2005-06 Season In Review - Raymond Felton

Raymond Felton knew the pressure and expectations that came with being the fifth overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft.

Despite the fact he would be playing behind veteran Brevin Knight in the Bobcats lineup, he also knew would always be compared to third overall pick Deron Williams (Utah) and fourth overall pick Chris Paul (New Orleans/Oklahoma City) -- players who were both guaranteed minutes, if not starting roles, immediately with their teams.

But none of that mattered to the former Tar Heel. He was happy to be living out his dream while getting the chance to build something special with the Bobcats.

“I’m playing basketball in the NBA -- this is my dream,” Felton said. “It’s a dream come true. Each and every game has been a wonderful experience. It’s been one of the best experiences of my life.

Still, it would have been understandable if Felton was frustrated early in his rookie season. While Paul was putting up impressive numbers as a full-time starter with the Hornets and Williams’ minutes were increasing with the Jazz, Felton was still fighting for minutes.

He made just one start in his first 24 games, stepping in for Knight (left knee tendinitis) on November 16, 2005 against Indiana and scoring 18 points with 10 assists, five rebounds and five steals in his first NBA start. But the next night, Felton was back in his reserve role on the bench without complaint.

“I wanted to come into the league as a rookie and earn my position,” he said. “I told (Head) Coach (Bernie) Bickerstaff that I like to earn everything I get. It was difficult, but I got through it. You have to be a man. You have to grow up.”

Felton continued to wait for his next opportunity, and it came on December 19 against Sacramento, as he again stepped in for an injured Knight and scored 14 points with nine assists in a 106-103 overtime win over the Kings. The next night in Chicago, Knight returned from his injury to play alongside Felton, who moved over to the starting shooting guard spot.

It was a role Felton found himself comfortable in, getting stronger as the season progressed. He increased his averages in points, assists and field goal percentage every month and locked up his spot in the starting lineup.

“Entering the season, I just wanted to get better every game, and that’s really what happened,” he said. “The individual stuff and the wins will come when you’re a team player. That’s the type of guy that I am, a team player. If you play as a team and sacrifice different things for the team, the individual stuff is going to come. I hold the same mindset now.”

As Felton settled into the starting role, the individual awards did come.

He was named NBA Eastern Conference T-Mobile Rookie of the Month for the third consecutive time for games played in April after taking home the honor in February and March. He averaged 17.2 points, 9.8 assists, 2.0 steals and 3.1 rebounds in nine games and led all rookies in scoring and assists for the month in helping the Bobcats to a franchise-best 6-3 record in April.

Felton was the first Bobcats player in franchise history to win NBA Rookie of the Month honors three consecutive months. Last year, Okafor won the award in November and December and also captured the honor in April.

He also posted two of the top three scoring performances by a rookie this season, totaling a career-high 31 points on February 25 at Phoenix and 30 points on March 22 at Cleveland.

Felton finished the 2005-06 season ranked fourth among NBA rookies in scoring with 11.9 points, second with 5.6 assists and second with 1.28 steals. He was also one of only two rookies, along with Paul, to rank in the top five in all three categories and posted the highest scoring average of any rookie since February 1 this season.

He finished fourth in 2005-06 Rookie of the Year voting behind Paul, Toronto’s Charlie Villanueva and Milwaukee’s Andrew Bogut and was named to the T-Mobile NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

“I think I’ve done pretty good in my first year, but of course I’m always going to be my own biggest critic,” he said. “I feel like I could have done better.”

That said, Felton has already set high expectations for himself and the Bobcats in 2006-07.

“I want us to make the playoffs and be a contending team in the NBA,” he said. “I really think that can happen. Once we get everything together, this is only our third year as a team in the NBA, hopefully next year we’ll have a little more respect around the league and things will work out for us. We’re going to be fine. But my expectation is for us to make the playoffs.”