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Hornets BLOG |
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July 2008
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April 2008 ArchivesHornets Owner George Shinn tells Bloomberg.com that a late season rush of fans and a playoff push will help erase what was projected as a $20 million deficit for the current season. He's quoted as saying the team will 'break even' financially. ...Admittedly it's early, but Charles Barkley, TNT Analyst, has just said the Hornets-Spurs series will be a long and tough one, but that he likes New Orleans. He said that Chris Paul, David West, Tyson Chandler and Byron Scott have made him a believer in the Hornets. He said "I won't sleep on the Hornets any longer." TNT's Ernie Johnson said the first game would be Saturday, obviously in New Orleans, at a time to be announced.... The Spurs defeated the Suns 4-1 in the five-game series to make their way to the second round where they will face the Hornets. Let it never be said that the Hornets are taking the easy way in the playoffs. They'll face the defending champions, and if, if, they were to make the Finals they would probably a... So, we know this is a pretty big night for New Orleans. The Hornets become the first NBA team in the city to move into the second round. Rather, the first NBA team in the city to move out of the first round. What we don't know is this: Where does this accomplishment fall in comparison to the sports history of New Orleans? Is it as big as the Saints clinching the division and an NFC playoff win over Philadelphia in 2006? New Orleans won its first-ever NBA postseason series with its 99-94 win over Dallas. The Arena, plain and simple, went crazy when the game ended. And it did rightfully so. This city has taken to the Hornets, and I do believe the Hornets have taken to the city. Stay tuned to see who the Hornets play next. If San Antonio wins tonight, the second-round series could begin this weekend. ...The Mavericks have made it interesting, cutting the Hornets' lead to 97-94 with 33.2 seconds remaining. Can the Hornets pull it off? ...
I think it's time. I'm calling it. Time of death on Dallas' season: 7:00 to play in the fourth quarter. Really it could have been called at the end of the third quarter, but there was still a little bit of a pulse. The Hornets have all but ended the hopes of the Mavs. New Orleans broke out of the third quarter funk with a 13-4 run to push the lead to 84-67. Jannero Pargo has been the catalyst, scoring 7 point... Despite owning a 15-point lead at halftime, the Hornets couldn't put this one away in the third quarter, which could be worrisome to some. New Orleans has really owned the third quarter of late. Is this a sign that Dallas is coming out of its shell? Let's see what Scott Cody, sitting to my left, has to say: Actually, a little cross-promotion here at the Arena. The cameras spotted Reggie Bush in the courtside seats and Hugo got the Saints running back to sign a football. Hugo decided he didn't want to throw the ball to the crowd and he got Mr. Bush to toss into the crowd. Reggie Bush is on the second most famous man in attendance, though. Tommie Lee of rock and roll fame was in the house. He is more famous, no? ..."You knew it was going to be the Hornets night when Tyson Chandler had 2 points before he had two fouls. They had a little lull, Dallas tied it up, and it was right after they tied it up the Hornets exploded out like a horse race. Sometime you don't run too well with the lead. They have played well in the third quarter of every game in the series. I'm sure 15 will be 20 by the end of the third." Speaking of horse racing, be su... Well, in one of my previous posts, we talked about how the energy wasn't there and how Dallas was threatening to make this a series. It's crazy how quickly things can change. As I was writing that post, New Orleans decided to play some basketball. In fact, after Dallas tied the game at 32-32, New Orleans closed on a 22-7 run. We're now at 54-39. David West has 14 points, Tyson Chandler has 10 points and 9 rebou... So, Byron Scott put back the starters in and, lo and behold, the energy level picked up. So many times this season we've heard the players and Scott talk about how the bench really lifted the team to a win. Not this time. The starters are doing everything in their control to put this series away tonight. New Orleans' starters have 39 of the teams' 48 points tonight. Tell me, am I the only who sees it this way? ..."Avery Johnson put his starting five in to start the second save for Eric Dampier. That's what you do in an elimination game. Dirk is starting to heat up. I'm wondering if after this timeout, Byron puts his starters back in. If you can hold the lead going into halftime, it's over." My take: Well, the Hornets don't own a double-digit lead as Mr. Cody thought they might. But no worries. The score isn't as close as it seems. New Orleans is really dominating, and has from the outset. The Hornets have 12 rebounds to Dallas' 8; the Hornets have 0 turnovers to Dallas' 2; the Hornets are sharing the ball, leading in assists 7-3; and more impressive, New Orleans has five free throws to zero for the Mavericks. Davi... Dirk Nowitzki, in the prior two games in New Orleans, took the brunt of New Orleans' cat calls. No longer. Apparently, New Orleanians weren't very happy with the way Mavs point guard Jason Kidd took Jannero Pargo to the ground Sunday night. Kidd, you'll remember, was ejected after a Flagrant II. He was not suspended, however. Maybe the NBA decided being booed for, oh, 48 minutes or so, would be punishment enoug...
