CBSSports.com wire reports
Jan. 25, 2012

WASHINGTON — Randy Wittman didn’t sleep on Tuesday night. Excited and nervous about his debut as Washington Wizards coach, Wittman couldn’t wait to get started.

His players couldn’t wait, either.

The Wizards led throughout the game and blew out the woeful Charlotte Bobcats 92-75 on Wednesday.

Washington is still just 3-15, but after the Wizards quickly built a 20-point lead and didn’t blow it, Wittman was eager to talk about the win.

Replacing his old friend Flip Saunders, who was fired Tuesday morning, wasn’t his choice. Given a contract to coach only through the end of the season by team president Ernie Grunfeld, Wittman said there was no magic in the win.

“There’s nothing to critique tonight,” Wittman said. “This is tough — the things we’ve gone through — this is tough.”

Nick Young scored 20 points, and Andray Blatche had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Wizards, who didn’t have the benefit of a practice. Saunders’ lead assistant has been an NBA coach twice — with Minnesota and Cleveland. His career record improved to 101-207.

He didn’t change the starting lineup.

“All these guys get a clean slate with me,” Wittman said before the game.

When Grunfeld fired Saunders, he explained that the team needed “a new voice.”

Blatche, who had clashed with Saunders on numerous occasions, tried to be conciliatory toward both the old and new coach.

“I can’t honestly say we needed a new voice,” Blatche said. “We just needed somebody to actually check us — like Wittman did. That’s what we needed.”

JaVale McGee, whose showboat dunk on Jan. 16 caused a huge rift between he and Saunders, was reluctant to say the team needed a new coach.

“That’s Ernie’s opinion, and I’m going to let it be Ernie’s opinion,” McGee said.

Wittman likened his team’s fight against mistakes to a smoker trying to quit.

“I’ve got to help them kick some of those bad habits. That’s all it is – we’ve just fallen into a way that’s not conducive to us to win, so when I see them pull out a cigarette, I have to take it out of their mouth,” Wittman said.

Washington started off brilliantly against a team with even more problems. The Bobcats, who have lost six straight, are now 3-16 and were missing their top two scorers: Gerald Henderson and D.J. Augustin.

Matt Carroll scored 17 points and rookie Cory Higgins had a season-high 13 for the Bobcats. Tyrus Thomas also had 13 points and blocked nine shots – one short of a team record.

“Talent is what’s most important in this league. If you don’t have the talent, it’s very difficult to win, it’s very difficult to execute, it’s very difficult to do anything,” Charlotte coach Paul Silas said. “Right now, we just don’t have that. As I said last night, take three or four of your best players off any team, and you’re not gonna play well. Our scorers, our two leading scorers are not playing, how are we gonna score?”

John Wall scored 12 points for the Wizards, who broke a three-game losing streak. Washington had a 31-17 advantage after one. The second quarter was even worse for Charlotte. The Bobcats missed their first seven shots of the quarter and finished 5 for 20 in the period, scoring just 11 points and trailing 48-28 at halftime.

The Bobcats used a 9-0 run early in the third to cut the lead to 50-37, but Washington soon pushed the lead to 25 and led 71-49 heading into the fourth.

Notes

• Henderson was a late scratch with a bruised lower back. Earlier in the day, the team exercised its fourth-year option on him. Carroll started in Henderson’s place. Henderson said that he decided not to play after he warmed up.
• Augustin will miss at least three more games with an inflamed right big toe. Silas isn’t sure how long Augustin will be out. “It’s difficult to know, but the one thing we were concerned about is a fracture and he doesn’t have that. So we’ll just have to wait and see how long it’s gonna take him,” Silas said.
• Wizards F/C Ronny Turiaf says he’s still a few weeks away from returning after breaking his left hand on Jan. 1.
• Washington hired a new assistant coach, Joe Connelly.
• The Wizards (23) and Charlotte (22) both tied season highs for turnovers.

Nick Young scored 20 points, and Andray Blatche had 17 points
and 10 rebounds to lead the Washington Wizards to a 92-75 win over
the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night in Randy Wittman’s first
game as coach.

Wittman took over for the fired Flip Saunders on Tuesday, and
guided the team without the benefit of a practice. Saunders’ lead
assistant has been an NBA coach twice _ with Minnesota and
Cleveland. His career record improved to 101-207.

