Charlotte Hornets Blog – Page 64 – NBA Blog

DeSagana Diop out due to dizzy spell

Charlotte Bobcats center DeSagana Diop will miss at least the next three games after becoming dizzy and light-headed following a workout yesterday. In addition to tonight’s game against the Clippers, Diop will not travel with the Bobcats on their two-game road trip to Orlando and Indiana.

Diop is undergoing medical evaluation to determine the cause of the spell. Following the completion of the tests, he will meet with team physician Dr. Joe Garcia to determine his status.

The Charlotte Bobcats, who became the NBA’s 30th franchise when they joined the league in 2004-05, return to action tonight when they host the Los Angeles Clippers at 7:00pm ET. The game can be seen on FS Carolinas.

Michael Jordan to buy Charlotte Bobcats

Agreement in place for sale of Charlotte Bobcats

Robert L. Johnson, the majority owner of Bobcats Sports and Entertainment today announced that he has signed a definitive agreement to sell majority interest of Bobcats Sports and Entertainment to Michael Jordan and MJ Basketball Holdings, LLC. The deal is subject to NBA approval.

According to the Charlotte Observer, former Houston Rockets president George Postolos said: “I remain committed to becoming an NBA owner, and I’m glad that Michael will continue to bring his talent to the sport and the league.”

InsideHoops.com will update this page on Saturday.

The AP reports:

The purchase price and details of Jordan’s ownership group — called MJ Basketball Holdings LLC — weren’t immediately available. Blunt said Johnson would have no further comment.

Former Houston Rockets executive George Postolos also bid on the Bobcats and didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment.

The AP reports:

After paying $300 million for the expansion franchise that began play in 2004-05, Johnson has lost tens of millions of dollars each season as the Bobcats have struggled to draw fans and find sponsorships.

Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television, recruited Jordan to be a minority investor and gave him the final say on all basketball decisions.

Stephen Jackson wants to make All-Star team

Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer reports:

Charlotte Bobcats guard Stephen Jackson took a nice, little vacation during the All-Star break: tropical weather, good food, umbrellas in the drinks.

He’d rather have been working. And it saddens him he might never get the chance to work the Sunday of All-Star Weekend.

“I’m not on (NBA commissioner) David Stern’s favorites list because of a couple of incidents,” Jackson said when asked why he’s never been selected for an All-Star Game.

“I get really depressed when I don’t get in because I think that’s one of the last things on my ‘to-achieve’ list. I won a championship (in San Antonio) and I’ve gotten better every year. My last two goals are to be on first- or second-team All-NBA and to play in an All-Star Game.” …

“I thought the All-Star Game was about (assembling) the 20 best players in the league, not the guys who they want (promoted) to sell tickets. Nothing against (the Knicks’) David Lee, but he made it and my team has a better record,” Jackson said.

Pacers almost traded TJ Ford, Brandon Rush to Bobcats

Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star reports:

T.J. Ford didn’t expect there was a possibility that he would be traded. Brandon Rush said he was “shocked” four times during a 40-second interview.

The two Indiana Pacers were caught off guard when they heard the team was working on a deal to send them to the Charlotte Bobcats for Gerald Henderson, Nazr Mohammed and D.J. Augustin on Thursday.
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The deal fell through when the Bobcats pulled out about 10 minutes before the trade deadline.

“I was definitely more shocked than anything,” Rush said. “I didn’t see it coming. Nobody told me anything about being on the trade block. It was more of a shock.”

Antawn Jamison shoots 0-for-12 in Cavaliers debut

Forward Antawn Jamison struggled mightily in his Cleveland Cavaliers debut, coming off the bench to shoot 0-for-12 as the team lost 110-93 to the Bobcats in Charlotte.

Playing 26 minutes, Jamison finished with two points, seven rebounds, an assist and a steal.

Stephen Jackson (9-of-17) played well for the Bobcats, finishing with 29 points, eight rebounds and four assists (though, five turnovers). Boris Diaw had 18 points and nine rebounds. And All-Star Gerald Wallace contributed 18 points, five rebounds and an impressive nine assists.

For the Cavs, LeBron James had an extremely quiet night with 22 points, three assists, nine rebounds and four steals.

As a team, the Cavs shot just 39.0%. They amazingly shot better from three-point range than overall, hitting 12-of-29 (41.4%) from outside the arc.

Charlotte had 10 more rebounds than Cleveland, and had 27 assists compared to just 15 for Cleveland.

Jamison is obviously a better player than he showed today, so this is a fluke, but it’s worth keeping an eye on Cavs team chemistry over the next 1-2 weeks.

Spurs trade Theo Ratliff to Bobcats

Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has acquired center Theo Ratliff from the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for a protected second-round draft pick in 2016.

The 6-10 Ratliff is in his 15th NBA season, with career averages of 7.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 blocked shots, 0.6 assists and 0.5 steals in 25.7 minutes in 772 games played for Detroit, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Portland, Boston, Minnesota and San Antonio. The 18th overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft, Ratliff was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 1999 and 2004 and was voted the starting center for the Eastern Conference in the 2001 NBA All-Star Game but was unable to play due to a stress fracture in his right wrist suffered four days before the game.

In 21 games played with San Antonio this season, Ratliff is averaging 1.6 points, 1.9 rebounds, 0.9 blocked shots and 0.4 assists in 8.7 minutes.

