Jordan starting to call Charlotte home

"Michael Jordan sightings in Charlotte used to be rare enough that they had a Halley's Comet quality," writes the Charlotte Observer's Scott Fowler.

Not anymore. Jordan, who recently bought the Charlotte Bobcats, is making himself more visible and at home in the Queen City.

Jordan has bought a home in uptown Charlotte five minutes from Time Warner Cable Arena and plans to start living there part time in September. He has found several places he likes to hang out in Charlotte - bowling at Strike City in the EpiCentre, schmoozing at Mez restaurant, eating New York-style pizza and watching sports on TV at Selwyn Pub.

"I'm starting to understand my surroundings," Jordan told me in an interview Friday. "I'm moving around. I'm finding out where I like to go in Charlotte to eat and to relax. I want to be part of the community and to interact with the public."

New BofA chairman supports Queen City HQ

Chad Holliday Jr., was selected as Bank of America's new chairman on Wednesday. The 62-year-old is a past CEO of DuPont.

And while Holliday may live in Nashville, he has stated his support for Charlotte to remain the site for BofA's headquarters.

"I've spent a lot of time in your city and now since I'm the newest member of the Bank of America board of directors, I look forward to many trips here year after year," he once said, according to the Charlotte Observer.

Asked after that meeting whether Charlotte could be confident about retaining the bank's headquarters, Holliday said, "I don't know anybody who brought up the idea of moving the headquarters."

Bobcats clinch playoff berth

It took six years, but the Charlotte Bobcats are finally in the playoffs. And they clinched their berth by defeating the former Charlotte Hornets, who now reside in New Orleans. (And, in an even stranger twist, Hornets owner George Shinn is thinking of selling his share of the New Orleans franchise.)

The 'Cats were up by 26 at one point in the third quarter. Somehow, they squandered it to trail by eight.

"Good teams don't let those things happen, but they also extracted themselves from what would have been a real mess when D.J. Augustin, who grew up in the Big Easy, made a huge 3-pointer with 15 seconds left," writes Rick Bonnell.

"This victory, combined with a loss by the Toronto Raptors, clinched the playoffs, since the eighth-place Raptors and ninth-place Chicago Bulls still have a game remaining. Since one has to lose, the Bobcats' 42-36 record gets them in."

Jordan buys Bobcats; name to change?

Reports out of Charlotte are that basketball legend Michael Jordan has bought the controlling interest in the NBA's Bobcats, with MJ "making a huge personal financial commitment" to the endeavor.

Now Jordan's challenge will be recruiting investors to share the risk of owning the Bobcats, once Jordan is approved as controlling owner sometime in the next two months.

As the source said, Jordan won't want to risk possibly "losing $30 million a season," all by himself, as [previous owner Bob] Johnson has of late.

Recruiting partners proved difficult for Johnson in Charlotte. He had a group of about 18 minority partners but owned the vast majority of the Bobcats himself. Those partners, in recent years, declined to participate in cash calls to cover the team's financial losses. They have been told to expect "significantly less" than their initial investment in return to make this deal work.

It's unclear whether any of those minority partners will be part of Jordan's ownership group. But Jordan, with his world fame and high profile, may have an easier time finding partners for an NBA team in his home state.

Jordan, who has not commented on his deal with Johnson, has been a minority partner with oversight of basketball operations since June of 2006. Under NBA rules, one investor for each NBA team must be designated "controlling owner," but that investor doesn't have to own a majority of the team - his share can be as small as 15 percent.

An exact purchase price hasn't been revealed, but industry sources estimate it's in excess of $250 million.

Jordan is expected to have more of a presence in the Queen City than he has up to this point. Honestly, up until now Jordan has been raked over the local coals for not being in Charlotte nearly enough. In fact, he's still being asked to be more involved in the community.

Michael Jordan has run the basketball operation for the Charlotte Bobcats since 2006. But the team wasn't his [says the Observer's Tom Sorensen]. ...

The rules have changed. If the Bobcats lose money, Michael will lose money. So maybe he'll change, too.

He has to. Michael dabbled as an NBA executive. There are people who devote more hours a week to looking for a job than Michael devoted to the Bobcats. ...

His supporters talk about his commitment to winning. But on the basketball court, that commitment lasted 21/2 hours. If he truly runs a franchise, his commitment won't end when the game does. ...

Although Michael grew up in North Carolina, he moves in an orbit most of us can't fathom, an orbit that is peculiarly his. So maybe I'm being small-town here. But he ought to live among us. In and around Charlotte there are more than 100 houses for sale in the $1million range. Deals are available. Realtors are standing by.

