He got his chance in Charlotte and responded with the best season of his four-year NBA career, averaging 13.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 31.6 minutes and finishing fourth in Most Improved Player voting.

In one season, Brezec went from being a relative unknown on the Indiana's bench, averaging 1.8 points and 1.1 rebounds in three years with the Pacers, to becoming an integral part of a budding expansion franchise.

But one good year isn't nearly enough for Brezec. He entered the first day of Bobcats training camp on Tuesday in Wilmington intent on not just maintaining the level at which he played last season, but dedicated to improving upon it.

"The expectations for me and a lot of the guys are probably going to be higher," Brezec said. "I've set my goals high. I have to play even better, and the team has to play better because we want to win more games. All that I can say is that I'm going to play hard every minute that I'm on the floor and work to become a better basketball player."

Bickerstaff doesn't hide the fact that he expects more out of his 7-1, 255-pound center this season after a breakout season last year.

"I expect for him to get better," Bickerstaff said. "He should have more confidence. I just see a lot of upside for him. He's a seven-footer who can run, put the ball on the floor and pass. As his confidence level grows, I think we're going to see him really excel."

Brezec got the opportunity to continue working on his game this summer and got a confidence boost in the process.

After taking a three-week vacation with his wife and daughter following the 2004-05 season, Brezec reported to training camp with Slovenia's national team on August 1 to start preparing for the Eurobasket 2005 European Championships.

"That definitely benefited me by keeping me in shape," Brezec said. "I was with my national team since August 1 going through training camp in the mountains and playing 18 games this summer. That's got to help me. The competition was good, with a lot of guys from the NBA playing over there."

While the competition was fierce, Brezec and his teammates opened some eyes as well, rolling through pool play undefeated in the tournament before falling to eventual runner-up Germany, 76-62, in the quarterfinals. Despite the loss, Slovenia's run was deemed the ultimate success two days later when the national team did something it never had before, securing a berth in the world championships for the first time in their nation's history with an 89-80 win over Croatia.

"It meant a lot for our country," Brezec said. "In the past six European Championships, we failed every time. We always thought we had the best team, but the chemistry was never really right. This year we really focused. To reach the world championships in our country is unbelievable and has filled me with a tremendous sense or pride just to be a part of it."

Brezec has returned to the United States hoping to be a part of something great here in Charlotte, as well. With 2004-05 Rookie of the Year Emeka Okafor, Brevin Knight, Gerald Wallace, Kareem Rush, Keith Bogans, Matt Carroll and Melvin Ely all returning for their second year together combined with the addition of first-round picks Raymond Felton and Sean May, the Bobcats will look to take bigger steps towards building a winner.

In order to be successful doing so, Brezec will have to be a big part of their plans.

"As many good players as you can have, that's better for the team," Okafor said. "We saw last year that Primoz has the ability to be a great player. As many players as you can have to share the load, you have to be all for that. He'll be carrying his fair share of that load this year."

By Matt Rochinski, BobcatsBasketball.com