Ratliff, who previously played for Bobcats Head Coach Larry Brown in Philadelphia from 1997-2001, led the NBA in blocked shots per game in 2000-01, 2002-03 and 2003-04. One of only seven players in NBA history to lead the league in blocked shots at least three times, his 1,920 career blocked shots ranks 18th all-time and fifth among active players. He is the last NBA player to record at least 300 blocked shots in a season, finishing with 307 in 2003-04, and is the only player to do so since Dikembe Mutumbo in 1995-96.

Ratliff has also played in 39 career playoff games, averaging 5.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots in 21.2 minutes for Detroit and Philadelphia.

Spurs will trade Theo Ratliff to Bobcats

Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News reports:

The NBA’s trade deadline nearly came and passed Thursday with the Spurs staying on the sidelines, but a last-minute deal that will send Theo Ratliff to the Charlotte Bobcats was awaiting official NBA approval late Thursday afternoon, according to league sources.

The Spurs are expected to receive a future draft pick from the Bobcats, giving them some relief from the luxury tax they will have to play this summer. Under NBA collective bargaining rules, only $825,497 of Ratliff’s veteran minimum salary of $1.3 million counted against their salary cap. Combined with the recent buyout of Marcus Haislip’s two-year deal, the Spurs will have saved about $1.7 million in luxury tax payments.

Bulls trade Tyrus Thomas to Bobcats for Flip Murray, Acie Law

The Chicago Bulls traded Tyrus Thomas to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for Ronald “Flip” Murray and Acie Law. Chicago also received a future first round draft pick from Charlotte.

In a related move, the Bulls have released forward Chris Richard. Richard, signed to a second 10-day contact on Feb. 15, appeared in five games with Chicago and averaged 2.2 rpg, 4.6 rpg and 1.0 apg in 14.4 mpg.

The 6-10 Thomas is in his fourth NBA season after being selected by Portland with the fourth overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft and traded to Chicago on draft night. In 254 career games with the Bulls, Thomas averaged 7.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 0.9 assists and 0.9 steals in 23.4 minutes. Thomas posted career highs of 10.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, 1.2 steals and 27.5 minutes in 79 games played last season.

This season, Thomas is averaging 8.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, 1.4 steals and 1.1 assists in 23.4 minutes in 29 games played. He missed 22 games from November 7-December 22 with a left radius fracture.

Thomas has also played in 17 career playoff games, averaging 6.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, 1.0 steal and 0.7 assists. He started all seven postseason games for the Bulls last season, averaging 9.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.9 blocks, 1.0 steal and 0.9 assists against Boston.

Murray (6-3, 200) is currently in his eighth season out of Shaw University. He appeared in 46 games (one start) for the Bobcats this season, and averaged 9.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.8 apg and 21.6 mpg. Originally drafted by Milwaukee in the second round (42nd overall) in 2002, he has also played for Seattle, Cleveland, Detroit, Indiana and Atlanta. In 458 NBA games (91 starts), he has posted 9.9 ppg, 2.3 apg and 2.0 rpg in 22.7 mpg. The 30-year old Murray has been to the postseason four times, where he has averaged 6.9 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 1.7 apg and 23.4 mpg in 40 playoff games (five starts).

Law (6-3, 202), selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the 11th overall pick in 2007, is in his third season by way of Texas A&M. In 14 games this year, he has averaged 3.4 ppg in 7.0 mpg. For his career, he has played in 125 games (seven starts) and averaged 3.6 ppg, 1.7 apg and 0.9 rpg in 13.2 mpg. He has also appeared in 13 career playoff games, and averaged 2.2 ppg and 1.1 apg in 6.8 mpg. Law, 25, began this season with Golden State before he was traded to Charlotte in a four-player deal on Nov. 16.

Chicago’s roster now stands at 15.

DeSagana Diop out 1-2 weeks

The Charlotte Bobcats announced today that center DeSagana Diop will miss approximately 1-2 weeks due to a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee. Diop suffered the injury, which was initially diagnosed as a right knee bruise, in the third quarter of Tuesday’s game against New Jersey. Diop was re-examined on Wednesday by team physician Dr. Glenn Perry, who diagnosed the injury as an MCL sprain and ordered an MRI to confirm the diagnosis.

The Charlotte Bobcats, who became the NBA’s 30th franchise when they joined the league in 2004-05, return to action Friday when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers at 7:00 pm ET. The game can be seen on SportSouth and heard on WFNZ 610 AM.

Nets beat Bobcats for 5th win of season

Tuesday night in Charlotte, the New Jersey Nets stepped up on the league’s first night of games since the weekend’s NBA All-Star events and beat the Bobcats 103-94.

The Nets were led by Courtney Lee (7-of-11) with 21 points and five rebounds. Devin Harris (7-of-16) had 17 points, six rebounds and nine assists. And Brook Lopez (8-of-11) contributed 16 points and three blocks, though he grabbed just three boards.

New Jersey received solid big-man help off the bench, with Kris Humphries (6-of-11) adding 13 points and eight rebounds. Josh Boone made the most of his 16 minutes with seven points and eight rebounds.

For the Bobcats, who as a team shot just 42.0% from the field and 5-of-19 (26.3% from three-point range), 2010 All-Star Gerald Wallace (7-of-14) had 21 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks. Boris Diaw (6-of-18) scored 19 with 10 rebounds. Raymond Felton (7-of-9) scored 18. Stephen Jackson (just 7-of-20) had 15 with five assists.

Trying to make his way back from injury, Bobcats center Tyson Chandler came off the bench to contribute two points, five rebounds and two blocks (though also four turnovers) in 18 minutes.