[nutmeged3]

Just some reports from the first day

--It’s been no secret that Vincent wants to get up and down the court this season, but make sure to pay attention to the action in the paint under the new regime. Much of the scrimmage was dedicated to attacking inside on offense and denying the post on the defensive end. With a completely healthy Emeka Okafor and a bulked up Gerald Wallace patrolling the paint, points might be hard to come by when Charlotte shows up on its opponent’s schedule this season.

--Speaking of Wallace, it didn’t take G-Force long to get back into the swing of things. Moments into the scrimmage, Wallace was already attacking the rim with reckless abandon before hitting the ground hard while drawing a foul inside. To no one’s surprise, Wallace quickly bounced back up unfazed, and just a few seconds later he was diving into what would have been the stands while trying to corral a loose ball. Some habits are just hard to break.

--Wallace also made the play of the night, swiping the ball from Jason Richardson at midcourt and heading down for a breakaway, two-handed jam with Richardson in hot pursuit. Wallace let J-Rich hear it all the way down the court, setting up what could be an entertaining, friendly rivalry between the two high fliers throughout camp. These guys will definitely each have their fair share of highlight-reel moments this season.

--What will Richardson bring to the Bobcats this season? Let’s just say it was hard not go get chills as Richardson peeled off a screen the next trip down on the offensive end and buried a three-pointer from the left side with Wallace now giving chase. Richardson was brought in to give Charlotte the weapon they were often lacking in the fourth quarter last season. J-Rich will demand the ball late in contests, and if he can keep hitting shots like this, what used to be tough, close losses will quickly turn into impressive, last-second wins.

--Don’t tell Jared Dudley and Jermareo Davidson they’re just rookies who should take a backseat in their first NBA training camp. Both first-year players were able to shake off their opening-day jitters and impressed with the intensity they showed on both ends of the court. Neither is afraid to bang inside with the big boys or get up and down the court in transition – two things that will quickly catch Vincent’s eye an earn J&J more minutes off the bench when it counts.

--It was also good to see assistant coach Phil Ford pulling Raymond Felton aside to give him a few pointers on what he was seeing on the floor. Ford wasn’t the only one giving some one-on-one instruction either. Assistant coach Paul Mokeski also took time to pull Ryan Hollins aside and go through some of his moves in the post. Vincent has done a great job helping piece together his coaching staff, and this will certainly be beneficial to Charlotte’s young players as they take their games to the next level.

LINK

[HB]

Jrich and Wallace are going to be extremely fun to watch

[AllEyezonTX]

J-Rich believes in new-look Bobcats

WILMINGTON, N.C. — Jason Richardson looks around his new team and sees a lot in common with his old club that stunned the NBA last season: Similar point guards, similar athleticism, and a similar will to break through and reach the playoffs.

Three months after he was shocked to learn he'd been traded by Golden State to Charlotte, the familiar traits in his new teammates are making his transition to the young Bobcats easier.

"Actually, we're very similar to Golden State," Richardson said Tuesday after the Bobcats' opening practice of training camp. "Very athletic, very young, got a lot of guys who can do a lot of different things. It's pretty much the same situation on the East Coast.

"We can be a playoff team."

[The Jopker]

I'm really excited for this team this year. With four above average starters this could really be a playoff team. I also love that they're going to run the break more, Wallace and Okafor's defense and Felton's experience attacking are really suited for that style.

[nutmeged3]

Just some of the stuff from day's 2 and 3

--Watching Emeka Okafor get up and down the court, it’s noticeable that he’s lost some weight heading into training camp – 10 pounds to be exact. However, he didn’t intentionally drop the pounds knowing Vincent would be installing a more up-tempo style of offense.

“Losing the weight was my decision. I just feel like I played better when I was a little bit lighter,” he said. “It just so happens that dropping the weight will also help me with what we are doing now and how much we’re going to be pushing it up and down the court.”

--Earlier in the week, I spoke about how Gerald Wallace bulked up a bit in the offseason. Well, he wasn’t the only one. Adam Morrison has also added some muscle – something he was intent on doing after enduring the bumps and bruises of his first NBA season.

Morrison looked great in Wednesday’s night session, knocking shots down from long range, hitting his mid-range jumper and driving the lane and converting in the paint. For the first time in a while, it looks as if he’s out there playing worry free, and his game is benefiting from it.

