Bobcats Losing Their Way
The last week-and-a-half of basketball has been a nightmare for the Charlotte Bobcats.
The Bobcats capped a four-game road trip Saturday night in Portland, having lost by 20 or more points in two of those four contests. Granted, Bobcats’ forward Stephen Jackson was not at full strength and has missed the last two games due to a strained left hamstring, but the way this team was completed dismantled against four playoff teams — and then taken care of at home by the 24-40 Los Angeles Clippers — is tough to swallow.
"I think this road trip is going to tell a lot," Jackson said before the team traveled to Denver for the second game of the trip. "Especially having a new team… We have to come away with at least two out of these three."
Charlotte coach Paul Silas said he was eager to see how the new players gelled in their first action wearing a Bobcats’ uniform.
"It’s going to be interesting to see how we play," Silas said of the final three games of the road trip.
It certainly wasn’t interesting to watch.
During a four-game road swing against the Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers and the Blazers, Charlotte was defeated by an average of over 25 points per game. The team’s 120-80 pounding at the hands of Denver was the most lopsided defeat for the Bobcats this season.
Offensively, the Bobcats have been a complete mess. The most points Charlotte could muster during the course of the last five contests was 87, thanks to some garbage-time baskets against the Clippers, who dropped the Bobcats to a season-low 11 games under .500 (26-37) with a 92-87 victory Monday night.
"We’ve struggled the last five games, but we still feel like we can make a run to make the playoffs," Gerald Henderson, who led all scorers with 20 points against the Clippers, said. "That is our ultimate goal."
Even though no other team in the NBA is in the midst of a longer losing streak right now than the Bobcats (the Miami HEAT have also lost five straight), the team’s closest competition for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East, the Indiana Pacers, have been struggling as well. Indiana has lost four straight games, while winning just three of their last 10 contests overall. During this time the Bobcats have won four of 10 to remain in striking distance at just one game back.
"I pointed it out to (the team) that we’re still there," Silas said after Monday’s loss to the Clippers. "We’re only a game-and-a-half out of a playoff spot right now and we haven’t made our run yet. It’s not going to be easy, but I’m a believer and I want my players to believe also that we can do it."
{AUTHOR_BOX}While they still have a shot at a playoff berth (So you’re telling me there’s a chance), the road doesn’t get any easier for the Bobcats, who take on the 44-18 Chicago Bulls at home Wednesday night.
However…
Reinforcements En Route
Charlotte is pinning it’s hopes on the impending returns of Stephen Jackson and Tyrus Thomas as we round the final turn into the playoffs. Capt. Jack has missed the last two games due to a left hamstring strain while Thomas has been out since Jan. 20 with a tear of the lateral meniscus in his left knee.
In 34 games this season, Thomas has averaged 11.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 21.6 minutes per contest coming off the bench. Jackson leads the team in scoring at 19 a night.
"That’s something that I’m really looking forward to. I firmly believe we can get it done with a full deck," Silas said. "It’s difficult to take that many points out of your lineup and still do well… We’re really anticipating Tyrus (Thomas) coming back. He gives us shot blocking and rebounding, and he’s really been working on his shooting so I’m looking forward to see what he can do."
For an already short-handed team, the return of Jackson and Thomas to the lineup could be a huge boost to a beleaguered Bobcats squad.
"It will help a lot because Jack and Tyrus are two big keys to our team," Gerald Henderson said. "Overall, we’re going to need them to win and they both know that. They’re trying their hardest to get back in the lineup."
Both players could return as early as Wednesday night against the Bulls.
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