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Corey Maggette, SF 35 MIN | 8-16 FG | 3-4 FT | 7 REB | 2 AST | 19 PTS | -6
Maggette shot 50 percent from the floor and had another good game on the boards, but he didn’t get to the free-throw line as much as he had been. He also found it within himself to pass the ball a couple of times and ended up with two assists. |
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Tyrus Thomas, PF 17 MIN | 3-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 3 REB | 0 AST | 6 PTS | -10
This is a pretty deceiving stat line. Every time he was in the game I found myself saying, “Wow, Tyrus doesn’t look terrible right now,” or “Man, this guy’s trying not to get amnestied this off season,” and even “Sweet Jesus! This is what potential looks like!” He did get into foul trouble, and could’ve rebounded better, but for the most part, Thomas looked like an NBA basketball player against the Nets. |
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Bismack Biyombo, C 31 MIN | 4-10 FG | 3-4 FT | 11 REB | 1 AST | 11 PTS | -6
He got lost on long rebound attempts throughout the game, but he was in the right position on offense and defense all night. 4-10 from the field might seem a little rough, but Biyombo was very aggressive when he got the ball and worked hard to get deep position in the paint. 3-4 from the FT line isn’t too shabby, either. |
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Gerald Henderson, G 33 MIN | 2-13 FG | 2-2 FT | 3 REB | 1 AST | 7 PTS | -6
More than any other player, Henderson might hold the fate of the Bobcats season in his hands. We pretty much know what Augustin, Kemba, Maggette and (to an extent) Biyombo will bring night in and night out, but Hendo has been all over the place since coming back from injury. He was nowhere to be found in crunch time and he let a couple offensive rebounds go right by him early on by giving up on the play. If he can get it together, Charlotte might be able to put together a string of consecutive wins sometime soon. |
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D.J. Augustin, PG 32 MIN | 2-7 FG | 2-3 FT | 0 REB | 8 AST | 6 PTS | -8
Augustin didn’t show up in the closing moments of the game, and was constantly beaten off the dribble by the likes of Jordan Farmar. I firmly believe that Augustin is an underrated PG and could excel with the right surroundings, but he’s not doing himself any favors the way he plays D. |
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Eduardo Najera, PF 23 MIN | 4-8 FG | 0-2 FT | 5 REB | 2 AST | 9 PTS | +6
I was surprised Najera got as much floor time as he did, but he certainly provided a spark that the ‘Cats needed to stay in the game. He had a couple of run-stopping shots and played some decent defense for a guy who barely sees the floor. Also, he was the only Bobcat to finish the game with a positive +/-. |
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D.J. White, PF 6 MIN | 3-4 FG | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 0 AST | 6 PTS | 0
He didn’t look too good or too bad during his limited time on the floor. |
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Reggie Williams, SF 15 MIN | 2-5 FG | 1-4 FT | 0 REB | 1 AST | 5 PTS | -3
Williams had a disappointing night… again… in every facet of the game. |
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Derrick Brown, F 14 MIN | 1-2 FG | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 0 AST | 2 PTS | -3
At the very least, he kept his high efficiency numbers up. 50 percent from the floor!! WOO HOO!!! |
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Kemba Walker, PG 16 MIN | 1-6 FG | 1-2 FT | 2 REB | 1 AST | 3 PTS | -1
Walker was bad defensively and did not make up for it on the offensive end. He got out in transition a couple of times, and looked great until he got into the paint. Tonight is one Kemba would love to erase from his memory. |
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Byron Mullens, C 18 MIN | 0-8 FG | 0-0 FT | 6 REB | 1 AST | 0 PTS | -8
According to this website, Charlotte’s offense is more efficient when Mullens is on the floor. Maybe it has to do with his range spreading the floor and making it easier for his teammates to operate, but against the Nets he was nothing but a liability in that regard. |
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Five Things We Saw
- I don’t know if it should be called defense, but the Bobcats held New Jersey to 36 percent from the field and under 20 percent from behind the three-point line. Charlotte was held to 35 percent shooting and similar ineptitude to the Nets on three point attempts.
- There is an old saying, apparently lost in translation amongst the Bobcats, that goes “If you hit your freaking free-throws you’ll probably win some more damned games.” Charlotte shot 12-21 from the CHARITY stripe. All else being equal, those nine FREE-throws the team missed would have sent the game into overtime.
- Deron Williams played just 15 minutes and the Nets’ back court still managed to outplay that of the Bobcats to the tune of 49-16. Granted, New Jersey did play more guards than Charlotte, but 13 points from Augustin, Walker and Henderson is not going to win the ‘Cats any games, ever.
- Paul Silas’s son, Stephen, pretty much ran the team. It had no effect on the outcome of the game.
- Charlotte got out-rebounded 56-43. That’s pretty bad…
Went and witnessed an awful game. MJ w3as in the house and seemed ok with losing.
GRADES
DJ = D
HENDO = F
MAGGS = B
TYRUS = C
BIZ = B
Augustine is playing himself out of the league if he keeps it up. Hendo is not looking like our future. Mullens has regressed and is making Cho look bad. Tyrus is no longer a quality big man cause he looks like a pencil. Biz will be great if Oakley returns.
I think MJ realizes there’s nowhere to go but up, and this season is just a horribly low point on a peaks-and-valleys road toward wherever that “up” is.
I think the very first thing that should be pointed out about this game is how incredibly one-sided the refereeing was. Unlike any game Ive seen all year, these referees clearly seemed to have it out for the Bobcats, and especially Tyrus Thomas. Perhaps because they complained about a bad call early, but whatever the reason, they got plenty more as the game went on. Whether it was Magette getting hammered and no call, or Biyombo getting jumped on over the back and HIM getting called for a foul, it was one hum-dinger of a horrible call after another tonight, there’s just no excuse for something like that, I hope those referees get disciplined.
As for what we actually saw tonight, I agree that Thomas did better than his usual pitiful self, its a nice thought that maybe just maybe he’s starting to turn things around. Najera had a fantastic night, Hendo was just horrible however, and pretty much single handedly cost us the game with his shooting. Of course missing such an incredible number of free throws also cost us. This was a game we could’ve, and should’ve won tonight, but at this point whether its Hendo missing a million shots, or the referees getting revenge for what was in their eyes excessive complaining after a bad call early in the game, whatever it was that ultimately cost us the game, they really did us a favor, keeping us the favorites to land that #1 draft pick, and that’s far more important than a win against the pathetic Nets, as nice as that would’ve been to see. We’ll beat them plenty next year, after we’ve drafted another Superstar, maybe added another one via Free Agency, and hopefully have different referees out there. They wont stand a chance!