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June 26, 2008
Augustin, Ajinca and Weaver Selected | Augustin Reaction | Video - Draft Night | Bobcats Draft Gallery | Bobcats Draft Party Gallery | Draft Central
On Thursday, the Bobcats added three new members to their roster, selecting D.J. Augustin (9th overall), Alexis Ajinca (20th overall) and Kyle Weaver (38th overall) in the 2008 NBA Draft. Bobcats Managing Member of Basketball Operations Michael Jordan, General Manager Rod Higgins and Head Coach Larry Brown met with the media following the selections.
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Bobcats Managing Member of Basketball Operations Michael Jordan
(On the draft)
I thought we did a good job. We had a lot prospects. Being in the first half of the draft, then in the second half of the draft and in the second round presents a lot of observation of talent. The staff did a great job of dissecting what our needs were and what talents were available. We’ve been working for the past month or so just trying to evaluate the talent. We have to be very happy with our picks. We feel like we had to address certain needs. We got talent. We’re just going to try to continue to evaluate and see what’s best for this team. I think Larry’s (Brown) is happy. I know I’m happy. I think Rod (Higgins) is happy. Bob (Johnson) is definitely happy.
(On the options the team had at number nine)
We explored a lot of options. We thought about moving up in the draft. We tried to move up in the draft. We had to look at what was going to be of value to everybody on the team. When you talk about (Jerryd) Bayless and (D.J.) Augustin, we felt like Augustin would be better at the point guard situation. We felt like Bayless is going to play very similar to what Raymond (Felton) does. He can go combo and do a little bit more. But Augustin could involve a lot of our roster, make Matt Carroll a lot better, make Adam Morrison a lot better and make our big guys run the court a little bit better than what Bayless would have done for us. We looked at (Brook) Lopez. We were really close with Lopez, but when we looked at what Augustin could provide for us, I just felt like Augustin was a little bit better for our team with the way our team is set up right now.
(On if there were any selections early in the draft that changed their selection)
This is somewhat of a mind game. No one is going to give you their true picks, so you almost have be second guessing and trying to evaluate what they are going to do and what’s going to be there for you. Before the first guy at four, we pretty much understood what the first three picks were. We didn’t know what was going to be done after that, but we had all our options and we were prepared to go with another option if Augustin wasn’t there. We spent the last three days trying to figure out what everybody was doing in the five positions in front of us. We knew what one, two, three were going to be. We went back and forth about possibly moving up the draft to four to try to control our own destiny in a sense, but when we tried to do that, they tried to ask for way too much. It was pretty exhausting it terms of all the different options we were weighing.
(On the depth of the draft influencing their decision to get the 20th pick)
That’s one of the reasons we tried to get the 20th pick because we felt like if we could get a guard (at nine) it could push a big guy down to us at 20 and we could cover both needs in some respects. Having 38 was too big of a gamble trying to get a big guy or a point guard, so it was very important to get the second first round pick.
(On if they are going to do everything they can to try to re-sign Emeka Okafor)
We are. We are going to do everything, but sometimes negotiations can be tough. We felt like we put out a great value for Emeka (Okafor) last year and here we are we are dealing with the same situation. Not just with Emeka, having Ajinca for us, protects us with Sean coming back. We have a guy that can hopefully give us some minutes in both spots. He’s a great outside shooter. We still have young kids developing in Jermareo (Davidson) and (Jared) Dudley coming in too. It kind of gave us a little bit more debt in the big man position to try to go out and find someone, not just to protect us against Okafor, but to give the coaches as many options as possible.
(On how this impacts negotiations with Raymond Felton)
We didn’t have another point guard last year and obviously we felt like we needed to shore up another point guard because Raymond can play two positions for us. We anticipate signing Raymond. We’re not going in with the idea that we’re not going to keep Raymond.
(On if Ajinca can come in and play right away)
I think we’re going to keep our options open. We want to get the kid in and get him some experience here in the States. He’s played professionally in Europe, so he’s gained some knowledge about professional basketball, but it’s a little bit different here. Physically he’s going to have to put on some weight. He can play in this league with his scoring ability, but his defense is going to take some adjusting and his physical capability is going to take some adjusting. I don’t think the Coach wants to throw him out there and put heavy minutes on him. I think he wants to expose him to the game and see what he can provide, then let him grow within it. I don’t think it’s too far fetched to get the guy some minutes over here in the States.
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Bobcats Head Coach Larry Brown
(On the draft)
I can voice the same thing Michael (Jordan) did. I think the staff was really prepared. This is my first draft here, but all the scouts did an amazing job. We got most of the players in that we were considering. It’s hard to find a point guard and a long kid. Anytime you look at a draft, point guards and big guys are hard to find. We got two positions that are very difficult to fill. We got really (good) character kids. Like Michael said I think we are really excited about what happened.
(On if the character of the players influenced their decision)
I know what this franchise stands for with Michael (Jordan) and Rod (Higgins) involved. From our background, we wanted kids that would represent this team the right way. We wanted kids that loved to play, that were good teammates, that had the ability to learn and get better and I think both those kids fit that criteria. D.J. (Augustin) played at a very high level and he plays a position that is very difficult to fill. I remember when I watched Bernie (Bickerstaff) coach when they had Brevin Knight and Raymond (Felton) and those two kids played together and did an extremely good job. Now you have Jason Richardson. It’s a situation that’s really made for a kid like D.J. He’ll make our players better. The other kid, if he was in the draft next year, he might be in the top three or four picks in the draft. He’s long, athletic, can shoot the ball and he just loves to play. When he came here, he blew me away with his athleticism and motor. It was a good day for us.
(On the depth of the draft)
When you look at Augustin’s selection, we recognized the depth at the draft. At 20 we had an awful lot of big guys that Rod and Michael really liked along with the staff so we were pretty confident that we would have an opportunity to draft a big kid that would come in here and give us some things that we were looking for. That made the ninth pick a little different.
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Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins
(On the draft)
We got two young kids who will come in and play right away for us. I think those guys have obviously paid their dues. D.J. (Augustin) as well as Alexis (Ajinca) are quality players and we look forward to bringing them into our family. I think Coach is excited. I’m very excited. It’s been a lot of hard work. The staff was very ready to make that decision.
(On if there is any possibility that Ajinca would stay in Europe)
That’s something we have to decide upon. We have to negotiate with him. He has a small buyout, but that’s a minimal thing. I think his upside is tremendous. His wingspan will obviously create some defensive plusses for us. We’re not saying that (we would leave him in Europe).
Wisconsin Force:
Kyle Weaver is the best pick for the Bobcats. He's a 6'6 PG that can shoot it. He's a throw back of Magic Johnson and George Garvin all in one. Very smooth and long. He'll give PG who are guarding him alot of trouble, you watch and see.
Kerry:
DJ would be very useful since Raymond hasn't live up to the hype ever since he was drafted fifth. The aging Boykins should be replaced with DJ and I hope DJ will shine. It would be too hard for Kyle to be in the rotation since the Bobcats already have tons of solid swingmen like J-Rich, G-Wall, Adam, Matt, and Jared. I doubt Alex would get much time either unless he could replace Ryan as a backup Center.
sloelover7:
i think the Bobcats did an exellent job on addressing the needs of the team...especially @ the pg spot..great second pick in case a deal isn't worked out with Okafor...i'm looking forward to this team making the playoffs this year..once this teams learn to close out games the playoffs should be a given...thats where Coach Brown will play a big part..
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