Looks like Hendo will get more PT this year

[BlockParty]

from Bonnell (we just need Hendo to get healthy):

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/201...d-map-for.html

Brown spells out road map for Henderson to crack rotation


FAYETTEVILLE -- Charlotte Bobcats coach Larry Brown never misses a chance to plant an idea with one of his players, and that includes Brown's pre-game chats with the media.

Wednesday, before the preseason game with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Brown was asked about former lottery pick Gerald Henderson. So Brown publicly reminded shooting guard Henderson how much more he needs to do to play a lot this season.

"He's got a great opportunity. We didn't re-sign Larry Hughes; we didn't re-sign Stevie Graham. So it's right there in front of him," Brown replied. "I think the biggest thing with him is, he's got to figure out how to get minutes. I tried to tell him you defend every play, you run on every break, you get every loose ball and long rebound. And chances are, you'll get to play a lot.

"Sometimes with young kids, that's a big adjustment. Gerald certainly has the ability to do those things…He's a great kid, he's a great athlete; he wants to get better. He just has to understand what his role is."

Henderson is out right now with a hamstring strain. Based on Brown's description, Henderson could miss another week. The message Wednesday: When Henderson returns, he needs to understand how hard he must work day after day after day.
As if that wasn't clear enough, Brown turned a question about the Thunder into another assessment of Henderson:

"I asked (Henderson) if he saw the World Championships. And when he said yeah, I asked him what (Russell) Westbrook did," Brown recalled. "(Henderson) said, 'Well, he defended every play, he played with unbelievable energy, he got every loose ball…
"And I said, 'Well?'

And further insight into why Dominic McGuire is on the team:

JAMISON ON McGUIRE: Brown has made no secret of his enthusiasm for a relatively obscure free agent, guard-forward Dominic McGuire. Former North Carolina and Providence High star Antawn Jamison, who played with McGuire in Washington, knew instantly why the Bobcats signed McGuire.

"When we practiced against each other, he gave me fits," Jamison said Tuesday, before the Bobcats played the Cleveland Cavaliers. "And he's so defensive-minded. He fits Larry Brown's system to a 'T.' He'll flourish in that system because he's very athletic. And it will surprise people that he has a consistent jump shot. And he has a motor; he always goes to the rack hard. He plays above the rim and he plays physical. And he's willing to pass, to a fault."

[teej]

Two thoughts:

1) That's LB telling Hendo he's not in line for any PT just yet, and LB wants to see a lot of improvement...not a good sign IMO. Only other guys I remember him calling out like that are DJ and Mek. And I guess Gana.

2) McGuire seems like a practice all-star who can't get it done in game situations. Hope I'm wrong.

[dnbman]

2) McGuire seems like a practice all-star who can't get it done in game situations. Hope I'm wrong.

I think even if that's all he is, he'll be valuable. I don't see him cracking the regular rotation much unless we make a trade or have an injury, so I'm not terribly concerned about him being a valuable game time player. We need guys to test our starts in practice, though, which sounds like his forte.

[kickazzz2000]

Who the fuck is Dominic McGuire?

Your teammate in Washington a few years ago.

Oh yeah, that *****..yeah, he good people.

[-Ian-]

Another piece from Bonnell about Gerald Henderson.

http://blogs.charlotte.com/inside_th...n-a-favor.html

Brown did Henderson a favor

I had an interesting experience this morning, reading a comment in reaction to my Bobcats notes: A reader suggested Larry Brown expressing concern about Gerald Henderson shows Brown's obvious "bias'' toward Duke players.

I know where that comes from. But anyone who thinks Brown challenging Henderson is about Henderson's college or Brown's college dramatically misses the point.

It was classic Brown: A young reporter from Fayetteville asked an innocuous question about Henderson, and Brown gave a 10-minute critique. Larry has never been afraid to send messages through the media. To summarize, Brown said Henderson has a marvelous opportunity here, but unless he's prepared to defend on every play, run every break and chase down every loose ball, he shouldn't assume minutes will just be handed to him.

If Henderson read that, it had to annoy him. And someday, he'll totally appreciate Brown for demanding he be a pro.

You know who would endorse that reasoning more than anyone? Former Duke player Billy King.

King says the beauty of Brown is he sees how good a player can be, then pesters the guy into being that good. King probably wouldn't be in the NBA now without his relationship with Brown.

Brown hired him as an assistant coach with the Pacers, then brought him to Philadelphia, and kept promoting Billy until he ran the entire Sixers organization. Now King is GM of the New Jersey Nets.

Yeah. Larry hates all things Duke.

But let's back up to the Henderson issue: He is a marvelous physical talent, something akin to another Philly guy, Kobe Bryant. But there's a concern he gets satisfied easily, cruising on how easy the game comes to him.

Don't confuse that with lazy. Nobody thinks he's lazy. But once he reached the NBA level, where there's a Gerald Wallace or a Tyrus Thomas or a Stephen Jackson, who are are just as good athletes, he doesn't stand out.

I think that's what concerns Brown, and exactly how a coach should be vested in demanding a player's best.

There are three guys I'm sure should be part of the Bobcats' future: Wallace, Jackson and Thomas. Boris Diaw and D.J. Augustin might be. And then there are two intriguing maybes: Derrick Brown and Henderson.

From the first week of training camp last year, I had this question: Why does Derrick Brown, the second-round pick, look a lot more impactful than Henderson, the lottery pick?

That's never changed. It's on Henderson, not Brown, to show why he should play.

[Toocool]

I think it's easier for D.Brown to make an impact immediately than Hendo. Coming out of college, both were freak athletes. D.Brown was a beast, being able to rebound and dunk, and also a rough 3 pointer. Hendo relied on his athleticism, and a bit of his mid range game to dunk and score, but his shooting was always rather poor.

Thinking about it, it's harder for Hendo to stack up the stats Brown has due to the fact Brown fights for every damn rebound and is easier for him to dunk in the paint or get easy peasy shots, compared to Hendo on the perimeter.

I have no doubts of Hendo being able to produce, but Brown simply had the easier chance to play compared to Hendo, who was completely overlooked even after Bell got injured at the start. For me, I'm glad D. Brown is producing, and here's to hoping Hendo can continue to improve from his SL.