I believe it was November 2, 1988 (perhaps the 7th) when I went to the first professional sporting event in the history of Charlotte - that was 16 years ago now. It was an event that everyone believed would put Charlotte on the map, and it pretty much has though people still seem confused about the city's exact location (yes, Charlotte, NC). My memories of the night are pretty vague, but some parts stand out. I remember a great energy in the brand new building with a buzz that encompassed the entire crowd which I haven't seen since (yes, Cameron would be the most intense if it wasn't for the ring of people in the upper section there to sit on their hands and watch the gladiator fight thus bringing down the collective) and our seats were possibly the worst in the building - 2nd to last row, upper level, baseline extended. If I were back in Charlotte, I could find my commemorative ticket for the game in 2 seconds. The game was a blowout. A horrible, horrible blowout to a team that perpetually underachieved in those years, the Cleveland Cavaliers. A 40 point loss that ended up being the worst in the history of the Charlotte Hornets. But no one cared. The city was on the map and we were one town.
Today, the Charlotte Bobcats did significantly better in their first ever game, only losing by 7, 103-96. I actually like this team a lot and have high hopes for the future (yeah, not this year). I would like to see them play a more up-tempo, full court press kind of game because I have no respect for the skills of current NBA players and the team consists of plenty of young athletes, but to each their own. Thanks Bobcats and Bob Johnson for bringing some excitement back to the city and giving us something even more to be proud of. Go Bobcats!