Bobcats Sports & Entertainment announced today that the Charlotte Bobcats will return to UNC Asheville’s Kimmel Arena for their training camps in 2013 and 2014. This year’s training camp will begin on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Prior to training camp, the team will hold Media Day on Monday, Sept. 30, at Time Warner Cable Arena.
“We had great success with our training camp at UNC Asheville last year,” said Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins. “As we anticipated, it was a perfect venue for us, and we are excited to have the opportunity to go back to Kimmel Arena this season and next season.”
Kimmel Arena, which opened in November 2011, is home to the UNC Asheville Bulldogs men’s and women’s basketball teams. The arena is located in the Wilma M. Sherrill Center and has a capacity of over 3,200 for basketball. The multipurpose facility has hosted over 100,000 guests since its opening, and offers the modern amenities fans, players, and coaches expect, including wide concourses with views of the court, large video boards, intimate and comfortable seating and outstanding training facilities.
“We are delighted to once again welcome the Charlotte Bobcats to the campus of UNC Asheville for their training camp in the Wilma M. Sherrill Center,” said UNC Asheville Director of Athletics Janet Cone. “We had a great experience hosting them last year and look forward to working with their new coach Steve Clifford and his staff in October.
“Our University has, once again, partnered with the city, county, sports commission, chamber of commerce, corporate partners, and the many passionate basketball fans in our region, to help position Western North Carolina as the premier showcase for all levels of basketball,” Cone added. “In addition, we look forward to welcoming the team, coaches, support staff and fans to our campus and the Greater Asheville area for a week of great sport and enjoyment; the Charlotte Bobcats and starting next season, Charlotte Hornets, will become yet another reason for people of all ages to consider Asheville a destination of choice for years to come.”
This will mark the second straight season the Bobcats have held training camp at UNC Asheville and the seventh time in the last nine years that they have done so away from Charlotte.
“The fans of Asheville could not have been more welcoming to us last year and we are pleased to be returning this season,” said Bobcats Sports & Entertainment President & COO Fred Whitfield. “We are also excited that we are not just holding our training camp, but also playing a preseason game in Asheville for the first time.”
The Bobcats will take on the Atlanta Hawks in preseason action on October 8 at Asheville’s U.S. Cellular Center. Tickets start at $15 and are available now at the U.S. Cellular Center and Time Warner Cable Arena box offices, online at bobcats.com or via Ticketmaster.
You got to give a great deal of credit to the City of Asheville for having the commitment a few years back to begin improvements to the Civic Center. Without those improvements, there would be no NBA exhibition game. Great partners stepped up too – Buncombe County , TDA and corporate sponsors. This is the pay off. Way to go all city officials who have worked thanklessly for the Civic Center – Hear that Sam Powers and the Honorable Jan Davis!
What does the Civic Center, host of the Bobcats, have to do with Kimmel Arena?
never mind…I didn’t see that the exhibition was at the Civic Center.
Still, too bad that public funds had to be used on the CC when private funds were offered via the minor league hockey team.
Twitter user @ashevillewbb spots Michael Jordan at Bobcats camp at UNCA:
http://instagram.com/p/e-WCX3kWC-/
Ticket prices for this EXHIBITION game are absolutely absurd. Not surprisingly, there are plenty left.
Possible price loophole:
http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0E004AEF82DC78C1?did=student