In opting to go with a youth movement for the duration of this season and beyond, the Charlotte Bobcats are putting their faith squarely on the shoulders of two 23-year olds with tons of upside. With Gerald Wallace (who was the last remaining original member and only All-Star in Bobcats’ franchise history) shipped across the country to the Portland Trail Blazers, the onus is now is on new starting guard tandem D.J. Augustin and Gerald Henderson to pick up the slack.

"I don’t really look at it as filling anybody’s shoes. I’m just starting," Henderson told HOOPSWORLD recently. "I take the same approach as I would coming off the bench. I still try to bring energy and play the same way that I play. Just because I’m starting doesn’t really change anything. It may change my minutes or the rotations a little bit but it won’t change the way that I approach the game. I still keep the same mindset and try not to put any extra pressure on myself."

Henderson, who had shown much promise coming off the bench since Paul Silas took over as head coach, continues to dazzle with his athletic ability and willingness to put in the hard work and preparation needed to succeed at the NBA level. The 12th pick of the 2009 draft continues to hone his jump shot and is averaging nearly 13 points a game on 44 percent shooting over the last 10 contests.

"I just like his attitude," Silas said. "He stays after practice, every practice and shoots the basketball. His jump shot has gotten so much better.  You look at his athleticism and that will not wane at all. He has a great attitude about himself and he has progressed so much in a very short period of time. I just like where he is at this time.

"I hope [opposing teams want to sag off Henderson defensively]," Silas said. "Because if they do, they’re going to be very surprised because he can make shots now.  He does in practice, he does in the game."

Joining Henderson in the backcourt, the more seasoned of the two up-and-coming players, Augustin has been Charlotte’s starter at point guard all season and leads the team with six assists per game. From the point position, Augustin is now the Bobcats’ second leading scorer at 14.3 points per game with Wallace (15.6 points per) no longer on the team. The Bobcats 9th pick of the 2008 draft has excelled especially since the All-Star break — averaging 17.5 points on over 50 percent shooting from the field.

One of the most impressive stats for the third-year player is his propensity to make quality decisions during the course of the game. Augustin is fifth in the NBA is assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.30, with six assists to just 1.8 turnovers per game. Just four starting point guards commit fewer turnovers per contest than Augustin.

"I think with D.J., he’s showing everybody that he’s one of the top point guards in the league. He can kind of do everything," Bobcats’ reserve Matt Carroll said. "He’s one of our best shooters and he finds guys, he’s quick — guys can’t stay in front of him. He’s really just getting better game-by-game too and I think it’s exciting for the Bobcats looking to the future with him and Gerald [Henderson]. There’s a lot to be exited about."

While it seems he has flip-flopped on his stance from one game to the next, even Bobcats’ forward Stephen Jackson was excited about Charlotte’s future with Henderson and Augustin playing pivotal roles in the backcourt — after Charlotte’s 110-98 win against the Sacramento Kings on Feb. 25.

"We definitely have given our young guys a chance, but they’ve earned it," Jackson said. "It just depends on the pieces of the puzzle that we put together now, but I think as far as the young guys, D.J. and Gerald Henderson are great and even Kwame [Brown] is coming along now.

"I love the direction that we’re going. Being that Michael Jordan is the owner, you know he’s going to put a team out there that’s going to compete."

{AUTHOR_BOX}In the aforementioned win over Sacramento on Feb. 25, Augustin and Henderson each scored over 20 points and combined to shoot over 60 percent from the field to pace the Bobcats in the first game following the trading deadline. It was an emotional victory that saw Michael Jordan and the majority of the Charlotte crowd give the team a standing ovation in the final seconds as Augustin dribbled out the clock of a blowout win.

However, in two road games since then, the duo has combined to score just 37 points while making less than 30 percent from the field.

But, while the new guard duo has had it’s up and downs over the past week, the continued growth and maturation of these players on the court is expected to pay dividends as the Bobcats try to redefine the atmosphere around a team that has made the playoffs just once since it’s inception.

"Me and D.J. are definitely the future," Henderson said. "I think everybody sees that we’re the younger guys playing on the team. D.J. is more established than me, he’s had an extra year under his belt and been our starting point guard all year. I think definitely in the future they look for me and D.J. to be some pretty big parts of this team."

The hope around the team is that these two players will lead the way to a new era of Bobcats’ basketball, but Augustin knows it starts with hard work and dedication — and that will be crucial to whether or not they can be key contributors for this Charlotte team.

"We’re going to keep working, trying to make this team better. It’s not up to me to say I’m a future anything," Augustin said. "I just want to play basketball and get better… If we keep playing hard like we do every night, anything can happen."

As the Bobcats continue to push for the eighth and final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs, the team and it’s fans hold high hopes that Henderson and Augustin can not only deliver the playoffs this season; but make Charlotte a perennial playoff team for the foreseeable future.