October 24, 2007

2007 FAN JAM Gallery

The Bobcats hosted FAN JAM 2007 Presented by Ticketmaster on Wednesday at Charlotte Bobcats Arena, and despite the dreary and rainy conditions outside, the atmosphere inside was filled with activity and excitement.

It seemed as if all of the over 5,000 fans can’t wait for the season to begin as they showed up in force to support their team a little over a week away from the 2007-08 season opener on November 2 against Milwaukee.

There was something for everyone, too.

All who attended received a 2007-08 team schedule poster from one of the Bobcats players as they walked through the doors, with all of the players willing to stop for a moment for a quick picture or to sign an autograph.

From there, fans had a host of activities to choose from on the main concourse, including pool, mini-golf, video games, caricatures, face painting and a host of other interactive games for kids, as well as live music on the main floor.

And all this was before the real action even began on the court.

Walter Herrmann, Ryan Hollins, Jared Dudley and Jermareo Davidson started things off, pairing with Bobcats Season Ticket Holders in a game of FAN JAM Two-Ball. Herrmann and his teammate and Dudley and his partner advance to the final round after tallying 28 and 23 points respectively, but Herrmann really started to find his stroke in round two, connecting from all over the court as his team scored an evening-best 38 points to take the win.

“To me, it was kind of like a midnight madness for college,” Dudley said. “It was nice to see all the fans come out… it was good to see all the kids out here with their parents, and it really gave us a chance to reach out and interact with out fans. “

After the two-ball champs we crowned, the group of four Bobcats then moved on to take on some Charlotte fans and Bobcats mascot Rufus in a game of musical chairs. The players held the upper hand early, knocking out three fans in the first three rounds, but with a little help from Rufus, the fans fought back. In the end, Herrmann and one of the Bobcats fans were the final two remaining, with the fan finding her way into the final seat.

Following musical chairs, Charlotte’s select four players took turns shooting from half court trying to drain the difficult shot and earn a lucky fan a $100 shopping spree in the Bobcats Team Store. They came through, connecting on a total of four shots from the center circle.

While all of these things kept the fans in attendance entertained, it was the scrimmage that everyone seemed to be anticipating. The Bobcats did not disappoint in a 20-minute exhibition that had an All-Star feel to it with no-look dunks and alley oops off the glass in a scoring bonanza. Some fans even came out of the crowd to get into the action with the team.

“We were out there just having a lot of fun, especially with the kids,” guard Matt Carroll said. “The fans were great – they were really energetic. We’re just hoping that once the regular season starts, it’s going to be the same way with the energy in the building.”

Added newcomer Jason Richardson: “That was fun – I’ve never been a part of anything like that where you get the fans so involved that they’re out there on the court with you. . It’s pretty cool that you get to interact with the fans and show them that we’re just normal people. We want them to hang out with us and talk to us, because we want them to see that we’re just like them and that we need their support.”

Approximately 10 minutes into the scheduled scrimmage, the score became irrelevant as the practice turned into more of a slam dunk contest with Hollins, Gerald Wallace, Raymond Felton and Richardson getting the crowd out of their seats.

“Once Ryan started getting going, Gerald got a big dunk and then I got a big one, and then it turned into a dunk contest,” Richardson laughed. “But as you could see, I’m getting old and can’t finish some of those dunks anymore. It was kind of good to get back to my old roots, but I have to realize that I’m 26 (years old) and have had seven years in the league, so I can’t do the things I used to do my rookie year.”

So who won… who cares? This event was never about winning and losing.

“To tell you the truth, I don’t even know what the score was,” Carroll laughed. “The White Team scored for the Black Team a few times, and the Black Team was throwing alley-oops to the White Team. We were all in this together – the fans, the players, everybody.”

Added Vincent: “For us, this evening was all about having fun. We know that come November 2, it’s time to get serious.”