CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -A little less of Emeka Okafor has meant a whole lot more for the Charlotte Bobcats.

Okafor is 18 pounds lighter after last season's failed experiment to get bulkier. He's also the Bobcats' leading rebounder and the NBA's top shot blocker through the first three games of the season.

``He's quicker, and that's what made him,'' Charlotte coach Bernie Bickerstaff said Tuesday. ``He was already strong, but he had quickness. He had the ability to guard (small forwards). He could guard anybody. But last year, with all the weight, he had no quickness. He was just basically an average guy.''

Not now. Okafor, at a chiseled 255 pounds, has battled his way back after an ankle injury sidelined him for 56 games last season. He's averaging 13 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.3 blocks per game.

``I'm not getting as tired as fast. It's easier on my joints,'' said Okafor, who added weight last year in hopes of better dealing with the pounding of the NBA. ``It wasn't fat, it was muscle, but it wasn't the best.''

The day before training camp began, Bickerstaff challenged Okafor to become the defensive anchor he was two seasons ago, when he was the NBA's rookie of the year. Last season, with Okafor either slowed by the added weight or on the bench with his ankle injury, the Bobcats gave up nearly 101 points a game and allowed teams to shoot 48 percent from the floor.

``He was drafted because of rebounding, shot blocking and defense,'' said Bickerstaff, who selected the former Connecticut star with the No. 2 pick in the 2004 draft.

Through three games, Okafor has the most blocks in the league and Charlotte leads the league in field-goal percentage defense at 38 percent. Mostly because of turnovers, the Bobcats lost their first two games. But Saturday night, Charlotte held LeBron James to 3-of-13 shooting and Cleveland shot 38 percent in the Bobcats' first win.

Okafor, who tied a team record with six blocks in the season opener against Indiana, swatted away four shots against the Cavaliers.

``He's going after them. That's what he did in college,'' Bickerstaff said. ``What has to happen is his confidence in his teammates in terms of protecting him when he goes to block shots. We had a guy in Washington, Elvin Hayes, a Hall of Fame guy. He would go block shots, but as soon as his teammates would allow his man to dunk on him, that was it. Those guys don't want to embarrassed.

``We have to help the helper because he can erase a lot of things we make on the floor.''

Okafor claims he's willing to gamble on blocking a shot, even if it means his man may get free for a dunk.

``If he does, so what? Sometimes it's more important that they're thinking about you than if your man gets an occasional bucket,'' Okafor said. ``As long as you make it known that you're there, that's the most important thing.''

Okafor is still a little rusty. He's shooting 46 percent from the field and a woeful 38 percent (7-of-18) from the foul line. He was the last player on the court after Tuesday's practice, working on his free throws with assistant coach Jeff Capel.

But Okafor is confident he's close to becoming the defensive force Bickerstaff wants him to be.

``If I keep blocking shots and keep scaring everybody and keep that intensity, we'll be straight,'' Okafor said.

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