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Cho won't say anything bad about the Blazers or owner Paul Allen, but he can't help but feel bitter. What began with such promise after a four-hour interview on a yacht in Helsinki ended with a phone call from President Larry Miller telling him it was over almost before it started, with little or no explanation. "It wasn't the right fit," Cho says. "I'm in a great place now." Portland Tribune

Charlotte Bobcats, Portland Trail Blazers, Paul Allen, Larry Miller, Rich Cho 

Higgins and Cho share front-office duties. Though he is too modest to admit it, Cho is the point man on virtually everything, including the draft, free agency, putting together a summer-league team and the hiring of a coach. "Rod has been wonderful to work with," Cho says. "We complement each other really well. He has a smart basketball mind." Cho is mindful of not trying to take credit for Charlotte's front-office decisions. He wants everyone working toward a common goal. "It was a team effort in OKC," he says. "One of the things Sam always preached -- and I really believe in, too -- is teamwork. That's something I've instilled here with the Bobcats." Portland Tribune

Charlotte Bobcats, Rich Cho, Rod Higgins 

The Charlotte Bobcats have narrowed their list of head coaching candidates to Jerry Sloan, Brian Shaw and Quin Snyder, according to league sources. After going through an initial interview with Charlotte executives Rod Higgins and Rich Cho, each of the three candidates will meet with Bobcats owner Michael Jordan within the next week or so. ESPN.com

Charlotte Bobcats, Michael Jordan, Coaching, Brian Shaw, Jerry Sloan, Rich Cho, Rod Higgins, Quin Snyder 

The Charlotte Bobcats had a 25% chance of landing the top pick in Wednesday’s NBA Draft Lottery, but the worst winning percentage in NBA history wasn’t enough to earn the right to draft Kentucky’s Anthony Davis. Obviously the odds were stacked against Charlotte—just as they are against every team—but that wasn’t any consolation to Bobcats general manager Rich Cho. “From a competitive standpoint you want number one,” Cho told HOOPSWORLD, “but we’re going to get a really good player at number two.” HoopsWorld

Charlotte Bobcats, Draft, Rich Cho, Anthony Davis 

Brian Mahoney: GM Rich Cho and vice chairman Curtis Polk said they had not heard from Michael Jordan a few minutes after Bobcats fell to No. 2 pick Twitter

Charlotte Bobcats, Draft, Michael Jordan, Rich Cho, Owners, Curtis Polk 

Rick Bonnell: By the way, Van Gundy was NOT criticizing Cho. He was implying you can't go 7-59 without intending to be bad. Twitter

Charlotte Bobcats, Coaching, Stan Van Gundy, Rich Cho 

Bobcats general manager Rich Cho is representing the franchise at the draft lottery in New York City. Higgins said he left Cho with the words, "Go get him," before he departed. Yahoo! Sports

Charlotte Bobcats, Draft, Rich Cho, Rod Higgins 

But here are two things I found telling: General manager Rich Cho said he wants a coach who sees this rebuild as an “opportunity,” not a burden. And president of basketball operations Rod Higgins said he feels no time pressure to find the right coach. That got me thinking: Is it possible the longer they wait, the better their options? Charlotte Observer

Charlotte Bobcats, Rich Cho, Rod Higgins 

Ben Golliver: Chad Buchanan, Rich Cho & Kevin Pritchard are all at Hoop Summit practice tonight. Twitter

Charlotte Bobcats, Portland Trail Blazers, Kevin Pritchard, Chad Buchanan, Rich Cho 

Ben Golliver: Bobcats GM Rich Cho is only NBA GM at Blazers practice facility for Day 1 of Hoop Summit World Team practice aka Andrew Wiggins Invitational Twitter

Charlotte Bobcats, Rich Cho, Andrew Wiggins 

Nearing the end of another lost season as Bobcats owner, Jordan recently told his GM, Rich Cho, to start planning for a rebuilding campaign. He also dropped a bombshell, telling Cho and other deputies that if this one doesn’t produce a winner and he continues to lose millions over the next “three to four years,” then he intends to sell the team. “I told Rich to make us better,” Jordan told one associate recently. “If that doesn’t work and I can’t make a profit in the next three to four years, then I’m selling.” New York Daily News

Charlotte Bobcats, Michael Jordan, Rich Cho 

But he flew to Charlotte for a conversation that came down to a key moment, when Cho asked if the Bobcats really wanted to win. As in, did they want to win so badly that they'd be willing to follow in the footsteps of Cho's former employer, the Thunder, who won 20 games one season, and then 23 the next, in the process of amassing the core of their current team? In other words, Cho was asking, were they willing to lose? "Are you willing," Cho remembers asking, "to take a step back to take two steps forward?" Cho says the room answered, unanimously, "yes." A few months later, that team is 7-40. Cho explains how the Thunder did it. When they had cap room, they didn't use it. Massive losing streaks helped too. The team's point guard of the future (Russell Westbrook) learned on the job while leading the league in turnovers. ESPN.com

