Backstage With The Bobcats - Draft Night
The Bobcats kept busy during the 2007 NBA Draft on Thursday, acquiring guard/forward Jason Richardson and Jermareo Davidson (36th overall pick ) from the Golden State Warriors in exchange for the Brandan Wright (eighth overall pick). Charlotte also drafted forward Jared Dudley with the 22nd overall pick. Managing Member of Basketball Operations Michael Jordan, Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Bernie Bickerstaff and General Manager Rod Higgins met with the media following the 36th pick. Bobcats Head Coach Sam Vincent also caught up with bobcatsbasketball.com towards the end of the draft.
Bobcats Managing Member of Basketball Operations Michael Jordan
(On if Jason Richardson’s big contract will kill the public reception that the Bobcats wouldn’t spend money this off-season)
(On if making a trade was a safer route than going through free agency)
(On when they finally decided that they wanted to acquire a veteran player with one of the two draft picks)
(On if they specifically wanted a veteran perimeter player or inside player)
We wanted a veteran player to play next to (Gerald) Wallace that we felt could be a go-to player, create his own shot and create shots for other people. We had some other scenarios that gave us that, but this was the best by far. If you ask (Bernie Bickerstaff and Rod Higgins) as well as our staff, we are very happy with what we did.
(On how close Jason Richardson can come to being the “Michael Jordan” of the team)
(On if it can be fully expected that Gerald Wallace will be with the Bobcats next year)
(On if signing Matt Carroll is as big of a priority now as it was before acquiring Jason Richardson)
(On if they have a ballpark of where to begin the negiotionations with Gerald Wallace)
Jordan: No, we really don’t. It can range from a lot of different areas. When his agent comes in and sits down with us, he’s going to give us what he thinks and we’re going to tell him what we think and hopefully we can come to some type of agreement. We hope they we are both on the same page so it takes less negotiating, but I don’t think its going to be that big of an issue.
Bobcats Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Bernie Bickerstaff
(On this deal solving the team’s need for a go-to guy)
(On the different deals that were presented)
(On Jared Dudley)
Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins
(On his relationship with Golden State and Jason Richardson helping the deal)
Bobcats Head Coach Sam Vincent
(On the moves made by the team tonight)
(On how getting an experienced shooting guard impacts the team)
(On acquiring the needs he felt the team needed entering the draft)
June 28, 2007
(On how hard it was to acquire Jason Richardson)
It was pretty hard. Obviously, we had done our homework on him. They had a player that they felt they wanted at eight, and we explored that opportunity and we felt like we wanted to go with more of a veteran player. We have a young nucleus, and we felt that if we could add a guy with Jason Richardson’s talent, it would give us a well-rounded and balanced basketball team. It took a little bit to pry him away.
I don’t know if (Bobcats Majority Owner) Bob (Johnson) knows how much we spent today (laughter). I think the way that the money is spread out obviously gives us a better chance to improve as a basketball team right now. We said from day one that if we could go out and find someone significant that would make our basketball team that much better, then we would do that. We were very fortunate that we had an opportunity to do it now as apposed to going into free agency this summer, because we didn’t know what was going to happen in free agency. Everyone was talking about some of the free agents that were going to be available but we didn’t know if those guys were going to be available. We looked at this as an opportunity to sign a free agent.
Here’s the thing about the collective bargaining agreement – it limits movement. So, all free agents are always going to have a chance to make more money staying with their team. If you look at the transactions over the last couple of years, there has been very limited movement in free agency. I felt like if we get ourselves in a good draft position, you never know what you can find. I think Jason Richardson is going to be great for us. I think he’s going to be an exciting player for the city and he’s going to be a great finisher in the fourth quarter along with (Gerald) Wallace that will help with the maturity of our young team. We added (Jared) Dudley who I think is underrated to some degree. He’s a very versatile player and he can play many positions for us. (Jermareo) Davidson is a shot blocker. He gives us a little bit more strength on the defensive end. I like what we’ve done with this basketball team. From day one, I said we are going to do whatever we can to better this situation. I’m pretty sure a lot of North Carolina people were very happy when we drafted Brandan Wright, but that wasn’t our pick. We had this deal in action way before that, and that was the player that Golden State wanted.
