Here We Go (Part 1)

What is it with the dislike for the Bobcats and the NBA in general here in Charlotte? We know the history with the other franchise here as well as the stadium referendum deal. But, after two years of listening to local radio and reading numerous blogs and forums as well as talking with actual fans, there appears to be (among many locals) a legitimate dislike for this team. I understand that with any city you are going to have those who either don't like or don't care about their city's respective team, I understand that. Here it seems like there is more to it. Now let's look at some of the arguments I have heard over the years:

Toward the Bobcats:

The stadium - the events surrounding the building of the stadium represents a very undemocratic process that ignored the will of the majority. After the citizens shot down the cities stadium referendum bill (which would assume tax dollars to build a stadium for the as yet awarded team), the city went ahead and approved it anyway.

The lingering affects of the other franchise - the circumstances surrounding the divorce from the other franchise left many fans disenfranchised towards the Bobcats and professional basketball in general. Couple that with the fact that many people have been aligned with collegiate teams before the Bobcats or the other franchise were here. Also, almost half of the people here are from somewhere else and they have there own allegiances.

Cheap, cheap, cheap - did you hear that little bird chirping? Many people feel that it is the desire of ownership is to make money (of course), but at the expense of the product placed on the floor. Can you say the LA Clippers! This coincides with our last relationship and the way the owner was perceived as a money grubbing low-life. Bob Johnson doesn't like to lose money. It has been suggested that owning a professional basketball franchise is not the cash cow people make it out to be, especially for smaller market teams.

The team itself - the team is not very good. Is Charlotte a front running city? While the team has improved in wins each year of existence, they have not made the playoffs, and in the NBA that is where teams are distinguished. From a national perspective, you don't hear a peep about the Bobcats and right or wrong national exposure goes a long way to establishing a teams credibility. When a team becomes viable outside of it's own market, watch how the local fans gravitate toward it.

Toward the NBA:

The NBA is full of thugs - To many locals, the NBA represents all that is bad in sports. Overpriced, underachieving, bad guys who do drugs, fornicate with multitudes of women, have tons of babies out of wedlock, and have a total disregard for authority. Remember, Charlotte, to it's core, can be very conservative, in many regards. Since the NBA decided to make it's league about individual stars they placed themselves in a position when either there was a dearth in legitimate stars (as when MJ left) or the stars they were promoting did not transcend as well as their predecessors. Hardcore fans are going to stay, tertiary fans come and go. The NFL does a great job of relating to fringe fans. The NBA wants to as well, but there is a disconnect that is not as readily perpetrated in baseball and football as it is in the NBA.

Overpaid!? - The sentiment I receive from fans is that the NBA players are way overpaid. If you look at the amount of basketball players and subsequent leagues that exist in America and beyond, the average NBA player is in the top 1 percent of their profession. While I am not a big numbers guy, just look at the top 1 percent of the professionals in any industry, you will find comparable numbers, in terms of percentage of revenue earned. Even in football, the biggest contracts go to the most skilled players. It is simple economics. The question from the fans should be, are we getting our money's worth? If not, let what has happened to hockey be an example for the NBA to learn from.

There is more passion in College - Yes, there are many student athletes out there who are happy just to be playing. They know that their basketball career has reached it's apex and they are playing out of enjoyment and love for the game. There are kids who's highlight in life will be that they played some garbage time after a big game was already decided or they were the roomate of some future NBA star. Let's get back to this concept of passion. Next to football, basketball is the second biggest sports revenue generator on many college campuses. To think that money plays no role in college sports is at the least naive and at the most delusional. Many fans who down the NBA, never go to any games! I ask you to go to a game, witness the athleticism, observe the speed and power. I think, emotion plays a large role in college basketball and an even larger role in High School. Here in North Carolina there is a greater connection with many fans to the culture of collegiate athletics than with the high-profile NBA lifestyle. This positive emotional connection spawned from a shared collective experience. Hence the favorable perception of the college basketball player.

We will continue this at a later time!

Are You Ready for Something Special?

