THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Earl Boykins made a costly decision and doesn’t regret it. Now the undersized point guard thinks he can help the Charlotte Bobcats reach the playoffs for the first time.
The Bobcats on Thursday signed the five-foot-five Boykins, the second-shortest player in NBA history, to a contract for the rest of the season worth the league minimum of about US$1.1 million.
Boykins had been out of the NBA since deciding last summer not to exercise the player option on his deal with the Milwaukee Bucks that would have paid him 3 million this season.
“I don’t regret what I did in any way,” Boykins said during a conference call from Oakland, Calif., where he’s expected to make his Bobcats’ debut Friday against Golden State. “It’s something that happened and now I’m just looking forward to moving on.”
Boykins, coming off his most productive season in Denver and Milwaukee, will provide help for point guards Raymond Felton and Jeff McInnis. And despite being just 18-28, the Bobcats entered Thursday 1 1/2 games out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
“I think this is a team that has a chance to make the playoffs, and that’s why I’m here,” said Boykins, who indicated numerous teams expressed interest in signing him. “As far as playing with Jeff and Raymond, I don’t see any problems.”
The 31-year-old Boykins has played for seven teams, including two separate stints with Cleveland. Boykins spent parts of four seasons in Denver before being traded to the Bucks midway through last season.
Boykins has averaged 9.8 points and 3.4 assists in his nine previous seasons, and averaged 14 points and 4.5 assists in 35 games with the Bucks last season.
Yet Boykins spent the first three months of this season without a job until the Bobcats, who had an open roster spot since acquiring Nazr Mohammed from Detroit on Dec. 14 for Walter Herrmann and Primoz Brezec, gave him a call.
“I’ve been through this before. I’ve held out before, so I was familiar with the situation,” Boykins said. “I knew what it was going to take for me to be prepared to play.”
Boykins will likely see considerable time, as the move comes five days after Bobcats coach Sam Vincent criticized McInnis’ play after a loss to Philadelphia, when Felton sat out with a sprained left ankle.
Vincent has been starting Felton and McInnis together in a small backcourt. Derek Anderson, a true shooting guard, is the only other player with point guard experience.
“Everybody knows we’ve had some challenges this year in the backcourt,” Vincent said. “We’ve had some injuries. We’ve had some times where we’ve played with one point guard and we had a game where we played with (forward) Gerald Wallace starting at point guard.”
The Bobcats, the league’s second-worst free-throw shooting team at 70 per cent, could also get a boost from Boykins, a career 88 per cent shooter from the line.
Boykins’ arrival in Charlotte means the two smallest players in NBA history will have called the city home. Muggsy Bogues, at 5-3, was a fan favourite in nine seasons running the point for the Charlotte Hornets. Bogues now works as a radio analyst with the Bobcats.
General manager Rod Higgins wouldn’t rule out any more moves before the Feb. 21 trade deadline. Despite a road-heavy schedule the rest of the season, the Bobcats still believe they can reach the post-season.
“With 36 games left in the season, we’re trying to obviously get to the playoffs,” Higgins said. “Earl will obviously give us more depth, more veteran leadership.”
