elsewhere, Theo Ratliff and Tyson Chandler.

Diop could do well as the starter. Having been in the league for 11 seasons now does not exactly make him an old man, but he is not a spring chicken either. However, when you look at his stats he has not played a whole lot over the span of his career so he can’t be beaten up too bad.

I do not write this to just bad mouth the players that the team has on the roster, and I don’t have a solution to offer either. Mostly I am interested to see what the Bobcat loyal think about their centers and what the team should do (or not do) about the position. Should they stand pat with what they got and see what happens or is there a player available in free agency worth picking up?

Now that the Charlotte Bobcats are officially in the offseason, it’s time to grade them. Over the next month, I’ll be giving every player and select non-players their grades for the season. But I’ll start with a general report card for the entire team. Enjoy!

Front Office:
When you can turn an aging, injured shooting guard on an expiring contract (Raja Bell) and a sorely overpaid, worthless, shooter playing power forward (Vladimir Radmonovic) into a Top 10 shooting guard (Stephen Jackson) and another tradeable asset (Acie Law IV), you automatically had an above average season. But Michael Jordan, Rod Higgins, and Larry Brown didn’t stop there. In the offseason, they signed Flip Murray to be a serviceable 6th man for just under $2 million. In essence, a bargain. But he wasn’t the only bargain. Stephen Graham, who filled as a starter 8 times, was signed for the league minimum. Not too shabby. The Bobcats also picked up Gerald Henderson and Derrick Brown in the draft. While neither received much playing time, both showed flashes of their talent in limited minutes. When they received over 20 minutes in a game, Henderson averaged 11 points, Brown 9.7 points. But not even a solid draft, free agency, and a great trade to start the year would make the front office lazy. At the trade deadline, they picked up Theo Ratliff for what amounts to nothing and Tyrus Thomas came in for Murray, Law, and a protected 1st. Ratliff started 26 of his 28 games in a Bobcats uniform, and his 1.5 blocks per game in Charlotte helped propel the team to it’s first playoff birth. While the result of the Thomas trade has yet to be discovered, he showed stretches of brilliance on the road to the postseason. Not to mention, Bob Johnson sold the team to Michael Jordan. All in all, a great year in the front office

Final Grade: A

Coaching:
Obviously, if Larry Brown is coaching your team, you’ve got a chance to make some noise. Brown made good on that reputation this past season, turning Gerald Wallace into an All-Star and rebounding machine, keeping Stephen Jackson moderately in check, and improving just about everyone one the roster. And when Brown was ejected (twice in the regular season and once in the preseason), Lead Assistant Dave Hanners capably stepped up. The reason I bring up Hanners is because, unlike Coach Brown, Coach Hanners is aware that there are players sitting next to him who are able to play more than thirty seconds per game. That’s one of Larry’s weaknesses, and it showed. Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson were among the league leaders in minutes, while rookies Gerald Henderson and Derrick Brown played a COMBINED 890 minutes. That’s 60% of DeJaun Blair’s playing time. And need I remind you Blair went in the second round (just a few picks before Brown, but well after Henderson, a lottery pick) and was Tim Duncan’s backup? They received just 40% of Jonas Jerebko’s playing time, and he was both suspended for a game and taken after Blair. But, despite his rotation shortcomings, Larry did coach his way to a team record 44 wins. So, everything combined, a solid season for the journeyman coach.

Final Grade: B+

Players:
While this is a very broad grade, and there are underperformers and overperformers, in the end it’s the total sum of how your team plays that matters. While Gerald Wallace played better than just about anyone expected, he was countered by a lazy season from Boris Diaw. Talk all you want about how much Nazr Mohammed improved, but he was countered by the oft-injured Tyson Chandler, who had a horrible start to the season, and Theo Ratliff’s horrific showing in the playoffs. Raymond Felton may have skyrocketed his shooting percentages, but DJ Augustin’s plummeted. While Stephen Jackson stepped in and led the team in scoring, it took heaven and earth moving for 2008 first round pick Alexis Ajinca to even make the active roster. Larry Hughes joined the team to replace Murray, but somehow had a lower shooting percentage (and lower True Shooting for the stat geeks) than Murray, who had the green light from Coach Brown. While Tyrus Thomas had a huge impact on the team’s defense, he actually had a negative win shares on offense. So, if you look deeply, the team was a little bit above average, and it showed in their .536 winning percentage.

Final Grade: C+

Playoffs:
Well, when you’re the only team to get swept, there’s not much good. But the Charlotte community showed up en masse for both of the team’s home games, and enjoyed booing JJ Redick. But outside of that and Tyrus Thomas’ impressive showing, there wasn’t much to like. The Bobcats only really contended in Game 3, and poor decision making doomed them then. A poor showing, and the better team won quickly.

Final Grade: D

Charlotte Bobcats 2009-2010 Season Final Grade: B+

The team accomplished its goal of making the playoffs, but now they have to show it wasn’t a fluke.

