National Basketball Association - Charlotte Bobcats

Charlotte Bobcats Unveil Mascot

Bobcat is let out of the bag

Team unveils mascot, receives ticket deposits

EARNEST WINSTON
Staff Writer

The lights were off. The scoreboard was flashing. The voice over the public address system echoed across the building. The team mascot dashed across the court. And coach Bernie Bickerstaff paced the sideline.

About the only thing missing from the Charlotte Bobcats fan festival Saturday were the players. You'll have to wait a year from now for the first game.

More than 4,500 fans attended the event, which the team used to begin selling season tickets at the Charlotte Coliseum, where the team will play its first season next fall before moving to the new uptown arena in 2005.

Charlotte residents Allen Thompson and his neighbor Bryan Willis each put down a $100 deposit for 2004-05 season tickets, which range from $731 to $4,300, according to the team's Web site. Both men -- and others who made deposits Saturday -- will get priority when picking seats in January and February.

Thompson said buying season tickets was his way of supporting Bobcats owner Bob Johnson, who became the first minority owner of a National Basketball Association franchise this year.

"This is my way of saying, `Hey Bob, I appreciate what you've done throughout your career,' " Thompson said. Willis said he wanted to be involved with "something from the ground up."

Bobcats ticket prices will range from $10 to $115 per game. The Bobcats have received deposits on more than 5,000 season tickets from former Charlotte Hornets customers.

Regina Porter was among dozens of those former Hornets ticket holders who showed up Saturday. She already had her seats picked out, but the Dilworth woman wanted to be part of the flurry of activity.

"We're excited about the new team, the new owners and the new arena," she said.

Bobcats Executive Vice President Ed Tapscott said the event, which included face painting, acrobatics and free refreshments, was crucial because the team wants to bond with fans.

"It is important that people feel like they are a part of what you are doing," he said. "People are supportive when they feel a connection."

Don and Angie Brenneman brought their 11-year-old son, Paul, to see former Hornets players Dell Curry and Muggsy Bogues. Despite his uncertainty over whether the new team will be successful, Brenneman put down his deposit for tickets.

"I'm still trying to decide if I'm excited about the team or not," Brenneman said. "The Hornets left such a bad taste."

-- EARNEST WINSTON: (704) 358-5108;
EWINSTON@CHARLOTTEOBSERVER.COM

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