Charlotte
Philip Maymin
Basketball News Services
Point guard Brevin Knight, behind only Steve Nash in assists per game this season, showed he has some offensive firepower as well. Knight scored 19 points yesterday to lead all Bobcats but dished out only four assists, less than half his 8.5 average. Meanwhile, Milwaukee's point guard Mo Williams scored just 8 points and dished out 14 assists; it is no coincidence that Milwaukee won 112-102. As a team, the Bucks had an astonishing 20 more assists than the Bobcats.
The game marked the return of two injured players: Michael Redd for Milwaukee and Emeka Okafor for Charlotte. Okafor fell just two rebounds shy of a double-double in a solid 12-and-8 performance but Redd was simply amazing, scoring 39 points, grabbing five boards, and even dishing out a couple assists. Redd was 15-of-24 from the field, including 4-of-6 from downtown. A whole bunch of Mo Williams's assists numbers came just by feeding Redd.
Meanwhile, the Bobcats are changing direction somewhat. After considering adding another point guard, it appears they will instead be looking to replace Steve Smith, who may be traded to Miami today or tomorrow. Smith is expected to talk to his agent today to find out what his role would be on the Heat, which is where Smith started his career and played four years, though he never overlapped with Alonzo Mourning.
NEXT GAME
The Bobcats (11-40, fourth in the Southeast) get a little schedule break as they are off until Friday, February 25th, when they visit the New Jersey Nets (23-31, third in the Atlantic). The game starts at 7:30pm Eastern and will be broadcast on C-SET and NBA League Pass.
TEAM NOTES
Primoz Brezec got himself a nice double-double with 14 points and 11 boards.
INJURY UPDATE
Jahidi White(shoulder),Bernard Robinson(knee), andTamar Slay(foot) are all on the injured list.Jason Hart(sore left knee) did not play.
Rick Bonnell ofThe Charlotte Observerwrites: The Charlotte Bobcats could have a busy week, roster-wise. They plan to sign Matt Carroll, the leading scorer in the NBA's developmental league, and might trade Steve Smith to the Miami Heat.Carroll, a 6-foot-6 guard, averages 20.5 points a game and shoots 61 percent from 3-point range for the Roanoke Dazzle. He leads the developmental league in both categories. This is a change of direction for the Bobcats, who previously planned to use their open roster spot to sign a third point guard.
The Associated Press write inThe LA Times: Charlotte Bobcats owner Bob Johnson is considering a money-back guarantee to some season-ticket holders if they are not satisfied with the expansion team next season.Johnson, speaking before the Bobcats game against Milwaukee on Tuesday, said he would likely offer the guarantee to "non premium" ticket holders in Charlotte's new arena. The arena is
Rick Bonnell ofThe Charlotte Observerwrites: The Bucks guards abused the Bobcats most of the night.After three quarters, Redd had 25 points and Maurice Williams had a career-high 14 assists. But slowly the Bobcats chipped an 11-point first-quarter deficit down to one in the last minute of the third quarter. Emeka Okafor assembled a three-point play, off a foul by Milwaukee's Mike James. The Bobcats had the last shot of the third, with a chance to pull ahead, but Knight missed an 18-footer.