Bobcats Features
Act Four - The Final Move?
November 24th, 2008 7:00am
Bobcats Office
"Morning Michael" the GM said as he walked into Jordan's office
"Morning...hey wait...Leo?? I thought you were still down at the Medical Facility!!" answered Jordan in surprise
"Well, seeing as the pain eased and the Celtics game coming up tonight, there is no way i am just going to lie down and do nothing."
"alright...hey wait a minute, oh boy you've grown..."
"not really, it was only around about 2 or 3 inches or something, but overnight, well lets just say it was a lot of pain."
"i see...oh yes, we've got somethings to discuss" said Jordan as he reaches towards the phone.."Hello? Larry, its Michael here, sorry to bother you, can you meet me in the conference room 30 minutes later? cheers"
30 minutes later.....Bobcats Conference room
"alright, here's whats going on, the team needs some boosting, we are 6-6, which ISNT bad, but isnt good either, and although it would get us into the playoffs if we continue, i do not think we can get even one postseason win with our current lineup" started Jordan "We are getting our asses kicked by the opponent's SG and our second unit is more like a third unit for other teams"
"well, i guess i could start Jared and get Jason back in SG, he can defend decently" said Larry
"That still doesnt solve our second unit problem, our 6th man, Raymond Felton, is really struggling right now, his numbers are what? 2.8 ppg, 2 apg, 30% FG and 0% 3 points? thats unacceptable" answered GM Leo "Going by the stats, looks like Raymond is on our Trading Block, either Shannon Brown, or Matt Carroll is gonna have to go with him, Brown wont get us much but we lose a terrible player, Carroll...he's doing great offensively but not much on d, would get us a great starter if traded alongside Felton though."
"woah woah, hold it, let me see what's happening around the league first." Jordan said
"Nothing big, Suns and Cavs made a deal, seems like Tucker for Jones?"
"ah wait, i almost forgot about it, Bucks offered us a deal, but i refused it"
"what deal?" asked Jordan
"This deal"
"What the...they wanted Emeka for RJ?" chuckled Jordan
"Apparently so, but lets put those aside, and turn our attention to this, i heard about this a while back and decided to get our Assistant Head Coach to check it out"
"seemed like the Grizzlies are not that happy with some aspects of his play and wants him out, i dont see why though, he seems solid. I got the report back and seems like we are in luck"
"What do you guys think? hes a great defender, which is an aspect that we LACK, he provides us with a solid offensive game, perfect fit into our team"
"Well, yes, he is an option for us, but how are we going to get him?" asked Jordan
"I have been wondering about the same thing, and i got some ideas"
1. Raymond Felton+Matt Carroll for Mayo
2. Raymond Felton+Shannon Brown+Ryan Hollins for Mayo+Arthur
3. Raymond Felton+Sean May+Matt Carroll for Mayo+Milicic
"Out of these, i like the first one the most, we lose a load of salary by getting rid of Carroll, Mayo's defense alone would be enough to put him on our starting lineup" the young GM ended
"I'm not liking Felton too much, he has given me, and the team too much trouble, takes bad shots and doesnt pass when he's suppose to, so i agree with trading him away, but are you sure? putting your bet on this rookie?" asked Larry Brown "as for the ideas, i would go for the third one, May's condition has been a problem, i cant play him heavy minutes off the bench due to that, Milicic has experience and would relief O'Neal and Okafor some heavy minutes."
"Well, thats 1 going for option one and 1 going for option 3, whats your take on this Michael?"
"Well, i'll go with..."
Phone rings
"Hello? Jordan here.."
"Mr Jordan? sorry to tell you this, but your player Raymond Felton has been arrested after being found drunk driving and possession of illegal drugs in his car"
"damn...alright thanks"
"what happened mike?" asked Larry Brown
"apparently Felton was drunk driving and the police found illegal drugs in his car; I've decided, we are trading him, try for options 1 and 3, see which one they bite on." answered Jordan "Larry, i want you to bench Felton for tonight's game"
"You got it"
"Wait, Michael, we still havent solved our problems with the reserve unit..." GM Leo said
"true, right now we have Yuta, Dudley as our best reserves off the bench, you cant count on Yuta with his scoring, he cant shoot, Dudley is not a polished shooter...and our bench defense is still crap" said Jordan
"I've got a strange idea suddenly...." added in Larry Brown
"Lets hear it"
"Well, it may sound weird, but recent events could be our advantage"
"what are you talking about Larry?"
"I'm talking about" Larry Brown indicates to the young GM "Leo, he is now a 6 foot 4 guy, he practices daily with our team before and still does now, he has grown and so has his skills, he was by himself most of the time that game where the starters played against the reserves but his scoring abilities are great, he's a decent defender, especially outside man on man and helping on weak side defenses, he can make an impact"
"woah woah, Larry, i am no where near the standard of NBA Players..."
"I have been coaching for a long time and i dont think thats true"
"How about the age restriction? i am 17 Larry"
"I believe we have a way around that, that rule listed in the CBA states that it is for DRAFTEES no? you are not declaring yourself for the draft, you are being signed as a Free Agent, its the same process as Michael went through when he had the urge and came back into the league for his ex-team, the Wizards"
"Well i don't know, my BMI is not looking good right now and i need to improve before i even have a chance of playing effectively for the team"
"I'll give you a while and see what happens, but this is a valid option is it not? and wont you like to play in the NBA?" said Larry
"it is my dream to play in the NBA Larry, i just dont know if i am up to that standard"
"alright guys, stop it for now, do the tasks on hand and get us through this first, if there is a need later on still, Leo, i expect you to play in my steed and help the team" said Michael
"alright"