He didn’t change the starting lineup.

“All these guys get a clean slate with me,” Wittman said.

They started off brilliantly against a team with even more
problems. The Bobcats, who have lost six straight, are now 3-16 and
were missing their top two scorers: Gerald Henderson and D.J.
Augustin.

Matt Carroll scored 17 points and rookie Cory Higgins had a
season-high 13 for the Bobcats. Tyrus Thomas also had 13 points and
blocked nine shots _ one short of a team record.

John Wall scored 12 points for the Wizards, who broke a
three-game losing streak but are still just 3-15.

Washington led throughout and had a 31-17 advantage after one.
The second quarter was even worse for Charlotte. The Bobcats missed
their first seven shots of the quarter and finished 5 for 20 in the
period, scoring just 11 points and trailing 48-28 at halftime.

The Bobcats used a 9-0 run early in the third to cut the lead to
50-37, but Washington soon pushed the lead to 25 and led 71-49
heading into the fourth.

NOTES: Henderson was a late scratch with a bruised lower back.
Earlier in the day, the team exercised its fourth-year option on
him. Carroll started in Henderson’s place. … Augustin will miss
at least three more games with an inflamed right big toe. Coach
Paul Silas isn’t sure how long Augustin will be out. “It’s
difficult to know, but the one thing we were concerned about is a
fracture and he doesn’t have that. So we’ll just have to wait and
see how long it’s gonna take him,” Silas said. … Wizards F/C
Ronny Turiaf says he’s still a few weeks away from returning after
breaking his left hand on Jan. 1. … Washington hired a new
assistant coach, Joe Connelly. … Charlotte tied a season high
with 22 turnovers.

AP Photo/Chuck Burton

In this photo made Jan. 10, 2012, Charlotte Bobcats’ Byron Mullens (22) shoots during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Houston Rockets in Charlotte, N.C. Mullens sat the bench for two seasons in Oklahoma City, but he’s making the most of his opportunity since being traded to the Bobcats.

Byron Mullens knew it wouldn’t be easy to win over Charlotte Bobcats fans.
Mullens had only scored 39 points in 26 games during his two seasons with the Thunder, so he understood the criticism in Charlotte when the Bobcats sent a 2013 second-round pick to the Thunder to get him.
“When I got traded here a lot of people were kind of upset and saying, ‘Why did we trade for this guy?’” Mullens said.
But three weeks into his tenure with the Bobcats, Mullens has quickly developed into a fan favorite because of the instant offense he’s provided off the bench.
He’s third on the Bobcats in scoring behind D.J. Augustin and Gerald Henderson, averaging 11 points and 4.7 rebounds despite playing less than 20 minutes per game.
The 7-foot center has impressed with his midrange jump shot, shooting better than 49 percent from the field and scoring in double digits in six of his last eight games.
He’s been one of the few bright spots on a 2-8 team
“I worked my butt off the last two years and had nothing to show for it,” Mullens said. “I sat on the bench and a lot of people didn’t know who I was.”
Mullens doesn’t mind playing 20 minutes a game.
After his time with the Thunder — some of which was spent with the club’s developmental league team in Tulsa — Mullens will take whatever he can get.
“We’d be up 20 or down 20, and I still wouldn’t play,” he said.
A few days into training camp, Thunder general manager Sam Presti came to Mullens and told him he was considering dealing him to the Bobcats because there simply weren’t many opportunities behind Kendrick Perkins, Nazr Mohammed and Cole Aldrich.
“He said to me, ‘You’re a good player and you’re not going to play here. I’m going to send you to a place you’ll play,’” Mullens said.
Mullens was thrilled.
He figured all he needed was an opportunity. He’d take care of the rest.
“It feels good, I’m not going to lie,” Mullens said of his increased playing time in Charlotte.
Mullens already has broken his career high in points scored three times this season, topping out with 17 last Friday night in an overtime defeat to the Atlanta Hawks. A night later he posted his first double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in a loss at Indiana. On Tuesday, he led the Bobcats with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
He also made his first 19 free throws.
Coach Paul Silas has been impressed with Mullens’ outside shooting, saying it gives the Bobcats another dimension. He says Mullens’ playing time going forward will depend on how well he can rebound and play defense.
He thinks Mullens’ play has been “encouraging.”
“Here’s a guy that wasn’t playing at all in the league and now he’s scoring and rebounding,” said Silas, whose team embarks on a stretch of three games in three days beginning Thursday in Atlanta. “He’s coming along. It’s taking some time but I think he’ll get there.”
There’s been some talk among the coaching staff of starting Mullens, but Silas isn’t quite ready to pull that trigger. Instead, Silas went with Gana Diop as his starter the last two games against the Pacers and Rockets.
Mullens isn’t complaining.
“I think coming off the bench has been very positive for me because it gives me a lot of time to see what’s happening on the floor and see what I need to do that will help the team,” Mullens said. “That’s really what I try to do is come off the bench and pick it up, give our team that spark, whether that be points or rebounds.”
And his teammates know he can provide it.
“When he comes in I’m always trying to get him the ball,” said Augustin. “The guy can shoot.”
Mullens feels reborn in Charlotte — and welcome, too.
During Charlotte’s lethargic performance Tuesday night against Houston, a restless crowd began looking for something positive to cheer about and found it in Mullens.
The chants seemed to come out of nowhere, but in unison: “Let’s go Byron!”
As for his relationship with the fans, Mullens has developed a loyal following on Twitter.
“I’m loving it here,” Mullens said. “I’m talking to all of my fans on Twitter and just trying to stay connected with them and giving them thanks for all of their support. And that’s helped me out a lot. They’ve given me support and I’ve got to go out there and give it to them by playing my butt off every night.”

