2008–09 Charlotte Bobcats season

The 2008–09 Charlotte Bobcats season was the 19th season of the NBA basketball in Charlotte in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and their 5th as the Charlotte Bobcats.

2008–09 Charlotte Bobcats season
Head coach	Larry Brown
President	Michael Jordan
General manager	Rod Higgins
Owner(s)	Robert L. Johnson
Arena	Time Warner Cable Arena
Results
Record	35–47 (.427)
Place	Division: 4th (Southeast) Conference: 10th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	Fox Sports South, SportSouth
Radio	WOLS
< 2007–08 2009–10 >

The previous season, Charlotte finished 32–50 under coach Sam Vincent, and did not qualify for the playoffs. In response to the dismal season, co-owner and basketball operations chief Michael Jordan fired Vincent and brought in veteran coach Larry Brown.^[1] True to his reputation for turning teams around, Brown kept the young team in playoff contention well into April. They ultimately finished four games short of the first playoff appearance in their current incarnation.

Key dates

• June 26: The 2008 NBA draft took place in New York City.
• July 1: The free agency period.
• March 7: Charlotte recorded its longest winning streak in franchise history at 6 following a 114–105 win over the New York Knicks.

Offseason

2008 NBA draft

Main article: 2008 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	Position	School/Club Team
1	9	D. J. Augustin	United States	PG	Texas
1	20	Alexis Ajinça	France	C	Hyères-Toulon (France)
2	38	Kyle Weaver	United States	PG	Washington State

Injuries and surgeries

Staff changes

Michael Jordan fired coach Sam Vincent on April 27, 2008, and subsequently signed legendary coach Larry Brown 2 days later.

Roster

Charlotte Bobcats roster

• v
• t
• e

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From C 21 Alexis Ajinça 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 220 lb (100 kg) France G 14 D. J. Augustin 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Texas G 19 Raja Bell 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) FIU F 32 Boris Diaw 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) France F/C 7 DeSagana Diop 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 280 lb (127 kg) Oak Hill Academy (Virginia) G 20 Raymond Felton 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 198 lb (90 kg) North Carolina F 5 Juwan Howard 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Michigan G 2 Dontell Jefferson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 181 lb (82 kg) Arkansas G/F 1 Cartier Martin 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Kansas State PF 42 Sean May 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 266 lb (121 kg) North Carolina C 6 Nazr Mohammed 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Kentucky F/C 50 Emeka Okafor 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Connecticut F 10 Vladimir Radmanović 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 234 lb (106 kg) Serbia PG 44 Sean Singletary 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Virginia F 3 Gerald Wallace 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Alabama

Head coach Larry Brown (North Carolina) Assistant(s) Herb Brown (Vermont) Jeff Capel (Fayetteville State) Phil Ford (North Carolina} Dave Hanners (North Carolina) LaSalle Thompson (Texas) Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Regular season

Standings

Southeast Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div	GP
y-Orlando Magic	59	23	.720	—	32–9	27–14	14–2	82
x-Atlanta Hawks	47	35	.573	12	31–10	16–25	11–5	82
x-Miami Heat	43	39	.524	16	28–13	15–26	9–7	82
Charlotte Bobcats	35	47	.427	24	23–18	12–29	5–11	82
Washington Wizards	19	63	.232	40	13–28	6–35	1–15	82

#	Eastern Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Cleveland Cavaliers	66	16	.805	—
2	y-Boston Celtics	62	20	.756	4
3	y-Orlando Magic	59	23	.720	7
4	x-Atlanta Hawks	47	35	.573	19
5	x-Miami Heat	43	39	.524	23
6	x-Philadelphia 76ers	41	41	.500	25
7	x-Chicago Bulls	41	41	.500	25
8	x-Detroit Pistons	39	43	.476	27
9	Indiana Pacers	36	46	.439	30
10	Charlotte Bobcats	35	47	.427	31
11	New Jersey Nets	34	48	.415	32
12	Milwaukee Bucks	34	48	.415	32
13	Toronto Raptors	33	49	.402	33
14	New York Knicks	32	50	.390	34
15	Washington Wizards	19	63	.232	47

