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Bobcats: About an hour after the lottery, I spoke to Bickerstaff, the Charlotte GM/coach.

The Bobcats had rotten luck last year when they slipped from No. 2 to No. 5 in the draft lottery -- pushing them out of position to draft either of their two top-rated players, Marvin Williams and Chris Paul.

This year the lottery treated them better, and Bickerstaff was relieved.

"I think we're in a great spot," he said. "I'm relieved. I think we're in a pivital spot in the draft this year … a little bit like Portland was last year."

Bickerstaff said that the team is still too young to really be drafting for needs.

Bickerstaff was vague about which way he was leaning. When asked about Aldridge and Thomas, he said, "If the guys with size are there, you always have to look at it. We've gone that way the past couple of drafts, but you can never have enough."

I have them taking Adam Morrison at No. 3 in my mock draft, but that might be wrong.

Bickerstaff implied Morrison might not fit with his plans.

"I'm looking to add talent," Bickerstaff said, "preferably versatile players who can play multiple positions on the floor."

The Bobcats need someone who can put the ball in the hole, and Morrison might be a quick fix -- he's older and more advanced offensively than some of the other top prospects. But Bickerstaff might not be convinced that Morrison has an advantage.

"I'm not sure he's going to be a great scorer coming out of the gate," Bickerstaff said. "He's got a chance. But it's a different game in the NBA. He's going to have to make a lot of adjustments."

Maybe Andrea Bargnani?

"I think he's in the mix for the No. 1 pick," Bickerstaff said. "I just got back from Italy watching him. He can really shoot it and he's got a great first step."

Brandon Roy?

"He'd be a good fit, too," Bickerstaff said. "He's more ready to play then some of them and he's a guy who probably won't hurt you down the road."

Or maybe it's Rudy Gay?

"I think people have been a little hard on Rudy," Bickerstaff said. "I still think he's in the mix. He's got the right size, athleticism and work ethic."

After going through all those options, Bickerstaff said he too might want to move his pick.

"I think that there are a lot of guys in the draft that could help a team," Bickerstaff said. "We need to add talent. If we decide to move back, it might be to get a couple of picks. That's a possibility."

 

i'm gonna go ahead and guarantee the bobcats won't select adam morrison.

 

Is Brandon Roy MJ's guy?


posted: Tuesday, June 20, 2006 | Feedback | Print Entry

Michael Jordan is back in the NBA, this time as an owner of the Bobcats, with the authority to make the call on basketball decisions.

So now that Jordan gets the last word in Charlotte, whom will the Cats take with the No. 3 pick in the June 28 NBA Draft?

A source close to Jordan told Insider over the weekend that for the last month Jordan has watched tape and been getting up to speed on the draft.

Based on that background work and recommendations from Bobcats GM/coach Bernie Bickerstaff, Jordan has summoned four players to Charlotte for a June 22 workout for Jordan -- Texas' LaMarcus Aldridge, UConn's Rudy Gay, Washington's Brandon Roy and LSU's Tyrus Thomas.

On June 2, Gay and Roy worked out against each other for Charlotte, though Roy was unable to finish the workout because of jet lag and a stomach problem.

This would be the first time for Aldridge and Thomas to work out for Charlotte. However, it doesn't appear that Aldridge and Thomas would actually work out against each other.

In fact, Thomas might not appear at all. On Monday, he pulled out of a workout with the Portland Trail Blazers, who hold the No. 4 pick. Art Sasse, the Blazers' VP of communications, told the Oregonian that Thomas' agent informed the Blazers that a team drafting ahead of the Blazers had promised to select Thomas.

Of the four players, Jordan appears to prefer Roy. A source close to Jordan said that Jordan likes Roy's combination of experience, toughness and all-around skill. After Jordan had such a bad experience with the Washington Wizards when, in 2001, he drafted a high school kid, Kwame Brown, with the No. 1 pick, you can see why Jordan might want Roy, a four-year college player.

Roy is the safest pick in the draft and actually fills a critical need for the Bobcats. With Raymond Felton and Roy in the backcourt and Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor, Sean May and Primoz Brezec in the frontcourt, the Bobcats would have a very nice young core of six.

We've put Roy with the Bobcats at No. 3 in our latest mock draft.

Up until the announcement of Jordan's role in Charlotte, Bickerstaff was focusing on adding a scoring wing to the team.

Bickerstaff worked out both UConn's Rudy Gay and Gonzaga's Adam Morrison and was impressed with both. Gay has more long-term potential, while Morrison is more polished and ready to contribute. From what we had been hearing, Bickerstaff prefers Gay as a player, but Morrison's marketing potential helps his case.

A source close to Jordan told Insider over the weekend that Jordan wasn't a huge fan of either Gay or Morrison. Morrison's agent, Marc Bartelstein, told Insider on Sunday that the Bobcats have not requested that Morrison return to work out in front of Jordan.

According to the source, Jordan loves Morrison's toughness but doesn't think he has the athleticism to be a star in the league. The same source said that while Jordan thinks Gay has the athleticism to be a star, he believes Gay lacks the killer instinct that superstars like Jordan possess.
The fact that Gay is coming back and Morrison isn't may be telling. Bickerstaff may be trying to convince Jordan that Gay has the inner fire he needs to be a star in the league.

Bickerstaff has been one of Gay's most vocal supporters in the last month and had this to say in an online chat recently about Gay's perceived lack of drive: "In fact, I just had some very good conversations with his high school coach at Spaulding and with Coach Calhoun, who I trust explicitly. It's not about drive. He is a terrific human being who sometimes lets his friends and teammates get touches. But I have found that when in high school and college he was put in the spot to be the man and step up, he does not shy away from it. Plus, he is a young man. He still has room to grow. So that is not a concern for us."

Thomas and Aldridge are probably backup plans in case the Bulls select Roy at No. 2. The Bobcats don't really need another power forward, as they've drafted two -- Okafor and May -- the past two years.

If Jordan had to pick between the two, he could be facing a tough choice. Aldridge has the ability to play some five in the pros, especially when paired on the front line with a big, physical four like Okafor or May.

Thomas has the big-time motor that Jordan is looking for and could, over time, make the transition to the three and become a Shawn Marion-type combo forward.

According to the same Jordan source, Italian forward Andrea Bargnani is not in the conversation.

A trade is another possibility for Jordan. Bickerstaff has been pretty vocal about the fact that the Bobcats would be willing to deal down for multiple assets.

One rumor has the Bobcats swapping with the Hornets in a deal that would bring Charlotte the No. 12 and No. 15 picks along with J. R. Smith for the No. 3 pick. However, an NBA team source laughed off the rumor, saying that Smith is not a Bickerstaff-type of player.

 

I am hoping they do not draft Morrison, but I think it is still a possiblility. Johnson and Bernie drafted two Carolina players last year to help with bringing fans to the game and while Felton seems worthy of the pick, you really can not say the same for Sean May. Winning will bring in fans, but until then I wouldnt be surprise if they Drafted Morrison to appeal to the white fan base and increase season ticket sales. The only hope I have is that Jordan bought a piece of the team and now together they are ready to spend some money to make this team a contender, so maybe they will draft Roy. As Miami and Dallas showed you need good role players, but you must have that superstar and we do not have anything close to that and I am not conviced yet they will spend the money to have that superstar.

 

that's retarded....there is no white fan base here

the Bobcats simply need scorers

 

White people are smart enough to know the NBA sucks.

 

They didn't even fall for the drafting tarheels trick, you can't get anything by them.

 

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