The struggling Charlotte Bobcats haven’t played many close games in the new
year, though one of those tight contests came against the Atlanta Hawks less
than a week ago.

They still couldn’t earn a victory, which have been few and far between for
the Bobcats this season.

Atlanta looks to beat Charlotte for the eighth time in the last nine
matchups at Philips Arena when the teams meet Thursday night.

The Bobcats (2-8) have been beaten by at least 12 points four times in their
seven games since Jan. 1, including an 82-70 loss to Houston on Tuesday. It
marked their fewest points in a home game since a 93-62 loss to Boston on Dec.
11, 2010.

“I thought we were tired and couldn’t really do anything, couldn’t execute,
couldn’t run, couldn’t defend,” coach Paul Silas said after his team’s fourth
game in five nights..

D.J. Augustin went 4 for 13 and had 11 points, while Boris Diaw scored four
points and finished 2 for 13.

“It’s just one of those nights. Even layups. We had shots right at the hoop
but we couldn’t convert,” Silas said. “We just didn’t have it. We played a tough
game Monday night (in New York), and then to come back and have to play, that’s
rough. It’s rough.”

It wasn’t the first time Silas mentioned fatigue as a reason for the
Bobcats’ struggles, and it’s what kept Tyrus Thomas from playing Tuesday. It’s
unclear if Thomas will return for this matchup after being held out due to
fatigued legs while playing big minutes over the previous three contests.

Charlotte has lost eight of nine since beating Milwaukee in its season
opener Dec. 26, with the only win coming at New York on Jan. 4. Two nights
later, the Bobcats overcame a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit against Atlanta,
but eventually fell 102-96 in overtime.

Josh Smith had 23 points and 12 rebounds in that contest for the Hawks
(7-4), who had their three-game winning streak snapped with a 96-84 loss at
Indiana on Wednesday.

Smith scored a team-high 16 points, but Atlanta couldn’t overcome 18
turnovers and a nine-point third quarter after heading into the half down three.

“We did everything wrong,” coach Larry Drew said. “We turned the ball over,
we missed layups, we missed blockout assignments. Everything that could have
gone wrong went wrong in the third quarter. It seemed like we just hit a wall
after that.”

Atlanta shot only 37.5 percent after hitting 51.2 percent of its shots
during its winning streak.

The Hawks, though, were playing without two key players, and they may be
without another Thursday.

Marvin Williams did not travel with the team due to an ankle injury, and
Tracy McGrady was held out Wednesday because of back spasms. Al Horford then
suffered a sprained shoulder midway through the first quarter and did not
return.

Though initial X-rays came back negative, Horford will be evaluated again
before the morning shootaround to determine if he will play against Charlotte.

Atlanta had won seven straight home meetings against the Bobcats before an
88-86 loss Feb. 12. Augustin and Diaw went 2 for 11 with six combined in
Charlotte’s win, while Smith scored a team-high 28 in the defeat.

