ESPN has us Ranked 20th as of right now

[BlockParty]

They have only unveiled spots 19-30...the following teams in the east are below us 25-Nets, 26-Wizards, 27-Pacers, 28-Raptors, 29-Pistons, and 24-Cavaliers which would put us in the 9th spot. Philly is picked to be #19 overall and 8th in the East.

"From Broussard and Hollinger (picking the starters of DJ, Jax, GW, Boris, and Damp).

20. Charlotte Bobcats (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/clubhouse?team=cha)
The More Things Change: It's likely that the Bobcats will waive Erick Dampier (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=181) and his non-guaranteed contract, but if they keep him, he's basically replacing Tyson Chandler (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=984). Since Chandler spent so much time on the injured list, and Dampier could be in a contract year, that could be a good thing. Dampier's last strong season -- the best of his career -- came when he was playing for a contract in Golden State. Eduardo Najera (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=591) is a bruiser who could add some necessary toughness, and the once-wildly-promising Shaun Livingston (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=2393) will be given a chance to resurrect his career, which was derailed in 2007 by a brutal knee injury.



The More They Stay the Same: The Bobcats experienced a bit of prosperity last season, and we all know how crazy that makes Larry Brown. There have long been rumblings of tension between Brown and the Bobcats' front office, so unnecessary Brown-caused drama would not be surprising."

[Muttley]

I'm cool with this assessment. I don't think ESPN's ever been spot-on about this team in preseason forecasts. Ever.

Being pegged in at #9 in the east is fine with me, though. In general, expectations by those outside the organization will not be high. As Swedd (I think it was him) so astutely put in another thread, this team - despite interchanged parts - thrives best when they're being counted out.

As always, go Cats!

[BigMike]

Does anyone have access to any of the previous preseason rankings? I would love to see a chart of preseason rank vs final standings over the years.

[teej]

Does anyone have access to any of the previous preseason rankings? I would love to see a chart of preseason rank vs final standings over the years.

I can guarantee Milwaukee wasn't expected to make the playoffs for sure. They projected them at like 19-62

[Absinthe]

Sounds about right to me. Charlotte is going to have to stay healthy the entire season for them to make the playoffs. Even if they remain healthy, the team has enormous questions at the center and point guard positions. You better hope that Gerald Wallace and S. Jackson have some help because they can't do it all.

[dvdbumpus]

Sounds about right to me. Charlotte is going to have to stay healthy the entire season for them to make the playoffs. Even if they remain healthy, the team has enormous questions at the center and point guard positions. You better hope that Gerald Wallace and S. Jackson have some help because they can't do it all.

They also can't play 40+ minutes as well. Jax is 32 and Crash is physical. We need bench production. Let's hope that Boris, UPS and Hendo play some consistant minutes to lessen the wear and tear as the year goes on.

[nazsquad]

ESPN doesnt have a clue when it comes to ranking teams. The Bobcats will be back in the playoffs. Dont worry guys.

[Absinthe]

I'm not so sure they're a lock for the playoffs. I think they'll be fighting for the seventh or eighth seed, at best.

[BlockParty]

Does anyone have access to any of the previous preseason rankings? I would love to see a chart of preseason rank vs final standings over the years.

Last season, ESPN had the Bobcats #11 in the East Preseason, and #20 in the NBA... this was their write-up on us:

"Michael Jordan's Bobcats are stuck in purgatory, according to our panel: too talented and well-coached to be terrible and get a high lottery pick, but not talented enough to make their first-ever playoff run. So what does all that mediocrity and a swap of Emeka Okafor (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=2399) for Tyson Chandler (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=984) get you? Another 35-47 season."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=OffseasonPredictions09-EastStandings

And to come up with the NBA Standing of #20 you have to look at last year's WestStanding: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=OffseasonPredictions09-WestStandings

[dvdbumpus]

Last season, ESPN had the Bobcats #11 in the East Preseason, and #20 in the NBA... this was their write-up on us:

"Michael Jordan's Bobcats are stuck in purgatory, according to our panel: too talented and well-coached to be terrible and get a high lottery pick, but not talented enough to make their first-ever playoff run. So what does all that mediocrity and a swap of Emeka Okafor (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=2399) for Tyson Chandler (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=984) get you? Another 35-47 season."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=OffseasonPredictions09-EastStandings

And to come up with the NBA Standing of #20 you have to look at last year's WestStanding: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=OffseasonPredictions09-WestStandings

LOL. They had the Thunder going 32 - 50 last year and 11th. Goes to show you these people get paid tons to write articles and they're mostly wrong and just guesses. Where can we get this job?

[BlockParty]

We got some photographic love today on yahoo's fantasy sports page. It is the opening tip between the Bobcats and Clippers last February. We lost the game by 4 points (being outscored by 7 in the 4th qtr) with Capt Jack going 1-16
http://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy
http://l.yimg.com/a/p/sp/tools/med/2010/08/ipt/1283013707.jpg (http://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy/blog/roto_arcade/post/Court-Report-Welcome-Back;_ylt=AgzIDDppYpk1_PPrYgQhyIa5bZ8u?urn=fantasy-265782)

[teej]

with Capt Jack going 1-16


The first (of only three) time he didn't get to double digits in a Bobcats uni.