CHARLOTTE – Packman has just finished his show from TWC Arena and the Lakers and Bobcats are set to do battle. Just in case you didn’t know, the Bobcats are only one of two teams in the NBA not to have a losing record against LA. The other is Boston.

Took the train to the arena from the radio station and the train was filled with 40 percent Laker fans. A damn shame.

Was right beside Kobe Bryant back near the locker rooms as he was stretching and this just in: He’s a big dude. TV doesn’t do him justice.

GAME TIME

Every time Kobe touches the ball, the crowd cheers. It really a shame that nearly half this crowd are here cheering for the Lakers.

Sitting next to Hitman, Packman, Shelly and Big D. It’s definitely interesting sitting next to my man Tony during games.

The first quarter saw Kobe score four points, Raymond Felton eight and Stephen Jackson seven.

The score at the end of the first quarter:
Lakers 26, Bobcats 23

The second quarter has seen the Bobcats take the lead and it’s gone back and forth the first six minutes of the quarter. But I think it’s worth nothing that there was an actual Gerald Henderson sighting. He actually got playing time and the game wasn’t already over. WOW!

Michael Jordan is in the house again tonight. That makes two straight games. WooHoo.

Bobcats up three with just under four minutes to play.

Time for the ever popular: Did You Know?

Did you know that Phil Jackson’s girlfriend Jeannie Buss, who operates the the Lakers, appeared in Playboy? Do a google search, you’ll thank me.

(Half the crowd just gave Kobe a standing ovation for a special move. That can’t make Jordan happy)

Did you know that Kobe’s make-up ring he bought for his wife after screwing around with that hotel chick in Colorado was smaller than the engagement ring his teammate Lamar Odom bought his new wife Khloe Kardashian. Odom’s was 12.5 carats, while Kobe’s was 8 carats. The ring Kobe bought was with a gold band, while Odom’s was platinum. Kobe’s was four million. No price yet on Odom’s.

Halftime score
Bobcats 49, Lakers 43

OK, the third quarter has started and the Bobcats are up 16 freaking points. Unreal. Good for them. The question is, can they continue to win?

Here it is the fourth quarter and the Bobcats are going to win in a big way. Amazing. Now they need to follow this up by beating a crappy Golden State Warriors Saturday night.

Sorry for the short blog, but got caught up chatting with some Bobcats personnel.

Be sure to head to the Fox and Hound in south Charlotte tomorrow for the UNC-Duke viewing party.

Somewhere in Southern California, former Charlotte Bobcat Adam Morrison is laughing hysterically and the turn of events over the last year. Morrison has gone from being last on the bench in Charlotte, which was recently described as the Siberia of the NBA by one national hoops analyst, to last on the bench for an NBA champ.

Meanwhile, the Bobcats continue to crap the bed and no bigger one was laid than when they became the answer to a trivia question Friday night by becoming the first team to lose to New Jersey this season. The Nets had just fired their coach and set an NBA record by losing their first 18 games to start the season. The best remedy, however, came to the Medowlands Friday night when Larry Brown and his bunch arrived.

What ensued was a New Jersey 97-91 victory, which caused a joyous celebration in the Garden State and no doubt glorious laughter by former Bobcats whipping boy Adam Morrison.

Why doesn’t it surprise me that it was Charlotte of all teams that would eventually lose to New Jersey?

Larry Brown is reportedly the second-highest paid coach in all of sports. It’s a good thing because the NBA fined the Bobcats coach $60,000 for ripping into an NBA replacement ref like a monkey into a cupcake during a preseason game on last Monday.

Brown was tagged with two technical fouls by replacement referee Kevin Scott, which sent the Nomad into a tizzy. It was so bad that the scab had to call for security so Brown would actually leave the court and not make him wet his pants.

The NBA also fined the Bobcats an additional $60,000 on Wednesday.

Reports that Bobcats owner Bob Johnson was seen crying about losing such cash upon hearing the news can’t be substantiated.

Fully expect big fines lines this to be the norm as the NBA is ultra sensitive about having replacement refs.