Bobcats list May as inactive

CHARLOTTE -- To use the coach's words, Sean May won't be playing for the Charlotte Bobcats for "a while."

Power forward May went from starter to inactive for Saturday's home opener against the Miami Heat.

This is not a one-game situation. Coach Larry Brown said May would be out until "he's in the shape to play as well as he's capable of."

Brown started 6-foot-7 Jared Dudley in May's place, making the Bobcats' front line significantly smaller.

May missed all last season, following micro-fracture surgery on his right knee, and has struggled to reach the kind of conditioning Brown expects. The former UNC standout missed all six shots in the opening loss in Cleveland on Thursday and played just three minutes of the second half.

"Obviously, I'm disappointed," May said. "The inactive list is not a gratifying deal. But I'm trying every day to get better, and hopefully this is not a long stint."

May met with Brown on Saturday to discuss this decision.

"He said he's got to see a better effort," May said. "He said when he envisioned me playing, it wasn't what he's seeing now."