"Charlotte Bobcats coach Larry Brown likes veterans, and that's never been a secret.

Bobcats owner Michael Jordan has a bunch of kids, and needs to evaluate whether they're worth retaining over the next few seasons.

Jordan is the boss, and Brown says he gets that.

"We've got to develop these young kids," Brown said before Tuesday's road game against the New York Knicks. "Get these young kids an opportunity to play and find out where they are.

"I think we're all confident they can make a contribution."

Seemingly four players would fall under that category - Tyrus Thomas, Derrick Brown, Gerald Henderson and Dominic McGuire. Thomas' minutes are a given, in that the Bobcats need his length and athleticism inside. Thomas' presence often turns center Nazr Mohammed into a cameo starter (or in the second Knicks game, out of the rotation), particularly when the Bobcats can afford to play small in the front court.

Brown, McGuire and Henderson (currently out with tendonitis in his left knee) are more complicated. They're all wing players of different skill sets. The positions they most often play are precisely those of the Bobcats' top two players, Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson."