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Bobcats lack bite

The Charlotte Bobcats won’t be able to shoot, defend, or get many rebounds.

Other than that, things will be great.

I’m not picking on the NBA’s newest team -- I’m just stating the obvious when it comes to expansion franchises. They’re bad, and usually for at least five years.

But I like what the Bobcats have started under owner Robert Johnson and general manager/coach Bernie Bickerstaff. They’ve put together a lineup that consists of youth, athleticism, and most importantly, short-term contracts that aren’t worth much by NBA standards.

It gives them maneuverability for the future. And if you’re an expansion team, the future is all you got.

As for this season, anything more than 20 wins would be a miracle. That prediction is a lot different than what regular readers of this newsletter are used to. Regular readers are used to giving me grief for picking every team to make the playoffs at this time of year.

Well, here’s a newsflash: The Bobcats won’t make the playoffs for the next THREE years. (After that, I won’t make any promises about what I might predict -- although I can almost guarantee I’ll write the words “Bobcats” and “postseason” in the same sentence by then. It’s just my root-for-everyone nature).

Anyway, here’s a breakdown of this year’s Charlotte entry:

The Starters:

Center: Primoz Brezec. Indiana hated to see Brezec go in the expansion draft, and we’re finding out why in the preseason. Brezec has displayed nice shooting range and an array of low-post moves. He’s sort of becoming a poor man’s Zydrunas Ilgauskus.

Power Forward: Emeka Okafor. The second overall pick in the draft is expected to be the face of the franchise for years to come, a la Larry Johnson or Alonzo Mourning with the early Hornets (actually, Kelly Tripuka was the first NBA player who was adored in Charlotte, but I’ll stick with examples the younger readers may have heard of). Okafor has given the Bobcats exactly what they expected this preseason -- lots of steady defense and rugged rebounding. His offense still needs work, though. In Charlotte’s loss to New Jersey Oct. 20, Okafor tallied more fouls (five) than field goals (four). Such is life for a rookie on an expansion team.

Small Forward: Tamar Slay. Slay and Gerald Wallace will swing back and forth between shooting guard and small forward, depending on matchups. Slay is an exceptional outside shooter who was a victim of a numbers crunch in New Jersey, sitting behind veterans Kerry Kittles and Lucious Harris for the past two seasons. Slay’s defense is shaky, but the Bobcats will overlook it if he regains the ballhandling and passing skills he displayed as a collegian at Marshall.

Shooting Guard: Wallace. His high-flying, acrobatic style will make Wallace a hit with the fans, giving them a reason to watch after the Bobcats win something like five of their first 52 games. He’ll lead the team in shots attempted, scoring, and dunks, and basically show off all the talent that was suppressed by sitting on the bench in Sacramento.

Point Guard: Jason Hart. Hart is unselfish and a good defender, but the Bobcats will need an upgrade at this position before they can plan to compete. Like most expansion teams, the Bobcats are weakest where it matters most -- center and point guard.

The Bench:

Bickerstaff has a couple of young power forwards in reserve who I really like. They are Brandon Hunter and Theron Smith, who were selected in the expansion draft from Boston and Memphis, respectively. Both are undersized for their position, but both thrive on banging underneath and playing hard. Interestingly, both join Slay as Bobcats who played their college ball in the Mid-American Conference (Hunter attended Ohio, Smith went to Ball State).

Veteran center Jahidi White will add muscle down low, as will third-year power forward Melvin Ely.

On the perimeter, Charlotte will rely on sharpshooter Jason Kapono, who is sort of a Slay clone, and rookie swingman Bernard Robinson Jr., tied with Okafor as my favorite players on the team. Both Kapono and Robinson have played well in the preseason.

Also off the bench in the backcourt are veteran shooting guard Steve Smith, who has scrambled eggs for knees but can still fill it up, and Corey Benjamin, an athletic slasher who still hasn’t found a niche in the league.

Point guards off the bench are Brevin Knight and Omar Cook. Knight was once a solid starter, and could replace Hart by midseason. And as you know, Cook is one of my favorite NBA journeymen -- but even I admit the young man still cannot shoot.

The Final Analysis:

A look at the roster shows that the Bobcats have two players who are worth keeping for the long term: Okafor and Wallace. I expect a third to make his case by season‘s end.

Everyone else … well, there’s a reason they’re in Charlotte. Namely, they’re clinging to the edge of NBA life by their fingernails.

Bickerstaff has promised that the Bobcats will be aggressive and strive to do the little things well. He’s also the GM, so you can bet the players will listen. That’s especially true when you consider this is a roster void of superstars, and with the exception of Okafor, ANYONE can be cut at ANY TIME. That tends to make a professional athlete hold his coach in high regard.

At any rate, it’s hard to tell what the Bobcats’ roster will look like at the end of the year. The good news is, expectations are extremely low.

Heck, even a cheerleader like me can’t find many strengths. But the Bobcats are officially in the NBA, which means I am officially pulling for them.

Forget the fact they won’t be able to shoot, defend, or get many rebounds.

