After a two-year hiatus, the Charlotte Bobcats brought basketball back to North Carolina. They were forecast to be the laughingstock of the league. Various NBA pundits jokingly predicted they would shatter the NBA record for most losses in a season (73, by the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers) and that they couldn't even compete with mediocre college teams, let alone NBA squads. Expectations were minimal for the franchise.
In some respects, the forecasters have been right. The Bobcats are off to a 4-12 start. They are winless on the road, as well as against Western Conference opponents. They are letting up 100 points per game, a total only eclipsed by the Atlanta Hawks. They shoot a dismal 69 percent from the foul line. They are ranked 28th in rebounds per game. However, despite these unimpressive figures, there is hope in Charlotte.
The Bobcats are currently on pace for about 20 wins, which is the average for expansion teams since expansion began in 1961. Among the wins are victories against the Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic, as well as close calls against the Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Clippers.
As a team, they are ninth in the East in field-goal percentage and average 22.4 assists per game. On the defensive end, they are tenth in blocks per game and eighth in steals per game. The Bobcats have more wins than Atlanta, the Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Hornets, and only one less win than the New Jersey Nets and Golden State Warriors.
They have a balanced attack, with six players averaging double figures in scoring. The scoring has been led by Emeka Okafor, their first draft pick, who has lived up to high individual expectations thus far. He is grabbing 10.9 rebounds per game to go along with his team-leading 13.8 points per game, second among NBA rookies. With 1.6 blocks per game, Okafor's defensive talent has shown as well.
The Bobcats have several decent options at the guard position. Brevin Knight, who played for six teams before Charlotte, has stepped up and is leading the team with 10 assists per game and 2.09 steals per game. Jason Hart has been starting alongside Knight, averaging 10 points and six assists per contest.
Veteran Steve Smith has given solid contributions thus far and has provided some valuable leadership for a group of otherwise young players. Keith Bogans has been the other primary option off the bench, and the team also just acquired sharpshooter Kareem Rush from the Los Angeles Lakers.
In the frontcourt, Okafor has had the biggest impact, but he has had some decent help as well. Primoz Brezec and Gerald Wallace have provided the majority of this support with 24 points and 12 rebounds a night between them. Melvin Ely has had some small contributions off the bench at power forward and center.
Both the frontcourt and backcourt of the team are average at best. However, they are beginning to put the right pieces in place for the future. Okafor is off to a great start and is the kind of the player the team can build around for the long term. He will likely continue to get better at both ends of the floor this season and beyond.
Brezec, starting for the first time in his career, has responded quite well thus far. Okafor is not a true center, and whether Brezec is the answer there remains to be seen. The same can be said at small forward for Wallace, and at both guard slots with the rotating cast of Knight, Hart, Smith and Bogans. While Knight and Hart seem to both be adequate at the point, Charlotte lacks a true shooting guard. That may change with the acquisition of Rush, the third-year player who broke out last post-season and will get a chance to showcase his talent with the Bobcats.
The team has far more depth on the perimeter than in the frontcourt and needs to reduce the deficit through a trade or through next year's draft. Bogans and Jason Kapono, among others, are definitely expendable, and they could look to package players in order to find a good deal. The issue at hand is how desirable the players they offer are to other teams. Virtually all of Charlotte's players were acquired through free agency or the expansion draft from other franchises.
As expected, the Bobcats are off to a slow start. However, they have surpassed expectations around the league, and the long-term potential to excel in the coming years exists in the weak East. Okafor has star potential and will be the centerpiece for the team's success. The Bobcats need to sort out their other positions and determine who will accompany Okafor. With a few draft picks and acquisitions, there may not be all that much to laugh at in Charlotte come next season.
