The Charlotte Bobcats moved closer to their first playoff appearance with a 109-100 victory over the injury-depleted Atlanta Hawks. Gerald Wallace scored 28 points and the Bobcats made 28 free throws to send the lead out to 23 points in the third quarter before closing the game out in the fourth.
This was my first look at the Charlotte Bobcats. All the news about the Cats lately has been the ascendancy of Michael Jordan as the team owner. Nevermind their playing roster, which took me by surprise as I watched. A group of players from widely different situations who could gel together with a playoff run to become a fixture in the East in the coming years. Let’s take a quick look at the 09-10 Bobcats.
| Player | Past |
|---|---|
| Gerald Wallace | The best player selected by the Cats in the 2004 expansion draft and only original member of the team. He’s become the franchise player with the franchise contract, and is putting up some franchise numbers. |
| Boris Diaw | His best season was with the Phoenix Suns in 05-06. With Amare Stoudemire sidelined after microfracture knee surgery, Diaw emerged as a phenomenal point-forward in the Suns’ offense that made the Joe Johnson trade throw-in the steal of the season. |
| Stephen Jackson | Starting two-guard for the 2003 NBA Champion Spurs who went into the stands with Ron Artest in Detroit in 2004. Key player in the Warriors’ upset first round victory over Dallas in 2007 but was bounced to Bobcats this season. Will Jack find a home in Charlotte? |
| Raymond Felton | Ran UNC to the National Championship in 2005 and was drafted 5th behind franchise point guards Deron Williams and Chris Paul. He seems to have both benefited and suffered from being the third wheel, being both overrated and underrated as a result. |
| Theo Ratliff | In his 14th season in the NBA, Ratliff has had somewhat of a renaissance this season. Labeled by Bill Simmons as Theo Ratliff’s Expiring Contract after being the centre-piece of the Wolves-Celtics trade for Kevin Garnett, Theo has become a cheap centre on this patchwork team. |
| Tyson Chandler / Tyrus Thomas |
Both players were high draft picks of the Chicago Bulls but were ultimately dispensed. Now they form a dynamic front court punch off the bench in Charlotte where expectations are more reasonable and their roles more defined. |
| Larry Hughes | He had a career year in Washington in 2004-05 and signed $70 million contract to play with Lebron James in Cleveland. Hughes never worked out and, like Ratliff, has spent most of the past five seasons being passed around because of his cap numbers rather than his court numbers. |
| D.J. Augustin | So far the only draft pick that seems to have worked out for the Cats, DJ was taken 9th overall in the 2008 draft. He’ll get some valuable playing time and experience in the Bobcats’ playoff run. |
An usually constructed roster – a group of rejects, projects and recreations – but a roster that will give one of the Eastern Conference’s Big 4 a stern test in the first round of the 2010 NBA Playoffs. Who’s your favourite Charlotte Bobcat?
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