How bad is it in Charlotte?
November 17th, 2008
Just before training camp the organization fired 35 employees, and THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER reported that (team owner and BET founder Robert) Johnson wanted to eliminate regional radio broadcasts of the team’s games as a cost-cutting measure, a stratagem he was reportedly talked out of—in no uncertain terms—by the league office. (Johnson declined SI’s interview request.)
Could you imagine an NBA team yanking its product off the radio? We watched the Winter Hawks do it a couple of seasons ago with disastrous effects, if only to their most ardent fans. Nothing says cheap like ditching the local media.
HT: Bobcats Baseline
Categories: Sports
Yeah, it is apparently pretty bad. Bob Johnson is in over his head and the community is just not getting behind him AT ALL. Compare this to what the Hornets did in the 90s under George Shinn. We led the League in attendance for most of the decade with a squad that never advanced past the semi-finals. Say what you will about Shinn but at least he knew how to interact with the locals.
Bad ownership/management = Bad product.
It’s a curious thing to watch. It’s not like Johnson isn’t smart and isn’t capable of finding smart people to run his organization. Just throwing a couple of face cards out there like Jordan and Brown isn’t going to get the job done. It takes competence. Brown, I think has it, but no one else in that organization does.