Game log

2008–09 game log
October: 0–1 (home: 0–0; road: 0–1) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 October 30 @ Cleveland L 79–96 Jason Richardson (24) Emeka Okafor (12) Raymond Felton (5) Quicken Loans Arena 20,562 0–1
November: 5–10 (home: 4–7; road: 1–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 2 November 1 Miami W 100–87 Gerald Wallace (34) Emeka Okafor (13) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,238 1–1 3 November 3 Detroit L 83–101 Shannon Brown (16) Gerald Wallace (12) Jason Richardson (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 11,023 1–2 4 November 5 @ New York L 98–101 Raymond Felton (18) Emeka Okafor (15) Raymond Felton (6) Madison Square Garden 17,977 1–3 5 November 7 New Orleans W 92–89 Jason Richardson, Raymond Felton (20) Emeka Okafor (10) D. J. Augustin (4) Time Warner Cable Arena 13,435 2–3 6 November 9 Toronto L 79–89 D. J. Augustin (14) Gerald Wallace (8) Raymond Felton (6) Time Warner Cable Arena 12,111 2–4 7 November 11 Denver L 80–88 Jason Richardson (23) Emeka Okafor (8) Raymond Felton (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 10,753 2–5 8 November 14 Utah W 104–96 Raymond Felton (23) Gerald Wallace (9) Raymond Felton (6) Time Warner Cable Arena 14,189 3–5 9 November 16 Orlando L 85–90 Gerald Wallace (19) Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor (9) Raymond Felton (6) Time Warner Cable Arena 12,639 3–6 10 November 18 Dallas L 83–100 D. J. Augustin (21) Emeka Okafor (9) D. J. Augustin (4) Time Warner Cable Arena 10,935 3–7 11 November 21 @ Atlanta L 83–88 D. J. Augustin (26) Emeka Okafor (11) D. J. Augustin (7) Philips Arena 15,068 3–8 12 November 22 Milwaukee L 74–79 Gerald Wallace (18) Emeka Okafor (18) Raymond Felton (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 12,096 3–9 13 November 24 Philadelphia W 93–84 D. J. Augustin (25) Emeka Okafor (9) D. J. Augustin (11) Time Warner Cable Arena 10,848 4–9 14 November 26 @ Toronto L 86–93 Gerald Wallace (23) Emeka Okafor (14) Raymond Felton (7) Air Canada Centre 17,414 4–10 15 November 28 @ Indiana W 115–108 (OT) Raymond Felton (31) Emeka Okafor (20) Raymond Felton (7) Conseco Fieldhouse 17,160 5–10 16 November 29 Boston L 84–89 Gerald Wallace (23) Gerald Wallace (8) Raymond Felton (6) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,177 5–11
December: 6–10 (home: 4–5; road: 2–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 17 December 1 Minnesota W 100–90 Jason Richardson (25) Emeka Okafor (10) Raymond Felton (14) Time Warner Cable Arena 9,285 6–11 18 December 3 Oklahoma City W 103–97 Emeka Okafor (25) Emeka Okafor (13) Raymond Felton (12) Time Warner Cable Arena 11,629 7–11 19 December 5 @ Milwaukee L 96–101 Jason Richardson (20) Emeka Okafor (8) Raymond Felton (8) Bradley Center 14,875 7–12 20 December 6 Cleveland L 74–94 D. J. Augustin (17) Emeka Okafor (8) Raymond Felton (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,133 7–13 21 December 8 @ Miami L 96–100 Jason Richardson (24) Emeka Okafor (12) Raymond Felton (8) American Airlines Arena 15,024 7–14 22 December 10 @ New Orleans L 89–105 D. J. Augustin (28) Emeka Okafor (8) D. J. Augustin (7) New Orleans Arena 15,750 7–15 23 December 11 @ Dallas L 90–95 Emeka Okafor (27) Emeka Okafor (17) D. J. Augustin (10) American Airlines Center 19,736 7–16 24 December 13 Detroit L 86–90 Gerald Wallace (22) Emeka Okafor (12) Boris Diaw (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 17,373 7–17 25 December 15 @ Atlanta L 79–83 Boris Diaw (25) Emeka Okafor (11) Raymond Felton (7) Philips Arena 12,733 7–18 26 December 16 Chicago W 110–101 (OT) D. J. Augustin (29) Emeka Okafor (13) D. J. Augustin, Raymond Felton (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 11,225 8–18 27 December 19 @ Memphis W 112–83 Boris Diaw (26) Boris Diaw (10) D. J. Augustin (10) FedExForum 11,869 9–18 28 December 20 Golden State L 103–110 