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What was a bigger surprise? That Ryan Hollins played or that the Charlotte Bobcats won a game at the foul line?
Call it a fortuitous toss-up: Hollins wasn't even activated previous to Friday night against the Utah Jazz, but coach Larry Brown played a hunch. Hollins brought energy and a whole lot more, then the Bobcats made 19 of 20 free throws in the fourth quarter to close out the Jazz 104-96 at Time Warner Cable Arena.
There was little question Hollins had been 15th among 15 Bobcats this young regular season. But he didn't gripe, and Brown saw enough in practice to slip him into the rotation, to help compensate for Emeka Okafor's foul troubles.
“The key to this game was Ryan; he gave us so much energy,” Brown gushed afterward. “He hadn't played in a month, and as a coaching staff, you have to admire” his persistence.
“He works hard, he brings energy and he's our most athletic big … He shot an air ball (on his first attempt), then came right back on the next shot.”
Hollins figured being activated Friday was more than a coincidence, but he never anticipated playing 15 minutes, including seven in the fourth quarter of a tight game. The trick was staying calm enough to not make rash mistakes.
“When that first shot went off the backboard, I just tried to slow down,” said Hollins (five points, four rebounds and two blocks).
While those numbers don't overwhelm, it was the agenda Hollins set – swatting after shots (including a goal-tend) and running the floor.
“He brought more than energy – he turned that game around,” said Bobcats point guard Raymond Felton (23 points and six assists). “He pressured the ball, he went after every rebound, he tried to block every shot.”
Friday was a prime opportunity, with the Jazz missing two stars in point guard Deron Williams (ankle sprain) and small forward Andrei Kirilenko (sprained finger). But the Bobcats (3-5) have been known to squander these chances in a variety of ways – foul-shooting a prominent example.
They were 29th among 30 NBA teams in foul-shooting last season, but Friday they made 31 of 38. The only fourth-quarter miss was by Gerald Wallace (22 points, nine rebounds and four steals), but he made 12 of 12 previous to that final trip to the line.
“We're taking pride in our free throws,” he said. “If J-Rich (injured Jason Richardson) and I do it, then everyone else will knock them down.”