Random Preseason Thoughts

-- Ron Mercer could be an underrated addition in New Jersey. The Nets lost all three of their shooting guards off last year’s team (Kerry Kittles, Lucious Harris, and Tamar Slay), leaving the door wide open for Mercer to become Jason Kidd’s backcourt-mate. Mercer isn’t a great shooter, but he runs the floor well. I envision him making a killing at the receiving end of all of those pinpoint Kidd passes.

-- I’ve never been big on overhyping rookies, especially ones who jumped straight to the NBA out of high school. But let me be the first to tell you that New Orleans first-round pick J.R. Smith can really play. He’s a superb natural athlete and seems to have a firm grasp on the fundamentals for an 18-year old. He also has a great passion, and after seeing him in the preseason, I wouldn’t be surprised if he becomes the steal of the 2004 draft. Right now, I see shades of Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady in Smith. Really, he’s that good.

-- Hornets fans will also want to keep an eye on second-year forward David West. West is an intelligent player with good hands and above-average footwork, and is being groomed to take over the power forward spot for P.J. Brown. With proven coach Byron Scott running things, and young players such as West and Smith adding depth, New Orleans could be a real sleeper in the Western Conference.

-- Another young player who has surprised in the preseason is Minnesota rookie Blake Stepp. The point guard out of Gonzaga was selected with the next-to-last pick in the second round. He has displayed an ability to run the offense and most importantly, hit spot-up jumpers after receiving passes from Kevin Garnett out of the double teams. I’m not trying to convince you that Stepp is the next John Stockton, but he could be nice insurance for the Timberwolves should regulars Sam Cassell and Troy Hudson get injured (pretty likely when you consider recent history).

-- New acquisition Stephen Jackson appears to be a great fit with Indiana. Jackson came to the Pacers via the trade with Atlanta for Al Harrington, and has been coming off the bench and burying jumpers in the preseason. Best of all, Jackson doesn’t seem to mind playing behind Reggie Miller, especially since Jackson is getting most of the minutes at shooting guard. He could turn out to be the missing piece in the Pacers’ quest to overtake Detroit.

-- Rookie forward Al Jefferson has been a rebounding machine for Boston this preseason, displaying potential to become an Amare Stoudemire-type in the low post. Along with Paul Pierce and Gary Payton (who has played surprisingly well so far), Jefferson could be one of the few bright spots in what will most likely be a tough year for the Celtics.

-- I particularly love what I’ve seen from Chicago rookie forward Luol Deng, the No. 7 pick who spent one year at Duke. Deng isn’t a great perimeter shooter, or even a good one. But he does hustle, and his long, lean body has conjured up memories of a young Scottie Pippen.

-- Speaking of the Bulls, rookie swingman Andres Nocioni has been awesome. He can shoot, pass, and drive to the basket -- and is doing all of it against some of the league’s best defenders.

-- My favorite thing about the Bucks? They are a team of role players who understand and accept their roles. The best examples of that are once-hyped forwards Joe Smith and Keith Van Horn, each of whom finally seems to have found the perfect team.

-- Rookie Devin Harris and third-year guard Dan Dickau have been pleasant surprises in Dallas’ backcourt this preseason. In a loss to Milwaukee, Harris scored 16 points and compiled six assists and five steals, and Dickau had 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the floor (3-of-4 on three-pointers) and grabbed four rebounds. Still, Dallas is going to struggle with so many new people; not to mention the losses of Steve Nash, Antoine Walker, and Antawn Jamison.

-- Kobe Bryant scored 35 points in the preseason opener and Los Angeles still lost. Get used to it, Laker fans.

-- Actually, with newcomers Lamar Odom, Vlade Divac and Chris Mihm, who has played very well, the Lakers should be one of the league’s best passing teams. I also love how Brian Grant is so eager to do all the dirty work.

-- As for former Lakers, Derek Fisher has become a scoring machine for Golden State, having gone from being the ultimate role player to a wonderful all-around team leader. Fisher will be first-year coach Mike Montgomery’s eyes and ears on the court.

Three-Point Talk

I love how the NBA is about to see what life is like WITHOUT the three-point arc, via its sort-of minor league, the NBDL. In case you haven’t heard, three-point baskets will only count in the final five minutes of all NBDL games this season.

On paper, the three-pointer is a great thing. But as I’ve written numerous times, it’s out of control. Too many coaches and players -- including some who I respect -- are using it as a gimmick, and not part of any real strategy. It’s definitely one reason why there are so few mid-range shooters left in the game. People either dunk, or launch a 25-footer.

Believe it or not, basketball was around a very LONG time before the old ABA introduced the shot in the late 1960s. And it was a great game then, too.

I’m not saying the NBA would be better off without the three-point shot. All I’m saying is it wouldn’t hurt to experiment counting all baskets as two-points again. I applaud the league for doing so.

Final Note

Start sending those e-mails for next time. Hopefully, I’ll be able to squeeze in some of your thoughts before I crank out my season preview in two weeks.

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the rest of the preseason.

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