Chat Transcript: President Fred Whitfield

Whitfield most recently served as Director of Business and Legal Affairs for Brand Jordan, where he managed endorsements and sports marketing strategy and execution for the elite division of Nike. There he dealt with athletes including Ray Allen, Carmelo Anthony, Marvin Harrison, Richard Hamilton, Derek Jeter and Roy Jones, Jr.

His knowledge of sports and experience as a player, coach, agent, basketball operations administrator and sports marketer is sure to be an asset that will help launch the Bobcats to another level.

Whitfield stopped by Bobcatsbasketball.com on Friday to chat live with fans. Check out what Fred had to say about building the brand in Charlotte and much more.

Chris (NC): WHy did you decide to join the Bobcats? How did it come about?

Fred Whitfield: It was one of my goals, that I've worked toward, to become an NBA President some day. Then, when Mr. Johnson approached me with the opportunity to come here, and return to my home state, where I have family and friends, it worked out great for me.

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Tom (Charlotte): Do you think having Michael Jordan in the front office has an effect on your job, if so does it make it easier or harder?

Fred Whitfield: I think it's definitely a positive to have Michael involved. It will help us enhance the product on the floor and help me in my job.

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Ken : What do you think is the biggest challenge you've faced since you were hired by the Bobcats?

Fred Whitfield: The biggest challenge has been to get out into the community and keep everyone interested in our organization. Also, I want to keep the energy up within our organization. It's been a huge challenge just hitting the ground running, but it's been real fun.

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Proud North Carolinian & Sports Fan: Many fans in the Charlotte area were very dissappointted to see the Hornets pack up and leave under the ownership of G.S.. How do you plan to reach out to those people who don't want to have anything to do with the Bobcats because of the things that happened those years back with the Hornets?

Fred Whitfield: Being a Hornets season ticket holder myself, I was sad when the NBA left North Carolina. But now, we have probably the nicest building in the league and we're building an exciting young team to help us fill that building. I'm confident we can get this franchise and Charlotte on the map and provide something the community can really be proud of.

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Josh: Mr.Whitfield, How does it fell to have just added Adam Morrison to the team?

Fred Whitfield: It is very exciting to have him as part of our team. Adam Morrison loves playing basketball, had a great collegiate career and he's working very hard to be a success in the NBA too. He has all the qualities we desire in our players, on the court and in the community.

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Neil (New YorK): Tell me about your days at Nike Fred. Who was the most impressive person you met or dealt with?

Fred Whitfield: The most impressive person I met there has to be Phil Night, the chairman. He is a true leader, a true innovator who really inspired all of the Nike employees.

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Justin (Boston): Who were your favorite teams and players in sports when you were growing up?

Fred Whitfield: Ha-ha. That is going way back. The player would probably be Bob MacAdoo, who was from my hometown and I had a personal relationship with him. A close second, would be David Thompson. Team, would probably be the Lakers. But with players, it's got to be the North Carolina guys.

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Raelee (Ogden): What is a typical day like for you?

Fred Whitfield: A typical day is get to the office early, return phone calls and emails and then connect with the senior leadership and see where I'm needed, either sales or corporate issues. And then, whatever we need to handle during the day. Obviously, during the season, I'll be at all the home games.

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Jenn (Washington): When you took your position you said you wanted to revitalize the downtown area and make going to a Bobcats game a fun family experience, what progress do you feel has been made here?

Fred Whitfield: We've hired a new chief marketing officer and we're building our brand, what we'll be doing each game night. Also, we're connecting with NASCAR, which has a big presence here in Charlotte. On October 14, we'll have some players going out to the Bank of America 500, where Adam Morrison will wave the start flag. We are reaching out to every area of the community to make our presence felt and be a part of Charlotte.

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Vince (D.C.): Hi Fred, the coaches and gm have put together a young, hungry and exciting team. What are some of the things you are doing to get the people in the seats to see and support our Bobcats? Welcome to Charlotte.

Fred Whitfield: Thank you. We've got some innovative ticket packages, where everyone can have an opportunity to get tickets. Lots of different hybrid type ticket packages. We've sold 2550 full season ticket pages, which ranks fourth in the league to date. We're off to a good start and we're working hard at it.

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John (Monroe Twp.): Where do you see yourself and the franchise at in the next five years?

Fred Whitfield: In the next five years I hope to be the President of this organization and I hope the team will not only be a playoff team, but a contender for the NBA Championship. Bernie and the players are doing everything they can to get there on the floor and we will do everything we can off the floor to help make that happen too.

Fred Whitfield: I want to thank all the people in Charlotte and in the North Carolina and South Carolina area. It is amazing to see the support we've had. It's a new day for our city and our region and as we prepare for our home-opener on Nov. 1, we're excited about bringing you a great team and being a big part of the Charlotte community.