Coaching not Bobcats' problem

Not even Larry Brown and his 1,098 wins could coach the Charlotte Bobcats to a winning record this season.

And there are two, among many, glaring reasons why. They are two reasons why many other teams are excelling through the first quarter of the season and the Bobcats are not.

Reason 1: A point guard. Reason 2: A center.

That combination has helped teams be winners all the way from pee wee to the pros, and the Bobcats let both their point guard and center from last year's playoff team walk away for basically nothing.

Raymond Felton, who left as a free agent, is now running the point in New York and having a career year. Having Amar'e Stoudemire playing center for the Knicks is certainly helping that along.

Then there's Tyson Chandler, the center the Bobcats traded to Dallas for Erick Dampier, Eduardo Najera and Matt Carroll. Dampier has since been waived and is playing for Southeast Division rival Miami, while Chandler is having near career-best numbers in just 27 minutes a game and at the forefront of the discussion for Defensive Player of the Year.

So the Bobcats are left with a point guard in D.J. Augustin that averages 12.6 points and six assists a game. Center Nazr Mohammed averages eight points and five boards a game.

Even if the Bobcats had kept one of the two, there might be a chance to be better than 9-19. Some of the top point-center combinations don't necessarily involve two superstars.

To wit: Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah in Chicago, Chris Paul and Emeka Okafor in New Orleans, Chauncey Billups and Nene in Denver, Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins in Boston, Brandon Jennings and Andrew Bogut in Milwaukee, Jameer Nelson and Dwight Howard in Orlando and Deron Williams and Al Jefferson in Utah.

But this season, Charlotte has neither end of a point-center combination that can lead the team to a successful year. Whether it's Larry Brown or Paul Silas in the interim, without one of those pieces as a standout, it's going to be a long season for Michael Jordan's Bobcats.

— Corby A. Yarbrough @AthlonCorby on Twitter