Charlotte Bobcats General Manager/Head Coach Press Conference Transcript

Ed Tapscott: “Thanks to the McCrorey YMCA for having us here this afternoon for our big announcement. This is a very critical part, a critical component for this organization and for us to be a part of the community here in Charlotte.”

“Obviously, this is a big day in our history. We originally started this process some time ago. We scoured the entire basketball world to find the type of person who can provide the leadership we need here in Charlotte. As the process went on, there were some interesting people I talked to. As this played out it became apparent that the best course of action and best direction for this franchise to move to was to name Bernie Bickerstaff as general manager and head basketball coach. We believe that this gets us underway solidly with a crew of people that will shape the direction of this franchise.”

“Bernie has been in the NBA for quite a number of years and has served in just about every capacity – coach, GM, team president – almost everything you can think of. And he has had success and improved teams dramatically in a few years time. He is also the type of person that each and every one of us here would be proud to call a friend. He is a terrific guy and a terrific leader. I look forward to working with him for many, many years to come.”

Bernie Bickerstaff: “I’m just excited about the opportunity. When Ed called me to talk about working with the Sting, he said ‘come down and take some of the administrative duties off of Trudi Lacey’s shoulders and give her the opportunity to focus on basketball.’ This was probably one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had, to be able to work with the WNBA. The coaching staff and players showed true professionalism. As a coach, all you can ask for is to maximize your talent and that is definitely what she did.”

“Our mantra with an expansion team can be “Nothing worthwhile is achieved without labor, patience and disappointment. That’s important. The labor part, we’ve got to roll our sleeves up and work. We are a new franchise and we just have to jump in and contribute. When you talk about patience, we have to understand that this is a marathon and not a sprint. We have to take tiny steps and have vision for plans and improvement. That is how we get our gratification. Disappointment, there will be lots of them. What I think is important is how we get up off the ground and fight back. How we compete is important with an expansion team, that we earn the respect of our peers. The only way to ear that respect of peers is to respect yourself. The professionalism we must show is to represent the Bobcats and this community. I will continue to solicit advice from Ed Tapscott and I will expect significant input from Ed Tapscott. I’ve been in basketball for 29 years and I have worked with some terrific people, but I have not worked with anyone with the diverse intellect that Ed has. He’s been terrific. I don’t know how he gets it done, but he does. I look forward to being in the trenches with Ed and my staff. I understand the challenges. Collectively, we will surmount whatever challenges are before us. I am confident. Bob Johnson has entrusted us with the first leg and most important leg of the relay team. That is to get this franchise started, to build a sound program with work ethic and people the community can be proud of on and off the court.”

Bickerstaff: (on history of turning teams around)
“ When I was in Seattle and when I was in Denver we had assets. We have no assets here. What we have to do is draft well. We have a philosophy about what we want but we have no control over what will be in the dispersal draft, and the one thing that’s important is that I have a philosophy. I would like to play a certain way but one thing I know – the system has to fit the personnel.”

“We have to draft well. We may even draft the same position, because in my opinion you have to have talent. If you’re overloaded in one position, you can always take talent and move it to satisfy needs.”

Bickerstaff: (on timetable and steps to meet timetable)
“ It is a marathon, it’s not a sprint. But we need to make progress with tiny steps. when the situation arises where we can improve our basketball team and maybe recruit a free agent, we have to have the ability to recognize the ability to acquire that player.”

Bickerstaff: (on the way he wants to play)
“ If you look back on my tenures in Seattle and Denver, you had to have the dominant big guy. But now, he wants to play on the perimeter, and go east and west. I want guys who are maybe 6-8, 6-9, 6-10, who have the arm spans of a 7-footer, that has a high basketball IQ. They have the versatility where they can just rough-dog defense by just switching and not losing anything in the matchups, but also conversely create a problem on the other end for the opposition.”

Bickerstaff: (on zone defense)
“ I personally think the zone makes you passive. We want to get after it defensively and we want to be competitive. I don’t want to lay back. With zones, there are a lot of different defenses you can show, with traps and things of that nature, but you have to be aggressive.”

Bickerstaff: (on draft strategy)
“ I think that’s down the road. Here’s what we should be concentrating on: the dispersal draft. The basketball operations staff is going out tomorrow; we have to find talent. That’s the key. Then we have to draft well. We have the fourth pick. We have to build a basketball team. And we have to understand, and this is when I go back to talking about ‘nothing worthwhile is achieved without patience,’ we have to be patient as an organization. But let me clarify something: what’s good for me is not important, but what is good for the Charlotte Bobcats as a team is important.”
Bickerstaff: (on whether being part of team is a surprise)
“ I was doing television and I wasn’t very good at it (laughter), my wife got tired of me around the house, so when Ed called I was on the plane right away. I missed it. I coached in the IBL in St. Louis (in 2000 and 2001). I missed the comradarie, I missed the teaching, I missed the part where you see kids get better.”

Tapscott: (on expansion team coaches)
“ One of the things we wanted to do here is create the continuity that I think is so important to an expansion franchise. One of the things we wanted to change is the notion that you are just there to move the franchise to a certain point before making changes. We have a pretty good situation as an expansion franchise. We have the fourth pick, which is the highest pick that’s ever been offered to an expansion franchise.”

“We want to manage expectations. I remember coming into market and saying we want to be quick but we don’t want to hurry; we want to build for the long-term. At the same time, we want to seize opportunity. I think Bernie has spoken to that issue. We would love to see that staff be here for the long-term –continuity in your front office and your management team is the key to success in the sports entertainment business. If you look at any franchise in any sport, if you see that continuity upstairs, you generally see success on the floor, on the field, on the ice, on the diamond.”

Bickerstaff: (on how the Bobcats are different)
“ I think it’s about what we do. Verbiage is easy. It’s what you do that’s so important. Our owner has told us that we have to be good citizens. I can’t do this alone, this has to be a collective effort. We can offer leadership. We can offer direction. But it has to be a collective effort.”

Tapscott: (on plans for coaching long-term)
“ I approached Bernie with this idea, and it is my sincere hope that we will break through that paradigm that says you move an expansion coach out after “x” amount of time. We are going to challenge ourselves here to break through that and see to the kind of competitive level that this city and region are looking for.”