Being that this is our inaugural foray into talking about the Charlotte Bobcats, allow me introduce myself and to tell you what my intentions are with this forum. First let me say, I am not a journalist, nor am I a broadcaster. I am not on anyone’s payroll (but if someone wants to contribute, by all means) so there is no pressure to be politically correct. Basically that is the point of this whole thing. I am a fan of the team and I wanted to get in on this Bobcats thing in the midst of what I feel is going to turn out to be very special. I am not originally from Charlotte, but I am from North Carolina (Columbus County to be exact) for what it’s worth. After graduating high school, I joined the military. For several years I had the opportunity to interact with people from all over the country and world. Many of these people were sports fans, of course, and they offered many different insights and perspectives unique to my own. What I began to realize was that, yes there are differences, but the similarities between people far outweigh them. In terms of sports, I believe it is something that brings people of different social perspectives together; at least for two to three hours. And that should say something.

Thirteen years after leaving, I returned to a different North Carolina than I left. Coming up in on one of the more rural parts of a predominately rural minded state, things growing up were figuratively and literally black and white. I must say this, I spent my summers growing up in the Washington, DC area, and consequently, this is an area I have considered like a second home. As far as North Carolina is going, it is obvious we are at a crossroads in regard to the states culture. Migration, immigration and urbanization is transforming this state and Charlotte, in many regards, stands as a microcosm of this change, still I am excited to see what the future holds.

Now, back to the Bobcats. I fondly remember when the Hornets were ‘awarded’ to Charlotte. With Charlotte being the town it was then, we felt like that was a victory for the whole state. There was sincere excitement, because having a professional team, at least on a certain level, put Carolina on par with LA, Boston, New York or any other big league city. I was not here during the divorce, but through the internet, chat rooms, blogs, forums, etc., I got a good sense of what was going on with George Shinn and the city. Now I want you to understand that A. this site is about the Charlotte NBA Bobcats, B. while certainly acknowledging the past, we will focus on the now. Now! We have a team here in Charlotte that will compete for a playoff spot next year (2007-08). There I said it, and it was not hard considering that the team has the ingredients to win 40 games this year (Orlando won 40 last year and was the 8th seed). Health is an issue. Okafor is a force when healthy and rested. He has to be spelled from time to time and the Bobcats can certainly use some frontcourt toughness. Sean May, Jake Voskuhl, Walter Hermann, Primo Brezec, Ryan Hollins, please stand up. Sean May has to find his niche because he has great hands and is a very smart player, but I question his toughness and if the team doesn’t see an improvement of mettle and physical discipline, they should explore other options, real talk, as they say. I initially likened May to a Corliss Williamson, someone who also was an inside force in college but transformed his game to fit the NBA. May has a more polished offensive repertoire than Williamson, at his age, and I think he can be a legitimate pro, much like Carlos Boozer or Elton Brand. Six-eight, six-nine guys who developed there overall game to the point where they are maxing out near an all-star level. The key is how serious is he going to take preparing his body for the long haul. As far as Voskuhl and Brezec, I like Voskuhl’s energy and his acceptance of the role the team had for him last year. Brezec, how can I put it and sound objective? Brezec is soft in the middle and gets a ridiculously low amount of rebounds (3.2 RPG in 2007) for a man who is seven feet tall. On the other hand, he has a solid offensive game that allows him to face the basket and hit 10 to 15 feet jumpers consistently. The fatigue thing? Fine, if that is what they want to call it, but I can’t help but feeling that what the Bobcats need is a more active defender who can contribute 8 to 10 points and 7 to 9 boards a game. Objective enough? The rookie from Boston College (by the way, why is Boston College in the ACC?), Dudley has shown to be a high energy overachieving guy but we have to wait and see how that translates in the taller, quicker, stronger NBA. The other rookie forward, Jermareo Davidson, the jury is out. I threw Hermann in there because he can play the four and I see something in him that aesthetically will cause problems for opponents. I see a lot of Jinoboli from the World Champion Spurs in his flow (for the ill informed, flow is a term that describes the overall characteristic of his game). I honestly feel that a different cultural approach to basketball can have both positive and negative effects. But we will leave that for another discussion. Hollins, still a project, but I think he is smart and coachable. I beg all big men to learn at least one offensive move, please.

I wanted to concentrate on the frontcourt in this initial forum because the health and productivity of our big men will coincide with the health and productivity of the team. We have great swingmen and although Gerald Wallace is a forward he has a lot of perimeter as a part of his game and he essentially could be a big two. I can’t wait until we dig into Morrison/Felton/Carroll/Anderson/Richardson scenario, and we will even have a parting shot for our boy Brevin Knight. In addition, we are going to get into the arena, the ownership, Uptown, the crowd, the fans. We are on the verge of seeing something special here and I want to be a part of it.

(since this post was written, Voskuhl has signed with the Bucks, the picture is getting clearer?)