Elton Brand and Antwan Jamison: Charlotte Bobcats Free Agency Update

May 23, 2012; Philadelphia, PA USA; Philadelphia 76ers power forward Elton Brand (42) reaches for rebound against Boston Celtics power forward Kevin Garnett (5) during the second quarter of game six of the Eastern Conference semifinals of the 2012 NBA Playoffs at the Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-US PRESSWIRE

A new free agent-ish PF has entered the mix for the Charlotte Bobcats. Elton Brand will be amnestied by the Philadelphia 76ers and people who follow the Bobcats and basketball for a living think they’ll bid on his services.

Source confirms Philly to use the amnesty clause on the final year of Elton Brand’s contract worth $18.1 million. Comes off the cap July 11.

— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) July 6, 2012

Bobcats will be one of those teams. RT @WojYahooNBA There will be significant interest with NBA teams to claim Brand off the amnesty wire.

— Spencer Percy (@QCsportscrave) July 6, 2012

A secondary waiver claim on Elton Brand (pay part of his guarantee) would be a bold move by the #Bobcats.

— Rick Bonnell (@rick_bonnell) July 6, 2012

A secondary waiver claim would be a bold move indeed, and, teams like the Bobcats who are under the salary cap, have first dibs on amnestied players.

Those teams will bid on Brand and he’ll go to the team with the highest bid… Unless he goes unclaimed, in which case he’ll become a free agent. I fully expect the Bobcats and Houston Rockets, among other teams, to be bidders, though.

The other guy who is 100 percent on the Bobcats wish list, free agent Antwan Jamison, is also in the mix for Golden State:

Jamison is intrigued by veteran role with Bobcats, but he works out in off-season with @StephenCurry30 and loves @warriors improving roster.

— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) July 6, 2012

Jamison is 36 and he put up some good numbers in Cleveland last season. He scored 17 points, grabbed 6.3 rebounds and dished out two assists per game.

Brand is 33 and he scored 11 points, grabbed 7.2 rebounds and blocked 1.6 shots per game last season with the 76ers. Brand was far and away the better defender of the two. He put up a defensive rating of 96 last season (10 points per 100 possessions better than Jamison).

No player can be claimed/signed until July 11, but Jamison and the Bobcats could reach an agreement before that time. No team is allowed to amnesty a player before the 11th, so no team can bid on a player before that time, either.