McHale’s Rockets overcame 22 turnovers and won despite shooting just 39 percent from the field to snap a four-game losing streak.

Rookie Chandler Parsons scored 20 points and Kevin Martin 17 for the Rockets, while Jordan Hill came up big off the bench with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

“Sometimes in the NBA you’ve just got to win ugly,” McHale said.

“Believe me that was ugly for both teams out there, but it was prettier for us and I was happy for our guys. They kept fighting. We’ve been preaching that you’ve got to win some ugly games.”

The Rockets (3-6) broke open a tight game in the third quarter and the poor-shooting Bobcats could never make a serious run at the lead.

The closest they got was within five with 2:30 remaining, but Parsons made a 3-pointer from the right wing and a jumper from deep in the left corner to put the Rockets back up by double digits.

The Rockets held the Bobcats to 35 percent shooting from the field and outrebounded them 57-44.

“I thought we were tired and couldn’t really do anything, couldn’t execute, couldn’t run, couldn’t defend,” Bobcats coach Paul Silas said.

“It’s just one of those nights. Even layups. We had shots right at the hoop but we couldn’t convert. I can’t fault them, I mean, they played as well as they could play. We just didn’t have it. They were sitting here waiting for us to come in (from New York). We played a tough game Monday night (at the Knicks), and then to come back tonight and have to play, that’s rough. It’s rough.”

Parsons came into the game averaging just 5.3 points this season but got hot early, scoring six of his team’s first eight points.

He shot 9 of 16 from the field and added seven rebounds to give the Rockets a much-needed spark.

“At the end of the day you’re playing basketball and in a game like that it’s just exciting for our team to be able to shoot that poorly from the field and be able to pull out a win on the road in the NBA,” Parsons said. “That’s the kind of effort we have to give on the defensive end every night to win games like this.”

The Rockets began the season 2-2, but had lost four in a row while struggling on offense.

Kyle Lowry had 11 rebounds and eight assists for the Rockets, while Samuel Dalembert added 10 rebounds.

Jordan’s double-double was big for the Rockets, particularly in the third quarter.

“Jordan saved our bacon there for a while,” McHale said. “He played really well. We’re still trying to find out rotations and try to find out what we’re going to be doing. We’re still working on all those things and trying to find out who is going to play and when they’re going to play and whose they’re going to play with.”

The Bobcats (2-8) couldn’t muster much offense with the exception of center Byron Mullens, who turned in another solid game off the bench scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

It was the sixth time in eight games Mullens has finished in double digits in scoring and marked his second double-double of the season since being acquired in a preseason trade with Oklahoma City.

The Bobcats were playing without starting forwards Corey Maggette, who is out two to four weeks with a strained left hamstring, and Tyrus Thomas, who needed a break to rest his fatigued legs after seeing significant playing time in the team’s previous three games.

Their other top scorers didn’t pick up the slack.

Boris Diaw, who had 19 points and 10 rebounds the night before against the Knicks, was held to four points on 2 of 13 shooting.

D.J. Augustin came into the game averaging 18.6 points, 7.8 assists and 5.4 rebounds in his previous five games, was held to 11 points on 4 of 13 shooting.

Notes: Mullens had made 19 straight free throws to start the season before missing one in the third quarter. He said the foul shot wasn’t supposed to be his, but the referee sent him to the line. “It didn’t feel right,” Mullens said. … Diaw has gone seven games and 185 minutes without going to the free throw line. … The Rockets had allowed opponents to shoot 54 percent from the field on the road this season before Tuesday night.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The New York Knicks avenged a loss to the Charlotte Bobcats last week by beating them on Monday night (Jan. 9). It wasn’t exactly a clean effort, but winning in a messy game like this one actually shows a lot of growth for the franchise.

The 91-87 victory took place at the foul line, as the Knicks went 30-for-40 in free throws for the night. It certainly made up for the 38 percent that the Knicks shot from the field and the single three-pointer that the team had to its credit. Carmelo Anthony was 9-for-13 from the line, Amare Stoudemire was 11-for-13 and Tyson Chandler was 6-for-8. All three finished with at least 20 points and it was because the trio was willing to take the hits on drives to the basket, the Knicks walked away with the win.

Some of the statistics were ugly from this game though, like Stoudemire shooting 7-for-25 from the field and Anthony going just 6-for-18. The bench had just 3 points on 1-for-9 shooting and the Knicks allowed the Bobcats to stay in the game far too long. It was great to see what Iman Shumpert could continue to do as the starting point guard though; as he went 7-for-13 with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals for the night. That’s an impressive stat line for a veteran, let alone a rookie still trying to find his way in the league.

There are a lot of areas where “experts” might point to in this game where New York simply didn’t look like a good team, but the reality is that the team played hard defense, did what it took on offense, and walked away with a nice win at home. That’s really all that matters from this game, and the Knicks pushed the winning streak to three games. It puts the Knicks right back in the race within the Atlantic division, which is important with how well the Philadelphia 76ers have been playing lately.

Next up the schedule for the Knicks is, you guessed it, a game against Philadelphia on Wednesday (Jan. 11). That game is an important measurement of where the team stands, and if this winning streak can continue against a good team. Tipoff is at 7:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden.

More From YCN :

Knicks Beat Washington (Barely)

Knicks Lose to Raptors

Knicks Beat Kings Without Stoudemire

Stoudemire Injures Ankle

No_Garnett_Suspension

Sources:

Full Knicks Schedule

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

The Bobcats finished 29th among 30 NBA teams in 3-point percentage last season at 32.7 percent. Williams should help. He was eighth in the league in 3-point shooting last season at 42.3 percent while averaging 9.2 points per game for the Warriors.

“Reggie brings outside shooting and that’s what we needed,” Silas said. “When you’re down and trying to get back in the game it really helps you. And it brings the crowd into it.”

At the team’s media day Tuesday, Silas emphasized he expects the Bobcats to push the ball up the court.

That’s not a big surprise.

The Bobcats are heavy on athleticism and light on big men.

What’s a little surprising is Silas said he expects to play point guards D.J. Augustin and rookie Kemba Walker on the floor together at certain points during the game. Walker is 6-foot-1 and Augustin is an inch shorter, so the Bobcats would be taking “small ball” to the extreme.

But Silas views them as scorers he needs on the floor and two guys who can push the tempo if they learn to play off each other.

“We are going to run,” Silas said. “We’re really going to run.”

His players know that as well.

That’s why several players said they haven’t minded spending extra time working on their conditioning.

“Lets’ face it, we’re not a team that needs to get caught in up in a half-court game,” Augustin said.

Silas said the Bobcats have come to training camp with a terrific attitude, a tone set by their new veteran leader Corey Maggette.

Not only is Maggette leading by example off the court, but is also showing how things get done on the floor. Silas said he looked at the shooting numbers which are charted every day by the coaching staff, and said Maggette is making 80 percent of shots — albeit uncontested — during shooting drills.

Maggette’s mere presence, he said, has helped the camaraderie following the offseason trade of Stephen Jackson.

“The atmosphere is much better than it was with guys like each other and playing hard and coming together,” Silas said. “You just can’t have one guy on the other side and everybody else trying to get together. It just doesn’t work, especially if that guy is someone who plays.”

Silas said he knows many are counting out the Bobcats, but he isn’t.

He said while it might take his young team some time to learn his system, he expects them to take off around February or March.

“I think we’ll be right there at the end,” Silas said. “But it’s not going to be easy from the start. But people talk about it being a year from now (but) I think it’s going to be this year.”

Silas believes that time frame for success can be pushed up if the team can get rookie lottery pick Bismack Biyombo back on the floor.

Biyombo has been working on the side in individual drills but can’t participate in team drills until his contract situation is resolved with his former Spanish team Fuenlabrada. Negotiations to free Biyombo from the contract remain at an impasse and may not be settled until after Biyombo’s civil suit is heard Dec. 19 in Spain.

But Silas said Biyombo is chomping at the bit.

During a recent conditioning drill, Silas said Biyombo dunked the ball 73 consecutive times before Silas walked over and told to stop. He said normally plays get to 30 or 35 before their legs start to give out and they miss.

“He could have gotten to 100,” Silas said with a laugh.

Silas said it’s ripped Biyombo apart not to be out playing with his teammates, like looking at a buffet table but not being able to eat.

