The Bobcats are likely going to be without starting forward Gerald Wallace for at least a week due to a bone bruise in his left ankle.  Wallace has played in 26 games (all starts) for the Bobcats so far this year and he is averaging 39.0 minutes, 16.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocked shots per game.  The Bobcats are really going to miss Wallace who is the best overall player on the team because he hustles all out on both ends of the basketball court.

The Bobcats will be without backup small forward Dominic McGuire for the next six weeks with shin splints. Eduardo Najera & Matt Carroll will likely see a small bump in minutes while McGuire is out of action. McGuire wasn’t expected to have a big role with the Bobcats this season so he won’t be missed too much while he is out of action.

The Bobcats have lost 21-year old 7-foot center Alexis Ajinca for probably the remainder of the season as he will be in a cast for the next six weeks after thumb surgery earlier today. Ajinca has played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Bobcats so far this season and he is averaging 5.0 minutes, 1.7 points and 0.7 rebounds per game. This is terrible timing for Ajinca as he was going to start getting some minutes for the Bobcats who are really hurting in the frontcourt right now.

The Bobcats will be without 23-year old forward D.J. White for a while (6-8 weeks) due to recent surgery on a fractured thumb. White has played in 8 games (0 starts) for the Bobcats this season and he is averaging 9.0 minutes, 4.8 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. The Bobcats won’t miss White too much as they weren’t playing him much anyway.

The Bobcats will be without starting center Tyson Chandler for at least a week with a stress reaction in his left foot. Chandler has played in 25 games (all starts) this season for the Bobcats and he is averaging 25.7 minutes, 6.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 1.2 blocked shots per game. The Bobcats will start Nazr Mohammed at center while Chandler is out of action. This should help the offense of the Bobcats as Mohammed is a much better player than Chandler on that side of the court. He has played in 27 games (2 starts) for the Bobcats this season and he is averaging 13.5 minutes, 7.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. The Bobcats should be fine until Chandler is ready to return to action as Mohammed is a very capable back-up.

Starting shooting guard Raja Bell has a partially torn ligament in his left wrist. If it requires surgery he will miss most of the 2009-2010 season. The Bobcats then would likely have to decide between shifting Raymond Felton to shooting guard and playing him alongside with 2nd year man D.J. Augustin at the point. Or if they don’t want to go that small they can leave Raymond Felton as the starting point guard and play first round pick Gerald Henderson at shooting guard. All three of those players are capable of playing well which will cushion the loss of Bell but they will still miss his defense.

The Bobcats will be without Gerald Wallace indefinately due to a serious concussion. He has played in 50 games (49 starts) this season so far for the Bobcats. In those games, Wallace has averaged 39.0 minutes, 20.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.0 blocked shot per game. The Bobcats miss the all out effort that Wallace gives on both sides of the basketball court in addition to his talent.

Adam Morrison tore his left ACL in a pre-season game and he will miss the entire 2007-2008 season. Morrison didn’t shoot well as a rookie and the Bobcats expected much more than he gave them last season when he averaged 11.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. His injury will open up extended minutes for both Matt Carroll and Walter Herrmann who both outplayed Morrison last season. Carroll averaged 12.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists last season and the Bobcats gave him a nice new contract in the off-season. Walter Herrmann was outstanding as a rookie last season as he averaged 9.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game despite not getting a lot of playing time until late in the season. Look for him to improve on last season’s numbers this year with added minutes.

Emeka Okafor has a strain and slight tear of his left calf and he will be out indefinately. This is a crushing blow to the young Bobcats as Okafor is the only player they really can’t replace. He has played in 56 games this season and he’s averaging 35.8 minutes, 14.9 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 2.8 blocks per game. Without Okafor the Bobcats will get thrashed nightly on the boards.

Second year forward Sean May has a bone bruise on his right knee and he will be out at least another week. The Bobcats miss him because he’s played well this season. May has played in 32 games and he is averaging 23.6 minutes, 11.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists.

Center Primoz Brezec will miss some time with a bulging disc in his lower back. He played so well the last two seasons for the Bobcats but this year has been a huge disappointment for him. He has played in 26 games this season and is averaging 16.5 minutes, 6.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists.

Reserve forward Othella Harrington had surgery on his left knee to repair torn cartilage and will be out indefinately. He was only averaging 2.7 points and 1.7 rebounds per game and has been buried on the bench this season.