The last two and a half days we’ve been exploring all different options. We went from wanting to use all draft picks to acquiring different types of veteran players and draft picks. I think we all came to the conclusion that a good veteran player and a good young draft pick would be where we would end up. We had a lot of scenarios and we went back and forth. We were in the mix somehow, some way, some form and some fashion with a lot of different things that you heard. We diligently tried to find something that was going to best suit this team. Out of all the deals that were on the table, we felt this was the best one that suited this team.
You’re asking me that question? (laughter). He’s a young kid and I think he has some great upside. I don’t think we have to worry about the financial aspect of re-signing him or going to another team. I think we’re already set with that. It helps that we are going to try play an uptempo game. We’ve got Raymond (Felton) who is one of the fastest guys in the league from baseline to baseline. We have (Gerald) Wallace on one end, Jason Richardson on the other and hopefully, we’re going to have Matt Carroll coming in off the bench to strengthen our bench. (Jared Dudley) could provide a lot of services for us too. Can (Jason Richardson) be a Michael Jordan? We’re not expecting him to be that. Can he be a piece that helps us finish ball games a lot better? Can he give us a little more firepower on the offensive end? Yes. Is he an exciting player that can be a bookend to what (Gerald) Wallace can provide for us? Yes. His athleticism can give a coach a lot of versatility and a lot of different looks, which is what I wanted from day one.
I want him to be here. I said it from day one, I fully expect him to be here. Hopefully we can come to some type of understanding. Once again, there is very little movement of players around the league. It is obvious that we want to pay value for a player and I’m not going to walk away from that. I think the toughest thing that myself, Bernie (Bickerstaff) and Rod (Higgins) are going to have to do is establish what the value is, hopefully with his agent, and work that through; with Matt Carroll as well. I anticipate having a full bench and a team of power and (Gerald) Wallace is a part of that. He’s done that for the last few years, he’s been a good contributing force for us. I hope to think that we just brought in some help.
Sure. He provides the spacing for those guys to be creative. He’s a great three-point shooter, he can get to the free throw line and he’s a hard worker. Everything that we did tonight was not to alienate anybody from our lineup, it was to make our lineup more powerful. I anticipate signing all the guys that we’ve had in the last year, and we just added a few more pieces.
(On how the trade impacts re-signing Gerald Wallace)
Let’s answer your last question first. (This trade) has no impact negatively on Gerald Wallace.
I think so. Rod (Higgins) was with him in Golden State. I think the thing that’s encouraging is, can you just imagine two athletes of that caliber (Jason Richardson and Gerald Wallace) on the floor at the same time? It enhances and takes a lot of pressure off of some of our younger players.
There were a lot of good things on the table for us with the two picks. It went right down to the wire. We had calls coming in at 6 (p.m.) and 7 (p.m.) from teams wanting to know whether they could get involved. We obviously didn’t make up our minds until almost at the deadline.
“We think Dudley is (one of those) guys who is hard-nosed, a good team player, played in a good program, and tough. He is a very, very intelligent basketball player and a team player.”
(On the trade for Jason Richardson)
The last couple of years, this team has put itself in winning situations in the fourth quarter. When we thought about making this move, we wanted to try to get a veteran guy who could step up and make big plays for us. Not just in the fourth quarter, but throughout the game. I think (Jason Richardson) is going to be part of that solution. He’ll come in and have an opportunity to help younger guys get better, but more importantly, he’s that guy who wants to score that ball in the clutch. We’re looking forward to him coming here and getting involved in our team and our community. He’s a terrific player and a terrific human being.
I don’t think that played a whole lot into it. Basketball-wise, the most important thing that we all look at is how to improve our team. Obviously I know the guy. He’s going to be a guy who comes in every day and practices hard. He’s going to be an advocate for the coach in that locker room. He is a terrific teammate and a wonderful player.
I’m really pumped. I like what we did bringing in a solid, experienced scorer. We brought in somebody who is a proven scorer who is going to give us a lot more options at the two-guard spot. I think (Jared) Dudley is a rugged, tough ballplayer that also can score. Jermareo (Davidson) may be a little bit of a project, but he’s a guy that, if he comes along, has a lot of upside. I think we came away pretty well.
It makes a big difference for where we’re trying to go. We identified the fact that we needed another shooter, and in terms of trying to pick that up, we got it. We feel confidant that he’s an experienced guy that can come in and give us a lot.
I feel like we definitely got some scoring, we got some experience and we got an athletic big. In terms of what we were trying to do, I feel like we were able to accomplish it.
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