Bob's Keeping the Cats

Perhaps spurned on by the Charlotte Observer's Tom Sorensen asserting that he was interested in selling the team, Bobcats owner is now declaring just the opposite, but with classic dysfunctional Bobcat style...

According to an AP article, Johnson was quoted as saying, "I'm not selling the team. We have had calls from people wanting to know if they would want additional investors in the team. But there have been no discussions and I'm not interested in selling the team." Less than a week after this shameful display, it's one step forward, two steps back for the Bobcats. Johnson again emphasized the primary concern of the team, "So we're doing the things we believe are most critical to drive the value of this team and to demonstrate to the community that we are committed to winning with our basketball product." At least Johnson mentioned winning, even if it did follow "value" in priority. He also seemed to offer a backhanded compliment to Michael Jordan. "He's going to be more involved, I think, this year than he has been in the past because he's got the coach here that he wants," Johnson said. "And he recognizes that he now has had two years of putting the Michael Jordan stamp on the team. So it's sort of his team that he has to now prove can do what he expects it to do. He's very much focused on his basketball obligations here in Charlotte." The idea that MJ prioritizes other things over the Bobcats is not a new one, but a public acknowledgment by the owner again leaves Bobcat fans wondering about continuing to invest in a team whose collective values are so out of whack.