Preseason: Charlotte Bobcats Vs New Orleans Hornets

[qchoops]

http://www.queencityhoops.com/GameRecap102607.php - my usual stuff - nerdy rundown of the game.

[Alex]

It was because Vincent played the backups in the 4th and lost the lead then the starters came back in and they were cold as ice....

Well it's the pre-season, this is a game we would of won in the regular season.

We've had some amazing 3rd quarters in this pre-season which means that Vincent is good at getting to them at HT about what they need to do.

[TheBeagle]

It was because Vincent played the backups in the 4th and lost the lead then the starters came back in and they were cold as ice....

Well it's the pre-season, this is a game we would of won in the regular season.

We've had some amazing 3rd quarters in this pre-season which means that Vincent is good at getting to them at HT about what they need to do.

Absolutely. Good call, Alex, on both counts!

[TheBeagle]

Feels strange that the game took place in my backyard (relatively speaking) and I didn't go to it. What with work, the fact it's a preseason game, it was a Chris Paul homecoming game, and I have to get ready for next Friday's "real" game, I just wasn't feeling it. Hope the turnout by the 'Cats faithful was decent, and not totally outnumbered by Paul friends/family/fans from his West Forsyth and WFU days.

Speaking about the conflicting interests of the game tonight, here's a really good article by John Delong of the Winston Salem Journal; I wish the Journal wouldn't be so cheap, and let John "beatwrite" the Bobcats, as he did when the Hornets were in town. He's what a sportswriter should be; fair, but not afraid to raise questions; professional without being overly criticizing; and is, at heart, a true sports fan, as opposed to the jaded writings of others (Re: Bonnell usually), and I'm not just saying that because I trade emails with him fairly regularly during the season. Anyway, here she goes.........

http://www.journalnow.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ%2FMGArticle%2FWSJ_Columnist Article&c=MGArticle&cid=1173353258176&path=!sports !delong!&s=1037645509226

[davcbow]

That was a good read....

[spectre]

That was a good read....

Second that!!!

“We have not figured that out yet,” Vincent said. “This preseason has been about identification and evaluation of different guys in different roles. We’re going to finish up the game against New Orleans and from there we’re going to get back and crunch it out and figure out what it takes for this team to win games.”

There’s another reality that Vincent is just starting to grasp. Management doesn’t always deliver when the coach asks for help. Vincent has publicly begged his bosses to acquire another big man for depth, with Othella Harrington also injured and others still too green. All he really wants is a proven veteran such as once-available Marc Jackson, somebody to plug into the role Jake Voskuhl played last season. But management hasn’t moved, and Jackson has gone elsewhere. So Vincent has had to waste time on what is being referred to as The Ryan Hollins Experiment, which was ill-fated from the start, and now he must wait until Primo Brezac gets into shape and (maybe) fits into this offense.

Management has dropped the ball bigtime. It's ludicrous to put all your hopes on Primoz...someone who's always had major flaws in his game.

Vincent said that such realities, particularly the injuries, aren’t fazing him.

“I think I’m dealing with it fine,” he said. “Obviously, it creates a little more work because you’ve got to refigure things that you thought were going to work that are not going to work now, and you come up with different game plans. That’s a big part of professional sports. We still have some very good personnel on this team and guys have worked very hard to get to this point, so we’ll reshape it in different ways and still figure out how to be solid on the floor.”

This is telling me that he's used the preseason for experimentation, and not a basis for substitution patterns or strategies. I think those will make more sense once we get into the games that count.

Nothing on why V hates Argentineans tho.

[spectre]

http://www.queencityhoops.com/GameRecap102607.php - my usual stuff - nerdy rundown of the game.

Good as always Brett.

How much did Paul's last 6 minutes where (I assume) he was matched up against Touche' in our wonderful 2 guard offense skew that? Paul racked up 7 assists in that stretch; only had 6 up til that point with 4 TOs.

Up thru the 3rd quarter (again going by the boxscore) Felton was around 20 pts on 70% plus shooting, 5 assists and 1 TO vs. Pauls (give or take) 10 pts on 50% shooting, 6 assists and 4 TOs.

[davcbow]

I think that they were hoping playoffs this season with this team and saving the money thats left for next season. Since the injuries to May and to Morrison, the ownership just wants to just make do because no one would want to trade for injured players or trade away the healthy players that we have left. Not to say if things get real bad then they may do something but I really dont see it. I do see them picking up a 16th player if another season ending injury occurs. I think we are what we are this season....

[qchoops]

While McInnis and Paul were both in the game, the Bobcats got drilled 24-5. I can't say for sure who was guarding Paul, since all my numbers are generated from the play-by-play. Overall, for the game, McInnis was at -9, 50-59, with the team scoring 1.02 points per possession and surrendering 1.26 ppp to New Orleans.

[qchoops]

And the two point guard offense was not a good thing last night, despite Rick Bonnell's observations on it - http://www.charlotte.com/sports/story/336352.html. The two point guard lineup of Ray and McInnis lost 36-30, with an offensive efficiency of 0.97 points per possession and a defensive efficiency of 1.20 ppp. When it was Ray on the court without McInnis, Bobcats win 50-49, and are at 1.35ppp on O and 1.19 on D.
(All of those defensive numbers are terrible, but I guess as long as you are outscoring them...)