Gerald Wallace (26) Emeka Okafor (13) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 13,068 9–19 29 December 23 Washington W 80–72 Emeka Okafor (29) Emeka Okafor (18) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 13,776 10–19 30 December 26 @ New Jersey W 95–87 Raymond Felton (22) Gerald Wallace (13) Boris Diaw (7) Izod Center 16,852 11–19 31 December 27 New Jersey L 103–114 (OT) Gerald Wallace (32) Emeka Okafor (10) Boris Diaw (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 15,837 11–20 32 December 30 New York L 89–93 Gerald Wallace (21) Emeka Okafor (15) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 15,108 11–21
January: 8–7 (home: 5–1; road: 3–6) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 33 January 2 @ Milwaukee L 75–103 Boris Diaw (16) Emeka Okafor (12) Boris Diaw (6) Bradley Center 15,107 11–22 34 January 3 Milwaukee W 102–92 Gerald Wallace (24) Boris Diaw, Raymond Felton, Emeka Okafor (6) Boris Diaw (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 14,201 12–22 35 January 6 Boston W 114–106 (OT) Raymond Felton (25) Emeka Okafor (17) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 17,112 13–22 36 January 7 @ Cleveland L 81–111 Raymond Felton (15) Boris Diaw (8) Boris Diaw (6) Quicken Loans Arena 20,562 13–23 37 January 9 @ Philadelphia L 87–93 Emeka Okafor (24) Emeka Okafor (11) Raymond Felton (8) Wachovia Center 14,235 13–24 38 January 10 @ Washington W 92–89 Raja Bell (19) Emeka Okafor (6) Raymond Felton (11) Verizon Center 20,173 14–24 39 January 13 @ Detroit W 80–78 Raymond Felton (23) Gerald Wallace (10) Raymond Felton (9) The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076 15–24 40 January 17 Portland W 102–97 (OT) Gerald Wallace (31) Gerald Wallace (16) Raymond Felton, Boris Diaw (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 17,482 16–24 41 January 19 San Antonio L 84–86 Raja Bell (25) Boris Diaw (13) Raymond Felton (9) Time Warner Cable Arena 16,160 16–25 42 January 21 Memphis W 101–86 Raja Bell (25) Emeka Okafor (15) Gerald Wallace (9) Time Warner Cable Arena 11,249 17–25 43 January 23 Phoenix W 98–76 Gerald Wallace (28) Boris Diaw (11) Raja Bell (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,104 18–25 44 January 25 @ Indiana L 93–98 Raja Bell, Boris Diaw (18) Emeka Okafor (8) Raymond Felton (12) Conseco Fieldhouse 10,936 18–26 45 January 27 @ L.A. Lakers W 117–110 (2OT) Boris Diaw (23) Raymond Felton, Emeka Okafor (11) Boris Diaw, Raymond Felton (9) Staples Center 18,997 19–26 46 January 28 @ Portland L 74–88 Emeka Okafor (18) Emeka Okafor, Raymond Felton (5) Raymond Felton (8) Rose Garden 20,380 19–27 47 January 30 @ Denver L 99–110 Raja Bell (27) DeSagana Diop (7) Raymond Felton (9) Pepsi Center 18,463 19–28
February: 6–7 (home: 3–2; road: 3–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 48 February 2 @ Utah L 86–105 Raymond Felton (16) Emeka Okafor (7) Raymond Felton (9) EnergySolutions Arena 19,911 19–29 49 February 6 Atlanta L 97–102 Raja Bell (17) Emeka Okafor (19) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 15,140 19–30 50 February 8 @ Miami L 92–96 D. J. Augustin (27) Emeka Okafor (8) Raymond Felton (11) American Airlines Arena 17,656 19–31 51 February 9 L.A. Clippers W 94–73 Emeka Okafor (19) Emeka Okafor (16) Boris Diaw (9) Time Warner Cable Arena 10,852 20–31 52 February 11 Washington W 101–89 D. J. Augustin (24) Emeka Okafor (13) Raymond Felton (9) Time Warner Cable Arena 10,237 21–31 53 February 17 @ Orlando L 102–107 (OT) Raymond Felton (22) Raymond Felton (10) Raymond Felton (5) Amway Arena 17,461 21–32 54 February 18 Indiana W 103–94 Gerald Wallace (25) Emeka Okafor (12) Gerald Wallace (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 12,374 22–32 55 February 20 Orlando L 80–92 Raymond Felton (16) Emeka Okafor (11) Raymond Felton (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,244 22–33 56 February 22 @ Houston