The past two drafts for the Bobcats carry a few interesting themes. During the past few drafts they drafted players from that seasons NCAA Champions (Kemba Walker and Kidd-Gilchrist), and also selected the youngest player in the draft pool (Bismack Biyombo and Kidd-Gilchrist). These 3 players combine to form the young face of the Charlotte Bobcats.
Now many sports pundits predicted the Bobcats to trade the 2nd overall pick or select Kansas Forward Thomas Robinson if they kept it. Now that they draft is over and people have spoken, we now know that the Bobcats were in love with Kidd-Gilchrist from the beginning and never actually got any really great trade offers from teams. I think these really speaks to Cho, Higgins, and the rest of the Bobcats front office. In a day and age where "Sources" leak out just about everything, the Bobcats were able to keep their love for Kidd-Gilchrist and their lack of trade offers close to the chest. The Bobcats leaked out lots of fake information, especially to the Charlotte media, about their intentions with that number two pick and even fooled the national media also. On the day of the draft, SI's Chris Mannix and the Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell(the Bobcats Beat Writer) appeared on WFNZ in Charlotte and both stated that they were absolutely certain the Bobcats would trade the pick or if they didn't, draft Robinson. Also in both of those interviews, Kidd-Gilchrist's name wasn't even mentioned one time. The Bobcats much-maligned front office should be applauded for that effort.
Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari does not shy away from his comments that Kidd-Gilchrist was the heart and soul of his NCAA Championship Kentucky team. Kidd-Gilchrist gained the reputation after his draft workouts that he was the hardest working player in this draft, and that's exactly what the Bobcats need. He may not be the star they seek but he will be quite the player. When the lights came on, Kidd-Gilchrist shined for his Wildcats. He's an athletic freak, that can guard positions 1-5 on the defensive end, and who's only weakness seems to be his lack of a jump shot. I am a big advocate of players being able to evolve their jump shots because of the many players that have come into the league without jumpers and left with a good to great one; As hard as Kidd-Gilchrist works, he'll be just fine in my opinion.
Kidd-Gilchrist and 2nd round pick Jeffery Taylor bring similar things to the court for the Bobcats. They both have elite athleticism, can score in transition, and are versatile on the defensive end of the floor. New Bobcats Head Coach Mike Dunlap said he wants to attack teams both offensively and defensively and Kidd-Gilchrist and Taylor do exactly that. The Bobcats just added a whole lot of athleticism, transition scoring, defense, and above all, hard work to their roster.
When I evaluate players, I care as much about their talent on the floor as the kind of person they are inside. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has been through a whole hell of a lot during his short lifetime and I think that's part of the reason why he's such a great kid. When he was 5 years old, his father was murdered, and his uncle, who had taken his father's place in a lot of ways, died from a heart attack at the age of 48 on the day when Kidd-Gilchrist signed his letter of intent to play for Kentucky. I have been through something similar, although not even as close as tragic. I will tell you that I'm sure Michael Kidd-Gilchrist does not want your sympathy or your pity, all he wants you to do is to Believe in him. I will and so should you.
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