Michael Jordan strikes deal to become owner of his home-state Bobcats.

via www.vivagoal.com

According to ESPN.com, the sale of the Charlotte Bobcats has been finalized, and the winner of the Bobcats sweepstakes is none other than Michael Jordan. How do you feel about the move? Will it have a positive or negative impact on the team? Does this make the franchise more profitable and will it have an impact on a free agent's decision to come to the Queen City? Over the day, I will update the thread with what I view as the pros and cons of the move.

Comments?

Sorry to get back to you guys so late, but, was a little busy. But, here are my primary concerns, and joys, of this transaction.

THE GOOD

-We have the greatest player in the history of the league as the owner of our franchise. I mean, just think about it, Michael Jordan! I mean, sure, he was already here and everything, but maybe, with the shift to him being the head man in charge, he'll not only attract more sponsorship and that sort of thing to the franchise, but he'll be a whole lot more involved. I read something the other day talking about Jordan can have 19,000 fans in the building on a nightly basis. And he can. His mere presence is enough to draw fans and celebrities to the games. You really think Charlie Sheen wouldn't come to Charlotte to just sit with MJ? I think he'll begin inviting more people to the games as well, which is definitely a draw for fans. Basically, in a nutshell, he is going to have to take this as serious as possible because his money is where his mouth is on this one. I'm sure Jordan realizes that, and won't spend as much time on the golf course.

-Larry Brown is almost a lock to return next year. He came to Charlotte for Michael, and he'll probably stay around for Michael. I was fearing the prospect of losing everything we've built because a new owner came in and decided to just clean house. Just like in the NFL, continuity does wonders. We don't see that very often in the NBA, other than with Jerry Sloan in Utah and Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, but having a stable coaching staff in place does wonders. Teams in flux year after year seem to be the ones always making the coaching changes. I couldn't imagine a coach I wouldn't want out there to coach the Bobcats next year to replace Larry (other than maybe Coach K) so a return by him is a great thing all around.

- Charlotte may finally become somewhat of a destination for free agents after this. I mean, realistically, I can't imagine too much of a shift from what we've been accustomed to seeing. However, I can see a few players saying, hey, forget going to Boston or L.A. to chase a championship, or Miami or New York for the beach and fame, I'm going to go play for Mike. Again, I said, not too many players will do that. But maybe when a player like Antonio McDyess is choosing between teams to go to, he may choose Charlotte instead of San Antonio.

THE BAD

-I'm worried that Mike might be tight with the money. I have really no clue who George Postolos is other than the basic facts that were given, but I've been operating under the impression that this dude may have a real team put together to try to do some good things for this team. I mean, why else would they buy it? It's lost millions and millions and the economy isn't in the greatest condition, so, it just makes it hard for me to believe that another Bob Johnson, or a Donald Sterling type individual would be in charge. Meanwhile, Mike was working to get more partners at the last minute because he didn't want to really use his own money. That alone may be a sign of us trying to operate like the Clippers do in the future. That's not a good thing.

- Mike has even more power than he did. I'm glad he's given the control of the roster to Larry and Rod, but he may just try to get players that he loves now. An owner involved in trying to build the roster to their own liking has never worked in sports. Look at Al Davis of the Oakland Raiders. I'm hoping that Jordan can hire a staff that he trusts to get things done and let them do what the do with having minimal influence. As long as Larry is here, I think we won't have to worry about that. But there may be a cause for concern whenever Larry does decide to leave.