Draft rivals form friendship in NBA tryouts

(By Rick Bonnell, rbonnell@charlotteobserver.com) The Earl Clark-James Johnson road show is finally coming off tour.There seems to be some unwritten rule that those two forwards – Clark from Louisville and Johnson from Wake Forest – must audition together. Thursday's workout for the Charlotte Bobcats was the ninth time this month they've been paired by various NBA teams.After next week's draft, they'll finally go their separate ways.“We're friends off the court. We go do things,'' said Johnson. “We went to Mall of America (outside Minneapolis) and rode roller coasters, things like that -- chilling. And then we get on the court and go after each other's throats.“We know that's what it is – a cut-throat league. You can only have friends off the court.''It's logical that teams would want to match them off. Both are listed at 6-9 and each is projected as a small forward at the NBA level who might occasionally ...