CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Charlotte Bobcats have chosen Dallas assistant Sam Vincent as their new coach, a person familiar with the search said Wednesday. The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because an official announcement had not been made, told The Associated Press that Vincent would be introduced at a news conference Friday. Vincent will be reunited with Bobcats part-owner Michael Jordan, who has the final say on all basketball decisions. Jordan and Vincent played together for two seasons with the Chicago Bulls in the late 1980s. The 44-year-old Vincent will replace Bernie Bickerstaff, who also served as general manager in the expansion team's first three seasons. Bickerstaff is staying with the Bobcats in a front office role and has been heavily involved in the coaching search with Jordan. Vincent, a former first-round pick of the Boston Celtics in 1985, has limited NBA coaching experience -- one season as an assistant under Avery Johnson with the Mavericks. But Jordan said earlier this year he was looking for a young coach in the mold of Johnson. Vincent spent the 2005-06 season as coach of the Fort Worth Flyers in the NBA's developmental league. Before that, Vincent put together a diverse coaching resume. He coached in South Africa, Greece and the Netherlands before leading the Nigerian women's team to its first Olympic victory in 2004. Vincent was one of 10 candidates to interview for the Charlotte job. The list included former NBA coaches Paul Silas, Stan Van Gundy and Mike Fratello; NBA assistants Lionel Hollins and Herb Williams; former assistant Mario Elie; and New Mexico State coach Reggie Theus. Bobcats assistants Jeff Capel and Bickerstaff's son, John-Blair Bickerstaff, also interviewed. Bernie Bickerstaff said he contacted Toronto general manager Bryan Colangelo for permission to speak to Raptors coach Sam Mitchell, but Colangelo declined. On Tuesday Mitchell signed a new four-year deal with the Raptors, opening the door for Vincent. Vincent would face pressure in his first season. Charlotte steadily improved under Bickerstaff, going from 18 wins in their inaugural season to 26 in 2005-06 and 33 this season. The Bobcats will likely have playoff aspirations next season, if they re-sign potential free-agent and leading scorer Gerald Wallace. The Bobcats also have two first-round picks in next month's draft -- eighth and 22nd overall. Bobcats executives have said it's important to quickly become a playoff team to win over Charlotte fans still stewing over the Hornets' move to New Orleans in 2002. The Bobcats ranked 27th out of 30 teams in attendance this season. A Lansing, Michigan native, Vincent played at Michigan State. Boston selected the point guard with the 20th pick in the 1985 draft and he won an NBA title with the Celtics as a reserve in his rookie year in 1986. Vincent later spent two seasons with the Bulls, where he played with Jordan. Vincent retired in 1992 after two years with Orlando, finishing with a career average of 7.8 points and 3.9 assists per game in seven seasons. Hiring a coach will be one of a series of key moves this summer for Jordan, who bought into the team last June. It's Jordan's second chance at running a team after he was fired as president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards in 2003.
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