Just the opposite is true elsewhere: The Bobcats have a single point guard under contract and need at least one more big man, preferably a scoring power forward.

Those are roster imbalances general manager Rod Higgins acknowledged publicly as soon as the Bobcats were assigned the No. 9 pick in the draft lottery. Higgins stopped short of saying need alone would determine the team's draft decision, but he made it clear those positions must be addressed before the Bobcats begin their fifth season.

With that in mind, it makes great sense for the Bobcats to consider Texas point guard D.J. Augustin, Kansas power forward Darrell Arthur and Texas A&M center DeAndre Jordan, if any of those are available with the ninth pick.

SEASON HIGHLIGHT: For the second straight season, the Bobcats did their best work against the Los Angeles Lakers. Last season, it was a triple-overtime victory in Charlotte, in which the Bobcats fouled Kobe Bryant out of the game. This time it was a March visit to Los Angeles, and the Bobcats so frustrated Bryant that night he was ejected with two technical fouls, the second for kicking a ball at a referee.

TURNING POINT: They knew (because of college basketball commitments at their arena) that 26 of their last 41 would be played on the road. They never built sufficient momentum in November and December to overcome that schedule imbalance, and four straight losses out west -- Sacramento, Golden State, Denver and Phoenix -- did them in during early February.