--Mental not to the rest of the Bobcats – try not to make your new head coach mad. Vincent cut the third and final scrimmage of the night short with the green team up 12-3 with 3:31 remaining. Why? He was tired of hearing the Bobcats players complaining to the referees about what they felt were missed calls.

“We’re not going to (complain to the refs) on the practice court, and we’re not going to do it on the game court,” Vincent said. “Leave it alone and go play harder… let us talk to the refs. You go play ball.”

[Diable]

Bobcats F May nearing decision on next step for sore knee
This is the entire story.Another article from the same source mentions him going to Cleveland.I assume that he's been to see Dr James Andrews when he went to Alabama.

I suppose that this means that microfracture surgery is still a distinct possibility and that would mean he'd be out for the entire season and he couldn't put any weight on the knee for several more months.

May is probably done for this team if he can't play.Someone else could pay him the minimum and unguaranteed.We'd have to pick up his option for 2.66 million...Which seems unlikely under any circumstances at this point.

The Associated Press

WILMINGTON, N.C. | Charlotte Bobcats forward Sean May has finished getting medical opinions on his troublesome right knee, and a decision is expected soon on whether he'll need additional surgery.

"At some point in the next couple of days, somebody will tell me what that final decision is," coach Sam Vincent said Thursday.

May saw knee specialists in New York and Alabama this week while the Bobcats began training camp.

May, who was not with the team again Thursday, has played in only 58 of 164 games over the past two seasons because of continued knee pain.

He had surgery to remove cartilage in the knee during his rookie season, then developed a bone bruise last year.

The 6-foot-9 May was the 13th pick in the 2005 draft. He's averaged 10.4 points and 5.9 rebounds in his limited playing time.

[hollywood476]

i'm calling it right now...Bobcats are making the playoffs, I was right about the warrior thing so i'm going for 2-0.

[Diable]

http://www.charlotte.com/bobcats/story/308895.html
I guess right now the bobcats are experimenting with Hollins as a starter since Vincent doesn't want to use Okafor predominantly at center.Apparently Primoz is still in Slovenija with whatever family issues he's dealing with.

Hollins might go from the D league to NBA starter.Right now it looks as though he's going to get major minutes unless Davidson can jump ahead of him.God we better pray that Primoz can come in and re-establish himself as a solid NBA player(hopefully one who doesn't wake up in foul trouble too)

[Diable]

http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/articl...0344/1005/NEWS

Bobcats break camp with game

By Brian Mull
Staff Writer
brian.mull@starnewsonline.com


No offense to Wilmington, but if the decision were left to Charlotte Bobcats coach Sam Vincent, the team would spend its preseason training camp in an exotic locale next season.

"That's a decision I don't make," Vincent said. "That's for the higher-to-bes to decide. If it were up to me we would go to Hawaii. Play the Golden State Warriors and the Lakers. Why not? Or go to Europe somewhere maybe Rome, I don't know, that'd be fun."

The NBA franchise closed its camp Sunday night with an intrasquad scrimmage in front of an estimated crowd of 3,000 at Trask Coliseum.

Charlotte's Black team, which featured the Bobcats' starting five, won the game 84-64. Gerald Wallace scored 19 points to lead four players in double figures.

"Our focus was seeing them push the ball in transition," Vincent said. "Raymond (Felton) really did an excellent job of, when the transition opportunities were not there, getting us into the offense."

There were plenty of highlights.

Wallace threw down a one-handed dunk that drew a few gasps. Jason Richardson showed off the shooting range that makes him such an intriguing acquisition. Athletic young centers Ryan Hollins and Jermareo Davidson traded spectacular plays in the paint.

But the night's loudest applause occurred seconds before tipoff when minority owner Michael Jordan took his courtside seat next to Bobcats chief operating officer Fred Whitfield. Jordan hung around for a half.

Davidson, a rookie, scored 14 points for the White team. He said he enjoyed his week in Wilmington despite receiving some mild hazing from his older teammates. "I've been looking forward to this all week, being able to get out and run up and down with my teammates and interact," Davidson said. "I don't mind the hazing. I guess it's all in the fun. They enjoyed it."

The Bobcats open their preseason schedule on Wednesday at Orlando. The regular season begins Nov. 2 at home against Milwaukee.

[nutmeged3]

Hollins had 12 points and 6 rebounds. That's an accomplishment untill you look at the bigs he was playing against on our 2nd team. He was so raw last year it's hard to think he got that much better over the offseason. Whatever family problems Brezec's having hopefully won't mess him up like FIBA did last year