Paul Silas has been fired as head coach of the Bobcats.

Charlotte will immediately begin their search for a new head coach.

Silas posted a 32-88 record with the Bobcats during his two seasons.

"I would like to personally thank Paul for everything he has done for this team under some pretty unique circumstances," Rod Higgins said. "His basketball experience as a coach and a player speak for themselves. We have been fortunate to have someone of his character associated with this franchise and we hope he will continue to be a valuable resource to us in the future."

Paul Silas believes Bismack Biyombo may be best suited for the power forward position in the long-term.

Biyombo is 6-9, 245 and may not be able to hold up against centers.

But Biyombo, who is known as the toughest player on Charlotte this season, disagrees with the assessment.

“I’m a fighter, I like to fight," said Biyombo. "I prefer to be a center."

Michael Jordan defended the Bobcats against widespread criticism as they finish the season with the worst record in the NBA.

Critics have said Charlotte's front office has "yes men" to Jordan.

“It’s absolutely wrong that I don’t want guys to challenge me. And the people who say that aren’t in the room,’’ Jordan told the Observer.

“The idea that people can’t do that is just wrong. Curtis (Polk, team vice chairman) has worked with me for over 20 years and he’s never had a problem telling me, ‘no.’ Rod (Higgins, president of basketball operations) has no problem telling me no. Fred (Whitfield, team president) has no problem telling me ‘no.’ And Rich (Cho, the team’s general manager) is about as direct and candid a person as you’ll ever meet."

Jordan acknowledged Charlotte would struggle this season, but he didn't anticipate the results would be historically bad.

“This was going to be a trying year – we knew that,” Jordan said. “But did we want to chase the most Ping-Pong balls (in the May 30 draft lottery)? No way.’’

“Ever since I’ve owned the team (buying control from Bob Johnson in March 2010), I think we’ve made some very positive moves on the business side. We had to make a difficult decision to turn over the (basketball) talent.

“This year the talent we had didn’t respond, but that doesn’t cause me to turn my back on the plan."

Jordan remains optimistic about the future of the Bobcats.

“They are being judged wrongfully. We’re on the right track,’’ Jordan said. “I didn’t anticipate a season anything like this, but we had to make some difficult decisions, with (buying out unhappy veteran) Boris (Diaw), for instance.

“And we had to play the rookies, (Bismack) Biyombo and Kemba (Walker) more than they were really ready to play.’’

Paul Silas shoved Tyrus Thomas following a postgame screaming match on Sunday, league sources said.

No punches were thrown as several players intervened immediately to separate Silas and Thomas.

Silas was angered by Thomas talking to members of the Celtics on the court. Thomas eventually snapped back at Silas, who was warned not to say anything more or risk a suspension.

Thomas then stood up and Silas pushed him toward his locker.

Rod Higgins met with Silas and Thomas, who both have been fined.

"There was an incident," Higgins told Y! Sports. "We handled it internally and talked to both the player and the coach and moved on. End of story."

If the New Orleans Hornets are renamed, some speculate that the Charlotte Bobcats may explore taking back the nickname of the team that represents a successful period of NBA basketball in the city.

The Hornets played in Charlotte from 1988 until 2002.

The NBA awarded Charlotte an expansion franchise in 2004.

The process of renaming a franchise may take up to two years, according to sources.

Jamario Moon will be signed by the Charlotte Bobcats, according to a source.

Moon is currently with the D-League's Los Angeles D-Fenders.

Eduardo Najera underwent successful surgery to repair a fractured frontal bone in his forehead and is expected to miss the remainder of the 2011-12 season.

Najera will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Michael Jordan denied a New York Daily News report that he would look to sell the Bobcats if he "can't make a profit in the next three to four years."

“I was disturbed to hear the false report that I intend to sell my majority interest in the Charlotte Bobcats," said Jordan in a statement. "I am 100% committed to building the Bobcats into a contender and have no plans to sell the team.”

Jordan bought the team two years ago from Bob Johnson.