November 20, 2010; Charlotte, NC, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Jared Dudley (3) during the game against the Charlotte Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-US PRESSWIRE

It’s hard to tell who was the best draft pick the Charlotte Bobcats ever had, especially when there have been so many bad ones. A list would be a solid way to figure it out, though.

We’ll go five to one, and No. one will be the guy Roberto Gato thinks was the ‘Cats best pick ever.

At five we have D.J. Augustin. No longer with the Bobcats, Augustin has the third highest win-share-per-48 (an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player per 48 minutes with the league average at .100) of any Bobcats first rounder at .09 and he stayed with the team long enough to have an impact.

Next, at four, is Derrick Brown. This guy was the best second round pick the Bobcats made since Jared Dudley before they grabbed Jeffrey Taylor (I’m already predicting he turns into as good a player as Dudley). Brown’s WS/48 is .085 and he’s scored the third most points per game of any Bobcats second rounder.

Third is Emeka Okafor. The first Bobcats pick has done very well for himself contract-wise, but he’s not that great of a player. His WS/48 is the highest of any first round draft pick the ‘Cats have made, but that isn’t saying much.

Next we have Jared Dudley at number two. He’d be number one (which is kind of sad, right?), but the Bobcats traded him away so his impact is no longer felt in Charlotte. Even as a second round pick, Dudley has the second highest WS/48 of any Charlotte draftee.

Finally, the best draft pick the Charlotte Bobcats ever made hasn’t even played for the team yet. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was the perfect pick for a team that finished the year with the worst win percentage in NBA history. Charlotte needed a guy who could defend, rebound and score in transition, and in MKG they got all three. He might not ever be an offensive juggernaut, but Kidd-Gilchrist could turn into an All Star.

Will Bobcats opponents soon "fear the beard"? Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

A new name has surfaced in trade rumors involving the Charlotte Bobcats and their second overall pick in the upcoming NBA draft.

Jeff Goodman reported that “a source” says James Harden “could be in play” because of OKC’s salary issues. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are locked up long term with big money, and Harden, as well as Serge Ibaka, will command hefty salaries once their deals are up after the 2012/13 season.

The only way this deal would make sense is if Harden agrees to a contract extension. Giving up the second overall pick for a player who comes to your team for one season would be pointless.

If Rick Cho and company can actually make this deal happen, the Bobcats’ rebuilding process would be significantly accelerated. Harden is already a borderline All Star, and definitely better than any player Charlotte could take with the second pick.

As @noamschiller put it on twitter: “If the Bobcats can get James Harden out of this draft, Rich Cho should get a statue that floats above the entire state of North Carolina.”

Not sure if "luck" is the right word to describe this. "Conspiracy", maybe... Definitely not "luck". Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

When it comes to the 2012 NBA draft, there’s one word the experts throw around to describe it: Deep.

And with college greats like Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd Gilchrist, Thomas Robinson, Harrison Barnes and Jared Sullinger all available to whichever team wants them in the top five, it’s hard to argue that this isn’t one of the deepest drafts in history.

It’s at least the deepest in recent memory.

2003 saw LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne Wade all go in the top five. Solid players like Chris Kaman, David West, Kendrick Perkins, Leandro Barbosa and Josh Howard were all taken in the first round, too.

The best draft class ever, though, was probably 1984′s.

Hakeem Olajuwon, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Alvin Robertson, Otis Thorpe, Kevin Willis, and John Stockton were all taken in the top 16. There were, however, seven players taken in the first round who did not play a single game in the NBA.

The 2012 NBA draft will probably look more like ’84 than ’03.

I think there are five to seven future All Stars in this year’s draft, and even a few that will have a shot at the Hall of Fame.

Anthony Davis is a future All Star. Based on what he did with one year of college ball, he very well could be a Hall-of-Famer, too. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Harrison Barnes, Kendall Marshall, Thomas Robinson, and Perry Jones all look like future All Stars to me. Dion Waiters, Bradley Beal and Andre Drummond all have that potential too.

The class of ’84 had four Hall-of-Famers (Jordan, Barkley, Stockton, Olajuwon) in it.

2003 definitely gave us two future Hall-of-Famers (James and Wade) and maybe three (Carmelo Anthony or Chris Bosh).

Will the class of 2012 live up to all the hype?

All signs point to a resounding “yes”.

Apr 2, 2012; New Orleans, LA, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) shoots over Kansas Jayhawks center Jeff Withey (5) during the finals of the 2012 NCAA men

It’s not the worst case scenario for the Charlotte Bobcats, but after the 2012 NBA draft lottery, things sure do look gloomy in the Queen City.

After suffering through the worst season in NBA history, Bobcats fans won’t even get the hopeful comfort of landing Anthony Davis with the number one pick in the 2012 draft.

Instead, Charlotte will pick second.

Somehow the New Orleans Hornets (formerly owned by the NBA which had a very hard time selling it. I’m sure a high draft pick would’ve enticed any number of possible bidders..) got the number one pick.

All signs point towards Charlotte drafting Kentucky forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist with the second pick; Kidd-Gilchrist has everything you could ask for out of a small forward from the ability to create for himself offensively to his defensive prowess.

The Bobcats are loaded at power forward, so Thomas Robinson seems out of the question. Also, it’d be a bit of a stretch to pick the undersized Florida shooting guard Bradley Beal over Kidd-Gilchrist.

Then again, Michael Jordan does still own this team, so maybe he’ll draft Doron Lamb or Fab Melo.

Or trade the pick for Adam Morrison.