Phil Jackson to Bobcats

It seems like we have a few young pieces to work with. A good coach might be able to turn things around. Walker, Henderson and Bizmack can be part of the rebuild. Whoever we get in the draft should be an important piece as well.

If we get rid of the rest of the bad contracts then we could possibly add some talent in free agency.

 

only tyrus thomas' contract extends beyond next year. the team has options on walker and bizmack for 2013/14. augustin has a qualifying offer of 4.3 mil for 2012/13. i imagine they want to keep him. hendersen and mullens have qualifying offers coming up in 2013/14.

they should extend henderson. mullens can be a good piece, but seems like the kind of guy the bobcats let go only to see him land someplace and turn into a decent player.

the reality, tho, is that the bobcats are not going to attract free agents. the only way they land somebody is if they pay more for 2nd/3rd tier players. then you're just making your own bad contracts rather than trading for one.

they need to trade for players knowing they might have to eat a tough contract or two as long as the person can actually deliver. joe johnson, for example, is way way way overpaid but he's still very good. that's the type of player the bobcats should target.

they could cut salary all they want, but they'll be over a barrel when they need to sign somebody just to meet the min salary requirement for a team. teams have to spend 90% of the salary cap in 2013/14. not sure what happens if you don't hit that.

 

Are u fucking kidding me?

 

What about Carroll and Diop, are they done yet?

Everyone assumes that we can't attract free agents but the Panthers have never had a problem getting high profile free agents to come here. They stopped chasing them for the most part years ago but back in the day they could compete with anyone. I am not saying Dwight Howard would come here but I think they could compete for mid level guys fairly well. Unless you are a superstar you are not going to make a lot more money on endorsements anyway.

 

They need to offer Harden a max deal once he becomes a free agent after next season.

 

diopp and carroll have player options for next year. they would both be insane to not exercise them, so we're stuck with them.

i don't think the problem is geographic, i think the problem is cultural. and i mean that in the sense of the nfl has a different culture than the nba, not the culture of the city of charlotte. the bobcats franchise simply sucks and from all appearances looks to be horribly run. in addition, it's a small market in a non-glamorous city. plus, the fans haven't embraced the team. it's got very little going for it.

 

okc is going to be in a world of hurt if they have to throw money at ibaka and harden to keep them around. harden could probably get the max from somebody. ibaka won't quite hit that kind of realm, but he'll be in the 8-10 mill range easily, maybe even 10-12 mil if somebody desperately wants him.

it'll be interesting to see how they react. will they spend the money or look to trade guys for new young (cheap) assets? i could see them actually trading westbrook to clear some space if they felt like they couldn't afford everybody. maybe to some bottom feeding team like the bobcats...

 

I think the fans would buy in if the team became winners. They supported the Hornets for a long time before Shinn soured everyone on it. They need to show that they are not going to be like the Hornets were before fans will come back. So far they have not shown that they are willing to spend what it takes to compete for a championship. If they ever convince the fan base that they are serious about it then they will support the team.

Blowing up the only playoff team we have ever had did not help with that image. I know that team was never going to do more than be a low seed and lose in the first round but that is better than being a bottom feeder again. The appearance that it was done simply so Jordan could save money does not help.

 

i agree completely, tho i'm not sold that the fan base will ever truly buy into nba ball in charlotte. they might, but i dunno. still, the ONLY way you're going to attract them is to put together a team that can win games.

it's ridiculous to set the sites of this team on the nba finals. it's nice to lofty goals, but you can't blow up a decent team that might break 500 because it's not good enough -- not when it's the best you've ever done. if you tell the fan base that you're collecting assets for the future of the franchise, don't be surprised when they respond they'll buy tickets in the future when the franchise has those assets.

 

Charlotte is never going to give a shit about the Bobcats regardless. The only time the stands are even remotely full is when opposing fans show up in droves. They should just put the team out of its misery and either contract them or move them to a place that is desperate for any pro sports.