L 78–99 Boris Diaw, Emeka Okafor, Raymond Felton (13) Emeka Okafor (11) Raymond Felton (4) Toyota Center 17,124 22–34 57 February 24 @ Phoenix L 102–112 Boris Diaw (27) Boris Diaw (10) Raymond Felton (9) US Airways Center 18,422 22–35 58 February 25 @ Sacramento W 98–91 Gerald Wallace (27) Emeka Okafor (11) Raymond Felton (9) ARCO Arena 10,439 23–35 59 February 27 @ Golden State W 112–109 Raymond Felton (26) Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor (11) Raymond Felton (9) Oracle Arena 18,653 24–35 60 February 28 @ L.A. Clippers W 100–95 Emeka Okafor (28) Emeka Okafor, Gerald Wallace (9) D. J. Augustin (8) Staples Center 16,349 25–35
March: 9–5 (home: 6–2; road: 3–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 61 March 3 Chicago W 96–80 Raymond Felton, Raja Bell (18) Emeka Okafor (10) Raymond Felton (9) Time Warner Cable Arena 14,216 26–35 62 March 6 Atlanta W 98–91 Gerald Wallace (21) Emeka Okafor (11) Boris Diaw (13) Time Warner Cable Arena 15,058 27–35 63 March 7 @ New York W 114–105 Gerald Wallace (23) Gerald Wallace (13) Raymond Felton (10) Madison Square Garden 19,763 28–35 64 March 10 @ San Antonio L 86–100 Emeka Okafor, Raja Bell (16) DeSagana Diop, Gerald Wallace (7) Boris Diaw (8) AT&T Center 18,254 28–36 65 March 13 Houston L 86–91 Gerald Wallace (17) Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor (8) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 16,809 28–37 66 March 14 @ Minnesota L 100–108 Gerald Wallace (26) Gerald Wallace (10) Raymond Felton (5) Target Center 15,276 28–38 67 March 16 Toronto W 112–86 Gerald Wallace (25) Vladimir Radmanović, Gerald Wallace (9) Raymond Felton (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 11,349 29–38 68 March 18 Sacramento W 104–88 Gerald Wallace (25) Gerald Wallace (12) Raymond Felton (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 13,594 30–38 69 March 20 @ Toronto W 102–89 Boris Diaw, Gerald Wallace (30) Gerald Wallace (9) Gerald Wallace (8) Air Canada Centre 18,641 31–38 70 March 21 Indiana L 83–108 Boris Diaw (15) Emeka Okafor (9) Raymond Felton, Gerald Wallace (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 15,721 31–39 71 March 25 @ Washington L 93–95 Gerald Wallace (21) Gerald Wallace (11) Raymond Felton (8) Verizon Center 14,657 31–40 72 March 27 @ Philadelphia W 100–95 Boris Diaw (24) Gerald Wallace (11) Boris Diaw (6) Wachovia Center 19,098 32–40 73 March 28 New York W 96–85 Gerald Wallace (23) Emeka Okafor (14) Gerald Wallace (8) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,133 33–40 74 March 31 L.A. Lakers W 94–84 Gerald Wallace (21) Gerald Wallace (13) Boris Diaw (12) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,568 34–40
April: 1–7 (home: 1–1; road: 0–6) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 75 April 1 @ Boston L 109–111 (2OT) Gerald Wallace (20) Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor (10) Raymond Felton (12) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 34–41 76 April 3 Miami L 92–97 Gerald Wallace (21) Emeka Okafor (13) Raymond Felton (10) Time Warner Cable Arena 19,568 34–42 77 April 5 @ Detroit L 97–104 D. J. Augustin (22) Emeka Okafor (16) Boris Diaw (6) The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076 34–43 78 April 7 Philadelphia W 101–98 Raymond Felton (32) Emeka Okafor (12) Boris Diaw, D. J. Augustin (6) Time Warner Cable Arena 16,499 35–43 79 April 10 @ Oklahoma City L 81–84 D. J. Augustin (20) Gerald Wallace (14) Raymond Felton (5) Ford Center 19,136 35–44 80 April 11 @ Chicago L 106–113 Raymond Felton (26) Emeka Okafor (14) D. J. Augustin (8) United Center 20,265 35–45 81 April 13 @ New Jersey L 87–91 Raymond Felton (19) DeSagana Diop, Boris Diaw, Emeka Okafor (5) Raymond Felton (5) Izod Center 14,519 35–46 82 April 15 @ Orlando L 73–98 Raymond Felton (13) Gerald Wallace (10) Dontell Jefferson (4) Amway Arena 17,461 35–47
2015–16 season schedule

