Center Patrick O’Bryant to attend training camp with Bobcats
By Brad Rowland
On Saturday, it became public that the Charlotte Bobcats had extended a training camp invite to center Patrick O’Bryant, and on Monday, that invite was (apparently) accepted.
Alex Kennedy of Hoops World broke the news on Twitter with this:
NBA veteran Patrick O'Bryant will be going to training camp with the Charlotte Bobcats, according to source close to the situation.
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) September 17, 2013
This is, frankly, not a surprise at all, as O’Bryant likely didn’t have many teams beating down his door. With that said, there is almost a market for legitimate 7-footers who can walk and chew gum at the same time, and O’Bryant fits that criteria.
O’Bryant has appeared in the NBA since 2009-2010 with the Raptors, and his career has been a wild disappointment since being drafted 9th overall by the Warriors in 2006. For his career, the 7-footer from Bradley has averaged 2.1 points and 1.4 rebounds per game, and his athletic limitations are likely even worse as he moves into his upper-20’s.
The Bobcats have an “interesting” roster (to be kind), but I don’t really see a fit for O’Bryant as far as challenging for a legitimate roster spot. Charlotte has Al Jefferson, Bismack Biyombo, Brendan Haywood, Josh McRoberts, and Cody Zeller all locked up for 2013-2014, and at this stage, it’s hard to imagine that O’Bryant would be an upgrade on a single one of them.
This could be the last NBA chance for O’Bryant, however, and I wish him the best with it.