And here's more.

It's another big moment for MJ in a state that has grown used to celebrating alongside him. Jordan grew up in Wilmington, first became famous in Chapel Hill and has lately been directing the Bobcats' basketball operations in Charlotte [says Scott Fowler].

Now Jordan will own the team instead of Bob Johnson, who became so widely unpopular that even the team's "Bobcats" name is tainted in some fans' eyes.

Yes, there is even talk of the Bobcats' name changing. After all, former owner Johnson named the team for himself.

If Michael Jordan listens to his customers, and potential customers, he'll seriously consider a name change from "Bobcats'' once his purchase of Charlotte's NBA franchise is complete [says Rick Bonnell].

Too many of you have emailed me with that suggestion not to think it's an issue to many Charlotteans. You didn't like Bob Johnson naming the team after himself, and you sure don't see this as a positive once Johnson is no longer majority owner.

So, should the Charlotte franchise's team name be changed? If so, to what? Go here to vote. So far, the overwhelming vote is "yes."

(Image from the Charlotte Observer)

Quick hits: Lumbees get new chair, Bobcats on a roll and State Farm drops beach insurance

Lumbees welcome new tribal chairman
"Lumbee Tribal Chairman Purnell Swett took office on Thursday in a ceremony punctuated with a beating drum, cheers, praise for God and continued commitment to pursue full official tribal recognition from the federal government," says the Fayetteville Observer.

" 'It is with great pleasure that I accept this noble position,' Swett said during his inauguration speech. 'It is a responsibility that I take seriously, and one that I will pour my heart and soul into ... because it concerns you.' ..."

These Bobcats are getting hard to ignore

"The Charlotte Bobcats are 14-4 at home this season. Their best previous home record after 18 games is 10-8. These are the only seasons in which they were above .500 at this juncture," writes the Charlotte Observer's Tom Sorensen.

"I'm not sure what the difference is. Perhaps it's the fans. There were about 7,500 at Time Warner Cable Arena Tuesday for Charlotte's thrilling comeback victory against Houston. ..."

State Farm drops insurance on barrier islands

"State Farm is dropping protection for homeowners whose insured property is on one of North Carolina’s barrier islands," says the Jacksonville Daily News.

"Approximately 140 homeowners in Onslow, Carteret and Pender counties will be receiving notices of non-renewal, according to Russ Dubinsky, the spokesman for State Farm Insurance Company of North Carolina. ..."

Canes No. 2 among America's pro teams; Panthers 28th, Bobcats 59th

The Carolina Hurricanes were ranked second in ESPN's voting of the Ultimate Team rankings -- based on the "Big Four" of MLB, NBA, NFL and the NHL, while the Carolina Panthers came in 28th and the Charlotte Bobcats 59th.

Personally, I'm excited that the Canes are that high, perplexed that the Panthers aren't higher, and equally perplexed that the 'Cats aren't lower. Oh well.

How the rankings came to be, From the site:

The eight major categories that make up the Ultimate Standings were created based on feedback from fans about what they want most from their favorite teams (click here for a more detailed account of the method to our madness.) The categories:

Bang For The Buck (BNG): Wins during the past three years (regular season plus postseason) per revenues directly from fans, adjusted for league schedules.

Fan Relations (FRL): Openness and consideration toward fans by players, coaches and management.

Ownership (OWN): Honesty and loyalty to core players and local community.

Affordability (AFF): Price of tickets, parking and concessions.

Stadium Experience (STX): Quality of arena and game-day promotions as well as friendliness of environment.

Players (PLA): Effort on the field and likability off it.

Coaching (CCH): Strength of on-field leadership.

Title Track (TTR): Championships already won or expected in the lifetime of current fans.

Based on that critiera, the Canes came in just behind the Angels but ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Detroit Red Wings. The Canes came in at No. 17 last year.