Player statistics

Ragular season

Player	POS	GP	GS	MP	REB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	MPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Raymond Felton	PG	82	81	3,086	310	553	126	30	1,162	37.6	3.8	6.7	1.5	.4	14.2
Emeka Okafor	C	82	81	2,691	827	53	48	136	1,085	32.8	10.1	.6	.6	1.7	13.2
D. J. Augustin	PG	72	12	1,908	133	250	42	2	850	26.5	1.8	3.5	.6	.0	11.8
Gerald Wallace	SF	71	71	2,669	553	189	121	67	1,182	37.6	7.8	2.7	1.7	.9	16.6
Boris Diaw†	PF	59	59	2,216	348	287	50	44	889	37.6	5.9	4.9	.8	.7	15.1
Raja Bell†	SG	45	44	1,603	179	113	37	6	587	35.6	4.0	2.5	.8	.1	13.0
Adam Morrison†	SF	44	5	667	72	38	9	4	199	15.2	1.6	.9	.2	.1	4.5
DeSagana Diop†	C	41	1	584	155	19	17	31	114	14.2	3.8	.5	.4	.8	2.8
Juwan Howard†	SF	39	2	450	72	24	6	5	171	11.5	1.8	.6	.2	.1	4.4
Nazr Mohammed	C	39	1	341	79	8	5	16	104	8.7	2.0	.2	.1	.4	2.7
Matt Carroll†	SG	34	10	475	55	24	18	5	139	14.0	1.6	.7	.5	.1	4.1
Cartier Martin	SF	33	1	266	33	13	8	4	86	8.1	1.0	.4	.2	.1	2.6
Vladimir Radmanović†	SF	32	3	674	105	43	18	8	267	21.1	3.3	1.3	.6	.3	8.3
Alexis Ajinça	PF	31	4	182	30	3	7	6	70	5.9	1.0	.1	.2	.2	2.3
Shannon Brown†	SG	30	0	341	24	28	18	5	144	11.4	.8	.9	.6	.2	4.8
Sean May	PF	24	12	301	69	10	5	4	93	12.5	2.9	.4	.2	.2	3.9
Sean Singletary†	PG	24	1	181	19	17	5	0	56	7.5	.8	.7	.2	.0	2.3
Jared Dudley†	SF	20	7	427	59	19	18	2	108	21.4	3.0	1.0	.9	.1	5.4
Ryan Hollins†	C	18	1	184	36	4	3	17	64	10.2	2.0	.2	.2	.9	3.6
Jason Richardson†	SG	14	14	491	58	36	14	3	262	35.1	4.1	2.6	1.0	.2	18.7
Dontell Jefferson	SG	6	0	84	12	9	4	1	29	14.0	2.0	1.5	.7	.2	4.8
Dwayne Jones	PF	6	0	52	12	0	0	1	12	8.7	2.0	.0	.0	.2	2.0
Andre Brown	PF	4	0	41	12	1	1	0	4	10.3	3.0	.3	.3	.0	1.0
Linton Johnson†	PF	2	0	13	0	0	0	0	0	6.5	.0	.0	.0	.0	.0

• ^† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Bobcats only.

Awards, records and milestones

NBA All-Rookie Second Team

• D. J. Augustin^[2]

Transactions

• On July 7, the Bobcats hired Herb Brown to be an assistant coach.^[3] Herb Brown spent the past four seasons as an assistant in Atlanta. Charlotte is the ninth team he's worked for as an assistant. He served as head coach in Pistons for three seasons from 1975 to 1978.
• On July 25, the Bobcats agreed to terms with restricted free agent Ryan Hollins.^[4]
• On July 29, the Bobcats agreed to terms with restricted free agent Emeka Okafor.^[5] The Charlotte Observer reported the deal is for six years and $72 million.^[6]

Trades

August 12, 2008	To Charlotte Bobcats 2009 2nd Round Selection	To Oklahoma City Thunder Kyle Weaver[7]
December 10, 2008	To Charlotte Bobcats Raja Bell, Boris Diaw, Sean Singletary	To Phoenix Suns Jason Richardson, Jared Dudley, 2010 2nd Round Selection[8]
January 16, 2009	To Charlotte Bobcats DeSagana Diop	To Dallas Mavericks Matt Carroll, Ryan Hollins
February 7, 2009	To Charlotte Bobcats Vladimir Radmanovic	To Los Angeles Lakers Adam Morrison, Shannon Brown

Free agents

Additions Player Signed Former team Shannon Brown[9] August 6, 2008 Chicago Bulls Juwan Howard[10] December 12, 2008 Denver Nuggets

Subtractions Player Left New team Othella Harrington July 1, 2008 Earl Boykins[11] August 6, 2008 Virtus Bologna (Italy)