The Bobcats are one of the few teams in the league who have already clinched their playoff spot, but Larry Brown isn’t letting his foot off the gas pedal. According to Jonathan Abrams of the New York times, Larry Brown will play his starters when the Bobcats play the Bulls on Wednesday. Brown’s explanation is that “we owe it to the league.”
The Bulls are likely none too thrilled with Brown’s sense of obligation, as they are currently in a tight playoff race with the Toronto Raptors for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. They currently lead the Raptors by a game in the standings, but the Raptors would own the tiebreaker if they end up with the same record. Yahoo! writer Kelly Dwyer, for one, is not particularly thrilled by this development, and tweeted some instances where Brown has rested his key players in the past. Whatever Brown’s reasoning for playing his starters this Wednesday, his decision could be a key factor in deciding who gets the East’s last playoff spot this season.