Here's ESPN's take on the Canes:

Surprised that the Canes are an ice chip (.01 point) away from topping our list? Fans from this unconventional hockey market aren't. In fact, they ­embrace their underdog role, although references to Hartford South still rankle ("When was the last time you heard the Avalanche being referred to as the 'Nordique-Avs'?" complained a poster on canescountry.com). What doesn't rankle is the wallet- and fan-friendly Hurricane Experience. After all, what's better than an elite team that loves you back at a bargain-basement price? Not much. Even before this spring's playoff run, which included two Game 7 road wins, the Hurricanes offered an "Ice Your Price" plan that guaranteed a two-year freeze on season-ticket costs. As it was, the Canes' average ticket price of $38.38 was already fifth lowest in the NHL, and only one (the Blues) of the three teams with cheaper ducats made the playoffs. As for the requited love, PR chief Mike Sundheim says the team prides itself on making players accessible to the community. Practices at the RBC Center are open to the public, and weekend workouts draw hundreds of fans. Best of all, players stick around afterward to sign autographs. Even visitors are impressed by the Canes-Caniacs love affair. "They know that they are no longer a bandwagon mob," blogged one Bruins supporter who road-tripped to Canes country during Boston's unhappy conference semis, "and they want everyone to know it." Thanks to the team's showing in our Ultimate Standings, everybody does.

... and the Panthers:

After a rough 2007, fans in Bank of America were itching for a bailout. Sure enough -- a year earlier than the rest of the banking industry's -- their pleas became too big to fail. An intact Jake Delhomme behind center plus a healthy dose of Double Trouble (RBs DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart) helped the 2008 squad improve in wins (+5), rushing yards (+613) and points (+147). Cats management responded by pumping in a two-and-a-half-times-as-large hi-def video display, adding flat-screens in the 100 and 500 levels and installing more JJR's BBQ Shacks to sate fans' jones for succulent pulled pork and Midwest-infused beef brisket. Sure, 63,000 of the 73,504 seats are locked down in PSLs -- so much for spontaneity. But it's hard to complain while downing $3 soda and sub-$6 brew, getting free programs and capturing the NFC's jointly held (with the Giants) top record with the eighth-cheapest stubs. Management has frozen ticket prices for 2009, so Panthers backers can feel safe depositing their hard-earned cash in B of A … for now.

.... and the Bobcats:

When one measly Texans playoff berth is all that separates the Bobcats from becoming the lone remaining franchise across major pro sports without postseason experience, well, it's easy to understand their fans' frustration -- and why only one category improved from last year's Standings. That would be Coaching, which leaped a whopping 67 spots after the team finally got serious by hiring Larry Brown. The HOFer brought some much-needed experience and long-sought-after credibility to the sideline for a team whose two previous regimes compiled a sorry .332 WP. Sure, Brown may not be the most stable choice (someone check -- has he unpacked yet?), but he still gets results: His first season was almost good enough for that elusive playoff berth, as Charlotte finished a mere four games out. But fans haven't forgotten (or forgiven) front office follies like trading for Jason Richardson and -- remember this one? -- drafting Adam ­Morrison No. 3 overall. At least now the albatross (Richardson) and the mustache (Morrison) are gone. Sprite Family Night packages (four tix + four dogs + four sodas = $65), the league's fourth-cheapest tix ($33.25), cheapest parking ($6), free programs, a 17% average ticket price drop for next season and one of the NBA's least-attended venues (14,526 per game) make things more wallet-friendly. Still, there's no price this team, or its fans, wouldn't pay for a postseason.

And in case you were wondering (I'm sure you were), the last-placed team is ... (drum roll) ... the Los Angeles Clippers. No surprise there.

Quick hits: New sports channel, interstate for the Carolinas

Fox Sports launches Carolinas network
"After agreeing to televise more Carolina Hurricanes games, landing a deal to carry the Charlotte Bobcats and adding South Carolina to its lineup, Fox Sports South decided it had enough programming to launch a Carolinas network," says the N&O.

"Hence the new Fox Sports Carolinas, to be abbreviated as FSCR in television program listings. You'll be able to get it on the same channel you're using to watch FSN South, for example channel 50 if you subscribe in Raleigh to Time Warner Cable. FSN South will send a more Carolinas-specific feed to Time Warner for viewers in those two states, says Jeff Genthner, senior vice president and general manager of Fox Sports South and FS Carolinas. ...

"FS Carolinas will televise 65 Canes games this year (up from 55), 70 Bobcats games and 43 ACC men's basketball games, including 19 on Sunday nights. The new regional sports network will look for additional opportunities to line up programming of local interest. ..."


New interstate to Myrtle Beach?
"South Carolina is now clear to start buying land for a new interstate to the Grand Strand," says the AP.

"State and federal highway officials signed papers Wednesday in Columbia for the northern stretch of Interstate 73. The action clears the way for buying land for the interstate between I-95 and the North Carolina state line. ...

"Interstate 73 will one day link Myrtle Beach and Michigan. It will provide the first interstate connection to the beach, which is the heart of South Carolina's $16 billion tourism industry. ..."