On a night when everything seemed to be going wrong, Stpehen Jackson stepped up with under a minute left in overtime to deliver a knockout blow to the Milwaukee Bucks, giving the Charlotte Bobcats the win, 87-86. This victory put the Bobcats just a game and a half out of the 5th spot in the East, and moved the Magic Number to clinch a playoff spot down to 4.

When you look up “overcoming” in the dictionary, the first thing you should see is this Bobcat roster. After Jackson had to leave when he re-injured his hamstring, Larry Brown was ejected in the 2nd quarter for arguing a missed call by the officials, along with poor nights for Gerald Wallace, Raymond Felton, Boris Diaw, and Larry Hughes and the fourth-quarter foulout of Theo Ratliff. But in the end, the ‘Cats overcame all this adversity and gave Coach-for-the-night Dave Hanners a well-earned victory. Postgame, Hanners said “I can look at everybody that played and say ‘what a war’ because…I thought we matched their intensity in the second half and in overtime.” He also said “We’re close to them in the playoff race, it basically is like a playoff game…it is playoff intensity and there’s no question about it. Hanners also attributed the win to winning the war of the boards, where the ‘Cats succeeded in the second half, outrebounding the Bucks by 6 after halftime and pulling down 16 offensive rebounds. Gerald Wallace, Boris Diaw, and Theo Ratliff combined for 29 total rebounds (11 offensive boards), and Tyson Chandler added 6 off the bench, half of which were offensive rebounds. Jackson led all scorers with 32, and was joined by Raymond Felton (12 points) as the only Bobcats in double figures. Most of the 41 minutes Jackson was in the game centered around him and Milwaukee’s John Salmons. Salmons, who had 28, hit multiple clutch shots to go with his 3 that sent the game into overtime. However, he was unable to match Captain Jack, who hit a twisting floater from the three point line and a three point shot as the shot clock expired in both cases. Jackson also hit a three with just under a minute left in overtime that proved to be the winning bucket, after Tyson Chandler deflected a rebound to Raymond Felton to let time expire. Jackson said “I just thank God for giving me the strength, but if I can be out there and help my team and not hurt them then I’m going to be out there.” He also said that tonight was a “playoff atmosphere” and that “the refs [were] refereeing the playoff way.” Larry Brown didn’t think so, as he was given two technicals in three seconds for arguing a non-call, and then implored owner Michael Jordan, who was sitting courtside, to take up his case. MJ did so, often getting out of his seat and yelling, mostly at official Bill Spooner, who was responsible for many questionable calls. Jackson, who appeared to also be sick postgame, said “I got even more pumped up when Larry got kicked out, when Coach Brown got kicked out, because you’ll seldom see that. But when a guy’s fightin’ for you, you’ve gotta show him that you’re fightin’ for him also…that’s why I love him so much because he’s always fought for me since I’ve been here.” After it’s all said and done, I’d say Jack showed Larry that he fought for this team, helping his teammates battle through all the adversity to get the win.

Notes: When asked about why he thought Coach Brown was ejected, Hanners said there was no profanity and he was puzzled as to the reason…Jackson was asked if he’d ever seen a coach tossed this quickly: “Uh, no. But you never know with Don Nelson. Thats why I love Don Nelson, there’s been times when Don Nelson and me got kicked out, together…I know as much as LB coaches, he was back here going ‘No, do this, do that.’ I know he was back here, probably writing on the chalkboard talking to himself.”…Nazr Mohammed was active tonight for the first time since February 20th after having back spasms against these same Bucks, but he did not play…Gerald Henderson joined DeSagana Diop and Alexis Ajinca on the inactive list, though he is not hurt…All the players who entered the game for Charlotte scored…former Bobcat center Primoz Brezec was in town as a member of the Bucks, his fourth team since being traded shortly into the 2007-2008 season for Nazr Mohammed. Primoz did not play, however…The Bobcats are now in the top 5 in free throws attempted for the season.

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.

Yes everyone, The Cleveland Cavaliers are now owned by “America’s Team”… your Charlotte Bobcats. The fact that we own these jokers is abundantly clear following the Bobcats 110-93 beatdown of the Cavs last night. We’ve beaten them 3 out of 4 games this year to win the season series, and I get the impression that the Bobcats wouldn’t be intimidated in the least to match up with these guys in the first round of the playoffs.  If I were the Cavs, I would avoid these Bobcats at all costs.

How did the new Bobcats look last night? well, see for yourself.

Tyrus Thomas wound up with 9 points, 12 rebounds and 6 points of the bench, Theo Ratliff chipped in with another 5 rebounds and 2 blocks in limited minutes. I know that these kind of numbers, especially the blocked shots won’t hold up for the remainder of the season, but if the level of energy that both of these guys showed last night can continue then both of these deadline trades will wind up being in the “steal” category for the Bobcats.

To sum it all up. Cleveland Cavaliers, the Bobcats are your daddy.

On to the Bucks