What Went Right?
The younger players found their groove and were able to produce in the second half of last season. Matt Carroll was able to emerge as a top bench player around the league by averaging 12 points per game and shooting percentages of 43%, 41.6%, and 90.4% from the field, three-point line, and free throw line, respectively. Raymond Felton had a solid second year by scoring 14 points and handing out 7 assists per contest. Emeka Okafor battled through injuries most of the year and was able to contribute 14.4 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks every night. Walter Herrmann stepped into the rotation late in the year and finished by averaging 9.2 points and shooting 52.7% (fg), 46.1% (3p), and 77.4% (ft). The Bobs finished the year with a 7-5 record down the stretch in which Walter Herrmann started all 12 games. Charlotte broke the 30 wins mark for the first time in franchise history and finished with a record of 33-49.

What Went Wrong?
Not only was this team very young but they had numerous crippling injuries. They used 25 different starting lineups through the season. Okafor missed 15 games (they went 4-11 without him). Sean May missed 47 games. Brevin Knight missed 45 games. Gerald Wallace missed 10 games and Primoz Brezec missed 24 games. The #3 pick in the draft, Adam Morrison, was not able to translate his collegiate success to the NBA hardwood. He struggled shooting the ball all year long and while able to put up 11.8 points per game, he shot under 40% for the season.

Off-Season Overview
The Bobcats showed that they are willing to spend some money to have a team with a chance to win. They re-signed Gerald Wallace and Matt Carroll to long term, lucrative deals. The Bobs traded their #8 draft selection of Brandan Wright for a proven, and yet oft-injured, scorer, Jason Richardson. They drafted Jared Dudley out of Boston College to add some fire to the bench. They let Brevin Knight go and decided to keep McInnis as the backup point guard in an effort to save some money after the spending spree that happened in July.
Players Added- Small Forward Gerald Wallace (Re-signed), Shooting Guard Matt Carroll (Re-signed), Point Guard Jeff McInnis (Re-signed), Shooting Guard Jason Richardson (Trade, Golden State), Small Forward Jared Dudley (Draft), Power Forward Jermareo Davidson (Draft)
Players Lost- Center Jake Voskuhl (Free Agent, Milwaukee), Point Guard Brevin Knight (Waived, Clippers), Forward Brandan Wright (Trade, Golden State)

Phil Barnett's Impact Players-
Charlotte is slowly and quietly building a competitive basketball team the same way the Bulls have been doing it, drafting young and talented guys that are proven winners. They might not contend this year, but they will continue to improve and is a potential playoff team in the next couple of years.

Breakout Player: Last year Raymond Felton spent the season quietly filling up the stat sheet (14ppg, 7.0apg, 3.4rpg, 1.5spg) while sharing the point guard responsibilities with Brevin Knight. This season he’ll be on the floor a lot more with Knight gone. Felton’s numbers should be much improved this year.

Disappointing Player: Jason Richardson is a long ways away from the guy that won the dunk contest in 2003 and 2004. He is going to have to produce big numbers to be worth that 51 million dollar contract the Bobcats gave him. He’s been injury prone lately and will have to find ways to share touches with Gerald Wallace, who lead the Bobcats in scoring last season.

FantasyInsideronline.com Fantasy Sleeper-
Walter Herrmann, Forward - During the last 12 games of the season, Herrmann started for the Bobcats and was able to produce great numbers. He averaged 37 minutes per game and got 19 points, 5.6 rebounds, and shot a ridiculous 58.5% from the field and 48% (on 58 attempts) from beyond the arc. This season, with Adam Morrison likely out for the year, Herrmann is guaranteed a regular spot in the rotation as long as he stays healthy. Expecting 12 to 14 points and high shooting percentages is not out of the realm of possibility. I see him doing at least that well.

Best-Case Scenario
Raymond Felton, armed with wing scorers Gerald Wallace and Jason Richardson, are able to score at will on the opposition and put themselves in playoff position. Emeka Okafor plays a career high 80 games and is able to be a dominant force on the glass and defensive end. The injuries to May and Morrison don't slow down a developing bench that provides plenty of scoring thanks to Matt Carroll, Walter Herrmann, and Jeff McInnis. New coach, Sam Vincent, turns this squad into a defensive juggernaut that is opportunistic and able to capitalize on that. The Bobcats post their first non-losing record of the franchise's short history and grabs the 8th and final seed in the East.

Worst Case Scenario
The Bobcats are still unable to pull it together with their young talent and finish the year with another sub-.500 season. Emeka Okafor isn't able to stay injury free and the absences of May and Morrison leave the bench too thin to make up for the missing players. Raymond Felton isn't able to turn the corner and become a very good point guard which leaves the team at his mercy on most nights. Jason Richardson proves to be less effective in the Bobcats' much slower tempo. Gerald Wallace goes back to being reckless and suffers tough injuries throughout the year.

Talkhoops.net Prediction- 4th in Division, 13th in East
It's going to be something in the middle. The Bobcats are looking to start winning this year but they still might be one year away. Richardson is going to have a much harder time creating quality shots without a playmaker like Baron Davis setting him up. The Bobcats are still fairly thin in the backcourt in terms of depth and will struggle with McInnis running the team. The Bobcats will probably start out slowly in the season with adapting to Sam Vincent's new system. I see them playing much better down the stretch, winning around 35 games and missing the playoffs by 3 or 4 games.