Charlotte Bobcats, Oklahoma City Thunder, Rich Cho 

Let him describe, harkening back to the summer of 2007: “OKC has the best record in the league right now, but people forget how hard it was when we started out that first year of the rebuild. There are a lot of parallels’’ between that and the Bobcats now, Cho described Wednesday. “We traded Ray Allen (to Boston) and drafted Kevin Durant and Jeff Green. People forget we won only 20 games that year. We had a 14-game losing streak, an 11-game losing streak and an eight-game losing streak. We started out the season 9-36. “So we go back into the lottery and draft (Russell) Westbrook. And we start out 3-29. We have another 14-game losing streak and an eight-game losing streak and a seven-game losing streak. Wind up the season 23-59. “So we go back into the lottery and draft James Harden. There’s a whole process and it’s not easy going through this process.’’ Charlotte Observer

Charlotte Bobcats, Oklahoma City Thunder, Sam Presti, Rich Cho 

Cho’s point: Without a plan and the patience and conviction to stick to it, the Bobcats won’t get markedly better. That plan is about drafting wisely, managing the salary cap and looking for trades that add draft picks or young prospects. “Rod and I are definitely on the same page as far as where we are with the team,’’ Cho said. “We’re fortunate to have an owner who is very supportive and on the same page. It’s not easy going through it, but that’s part of the process.’’ What about the criticism in the short run? “If you don’t have a thick skin, you shouldn’t be in the business,’’ Cho replied. Charlotte Observer

Charlotte Bobcats, Oklahoma City Thunder, Sam Presti, Rich Cho 

Charlotte media's first interaction with Biyombo, the day after the Bobcats chose him seventh overall during June, was entertaining and enlightening. Someone asked a perfunctory question about new general manager Rich Cho's interest. Biyombo's animated reply made it sound like a manhunt. "Everyone knows he was trying to move up to pick me," Biyombo said of Cho, who spent part of last season with the Portland Trail Blazers before joining the Bobcats front office. "When I first met him, he was like, 'Wow, I'm in Portland wanting to move up now!' And then he has No. 9 (in Charlotte), so he says, 'We'll pick you up.' "And then, after all my workouts, it's 'Nah-nah-nah-nah. You are not getting to nine!' So after that, they move up again." Charlotte Observer

Charlotte Bobcats, Portland Trail Blazers, Draft, Rich Cho, Bismack Biyombo 

As Charlotte’s No. 2 basketball executive behind Higgins, Cho — for a decade a member of the front office in Seattle and Oklahoma City — says his duties have included “a little bit of everything,” including player personnel, salary cap, accounting and contracts. He’ll be doing a lot of college and pro scouting through the season. During the lockout, Cho began to overhaul the Bobcats’ scouting system. “One of my goals when I got to Portland was to have the best database in the league,” Cho says. “There was so much going on last year, I didn’t get that in place. “With the lockout this summer, that’s one of the things I focused on here in Charlotte. We’re still in the process, but I think it’s going to be pretty powerful once it’s complete.” Portland Tribune

Charlotte Bobcats, Rich Cho 

Can you put in your own words what happened with the Rich Cho firing: "I think whether it’s Rich or Kevin (Pritchard) - which was a really unusual situation - you end up going through these transitions. But I sit with the general manager down on the court and I talk through every game with them and get a sense for his thinking and his evaluation of players, how he thinks about our team, how he thinks about our coaching, all those things. And when I think about a general manager there are a lot of factors that come into play ... there’s what I like to call the ‘Golden Gut’, which is how good you are at evaluating talent, and obviously we have added the importance of evaluating character and it (chuckles) becomes more important to evaluate medical conditions and all these things. So there are that set of components. And then there is how well does he relate to the coaches and the players and gain their respect and engage with them. Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Kevin Pritchard, Paul Allen, Rich Cho 

Allen: Then there is the chemistry of working with me, because I like to be very involved, and everybody knows I like to ask a lot of questions, I’m sure you people have burned your ears off hearing how many times I like to ask questions about different things. That’s what I do. I like to ask a lot of questions and challenge assumptions and see if we can’t come out in a better place. Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Kevin Pritchard, Paul Allen, Rich Cho 

One month later, Allen flew Rich Cho to Helsinki and hired him after a three-hour interview. Cho lasted 10 months before he was suddenly fired. “You can have a good interview with somebody and be optimistic, then when it comes to getting into the season and sitting next to them and talking about the players, where you are going, potential trades, uh, you know sometimes you realize it’s not a good fit,’’ Allen said. “So, that’s basically what happened with Rich. He’s a great person and I wish him well, but it wasn’t a good fit.’’ Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Kevin Pritchard, Paul Allen, Rich Cho 

And now, he fired his latest GM, Rich Cho, after just one season. Why? Those within the Blazers believe that it was simple: Cho told Allen the truth. The Blazers aren’t contenders, that they’ll have to take a step back, maybe two, before they can start going forward again. “He didn’t want to hear that,” one league official with knowledge of the dynamic said. “This disconnect with Rich? It was this: He told Paul the truth. And Allen has no interest in going sideways now. But now [Allen’s] realizing that if he can’t win big in the NBA, well, he doesn’t want to lose money. Yahoo! Sports

Portland Trail Blazers, Paul Allen, Rich Cho