Wallace Fever now. Playoff fever to follow?

Normally at this time of year, die-hard Bobcats fans are getting ready to spend some time focusing on … something besides the Bobcats. But this is a different kind of year for our NBA team, and thanks to Gerald Wallace, we’re gearing up for a different kind of All-Star break.

Charlotte’s whirling dervish of a forward is the first player in the team’s six-season history to be selected to play in the NBA All-Star Game, which is set for Feb. 14 in Dallas; he also will compete in the Feb. 13 Slam Dunk Contest.

So, naturally, the Bobcats organization is making a big deal out of it.

The festivities kick off Saturday night, before Charlotte faces the New Orleans Hornets at Time Warner Cable Arena: The first 5,000 people in the doors get a free Gerald Wallace action figure, and a booth will be set up so fans can videotape a message for the star – as well as offer suggestions about what dunks he should attempt in Texas.

Wallace-focused fun then culminates next weekend, when the Bobcats host “watch parties” for both Saturday’s dunk-off and Sunday’s game at the Wild Wing Café in Ayrsley Town Center. During breaks in the action, fans can win prizes and mingle with the Lady Cats.

Also on tap: Through 5 p.m. Saturday, visitors to www.bobcats.com can enter for a chance to win a trip for two to the All-Star Game in Dallas, an autographed All-Star jersey, or one of several other prizes. Then there’s “The Gerald Wallace All-Star 2-Pack ticket special,” a fancy way to sell you a set of tickets to the final two Bobcats home games before the break – Saturday’s game against the Hornets and Tuesday’s versus the Wizards – for only $33. (See the team Web site for details.)

To top it all off, the team appears to have a shot at making the playoffs this spring for the first time in franchise history, after five seasons of futility. Don’t clear your spring calendar yet, but if you’re a Bobcats fan, you might want to consider this weeklong celebration a dress rehearsal.