“He wants it so badly,” Silas said. “This is what he’s really about — playing and rebounding and going hard all of the time…

“It’s been hard for him and us. I want to see him out here and see what he can really do and be able to teach him and get his shot right. Because I think he be a major part of this ball club and us winning. If we don’t have him we’re not going to be as good of a team.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Kemba Walker, the ninth pick in this year’s NBA draft, has signed with the Charlotte Bobcats and will practice with the team today.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

An early entry candidate, the 6-foot-1 Walker led Connecticut to the 2011 NCAA championship and was named the Final Four’s most outstanding player. He was a consensus first-team All-American and first-team All-Big East selection.

Walker is expected to begin the season as the team’s backup point guard.

Last season, Walker averaged 23.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 37.6 minutes for the Huskies and was one of only two players in the nation to average 20 points, five rebounds and four assists.
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By STEVE REED
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kemba Walker, the ninth pick in this year’s NBA draft, has signed with the Charlotte Bobcats and was expected to practice with the team Sunday.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

An early entry candidate, the 6-foot-1 Walker led Connecticut to the 2011 NCAA championship and was named the Final Four’s most outstanding player. He was a consensus first-team All-American and first-team All-Big East selection.

Walker is expected to begin the season as the team’s backup point guard.

Last season, Walker averaged 23.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 37.6 minutes for the Huskies and was one of only two players in the nation to average 20 points, five rebounds and four assists.

If you’re an NBA fan, you may have read Howard Beck’s story on Michael Jordan, now the owner of the Charlotte Bobcats, leading a group of hard-line owners that will vote against a 50-50 split of Basketball-Related Income. Washington Wizards fans have to find this ironic, at least those who remember what Jordan did to former owner Abe Pollin in the 1999 lockout.

Via Bullets Forever, which relays a quote from “Just Ballin,” the book by Mike Wise and Frank Isola on the 1999 Knicks.

During an early October meeting in Manhattan, Jordan sparred with Wizards owner Abe Pollin in front of Stern, other owners and more than 100 players. After an impassioned Pollin, the league’s senior owner, talked of his struggle to keep his team, Jordan interrupted. “If you can’t make it work economically, you should sell the team.”

Now, Jordan is the owner who can’t make it work economically. Funny how the tables have turned.

Charlotte Bobcats 6-10 forward Tyrus Thomas is known for his sensational dunks and acrobatic plays and is a key part of the team’s future. He just completed his fifth season in the NBA, averaging 10.2 points and 5.5 rebounds. Thomas lives year-round in Charlotte, and he will answer questions from readers. Here’s his first correspondence:

Q. What have you been doing since the season ended?

I’ve been continuing a little rehab on my knee and now I’m back working out. I’ve been really working on my mental approach to the game. I’ve done that by watching film, studying myself, and being more analytical, rather than spontaneous, in my everyday life. I must say though, the highlight of my summer has been my wedding!

Q. What part of your game do you want to improve and how are you working to get better?

I’m always working to improve every part of my game. Right now my biggest focus is a go-to move with my back to the basket.

Q. Do you think the NBA season will start on time?

Hopefully the NBA season starts on time. I honestly don’t know what to think. I just have to hope for the best and expect the worst.

Q. Do you live in Charlotte, and what are your impressions of the city?

My wife and I have decided to make the Queen City home. We absolutely love it here. The people have been so friendly and genuine. How could we want to leave?

Q. What books have you read this year?

Though I’m not a big book reader, I’ve read most of “Decoded” by Jay-Z. I’ve also read “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu.

Q. What Bobcat players have you become close to?

Gerald Henderson has become part of my family, literally. His name is mentioned in my house every day. His dog and my dogs are playground buddies. We’ve been working out and rehabbing together, preparing ourselves to help our team succeed.

Q. Tell us about your wife, how you met and how she’s influenced you…?

My friends all say my wife is my “tamer.” She’s perfect for me because she’s the only one that can calm me down when I’m fired up. She is!

We met in the sixth grade but didn’t date until senior year of high school. Through college and my years in the NBA we had more than many rough patches, breakups, and hiatuses.

Through it all our love stayed strong and persevered. She’s pushes me every day to be a better Tyrus Thomas.

Q. You are known for your ability to hang in the air and pull off spectacular, highlight plays. What allows you do that?

I have to give credit for all my jumping ability to God.