Scott Cody, now a certified Hornets expert after traveling to Dallas for Games 3 & 4 has this to say about tonight's game as he watches it sitting next to me: Sayeth he - Sayethe me- Earlier today, New Orleans head coach Byron Scott officially was awarded the NBA's Coach of the Year trophy. This afternoon, hours before his Hornets tipped off a potential series-clinching game against the Mavericks, he was still, well, some would say on cloud nine. "I'm still kind of in shock," Scott said. "I've got to give credit to the guys in the (locker room). I gave CP the keys to the engine. They've done all the work." ... WWL-TV staffer and Hornets fan Richard Thiberville has this dose of playoff trivia for you: The Hornets have a chance to make franchise history tonight as they will try to win the first seven game playoff series in franchise history (the first NBA playoff advance of any kind in New Orleans history). Now some of you will say "The Hornets won some playoff series in Charlotte." That is in fact true. The Bees knocked off the Orlando... I knew Byron Scott was going to have a fairly good chance to become the NBA's Coach of the Year. But to do it in the fashion that he did, well, that speaks volumes to the respect the Hornets and Scott have earned as a franchise this year. Scott picked up 458 votes, including 70 first-place. Doc Rivers, the runner-up, received 242 votes, including 23 first-place votes. That means Scott was the overwhelming Coach of the Year. >> Continue reading: Scott NBA's CoY in big way Things just seem to be imploding for the Mavericks on and off the court. The team holds a practice without its coaches, Josh Howard's play swoons after an admission that he smokes marijuana in the offseason, and, of course, Jerry Stackhouse slammed Byron Scott, calling him a bad coach and a 'fool' and will now watch from the sidelines as a guy who has three championship rings as a player, and has been to two NBA Finals as a coach, receives the... Avery Johnson cancelled practice Monday and told the team he'd see them at the airport but the players had other ideas in what might be a first "players only practice." Afterward, Avery Johnson said the players had been loyal to him but things didn't seem right, according to Dallas Morning News writer Eddie Sefko. ...Sports Illustrated's web site says the NBA won't suspend the Mavs Jason Kidd for Game 5 Thursday night in New Orleans Arena. Kidd was assessed a flagrant-2 technical for a play where he appeared to grab Jannero Pargo by the neck and throw him to the ground. ...Paul Forrester of CNNSI.com says many pundits questioned David West's inclusion in the All-Star game, but few are doing so now, especially after his dominant performance in the third quarter of Game 4. ...Marc Stein of ESPN.com says the Hornets should be a confident group after beating down Dallas, in Dallas, without a great game from Chris Paul. He also comments on the flagrant foul by Jason Kidd, which the league will review. ...Scott Cody in Dallas writes: CP3 starts the quarter. Ankle seems fine. Julian Wright just took Stackhouse to school with a similar move he was working on at shootaround today. The victim this morning was Hilton. The bees are a three-pointer away from closing the door on this one. Time out on the floor, 8:30 to play... Hornets lead 83-68. I'm finished for now... check back for updates. ...Scott Cody in Dallas writes: First three shots made by the Hornets to open the 3rd. West is being guarded by Eric Dampier who is not Brandon Bass. West is having his way in the paint to start the second half. Bass should be in shortly. West has ten points in the third so far... there's 8:44 left. Bass is at the scorer's table. One thing about DWest, he might be the most determined player in the league. He has gotten bette... The reserves in Game 3, cam in and gave the Hornets the lead in the second quarter. Peja and West are the only starters on teh floor for Byron Scott to start the 2nd. Bass is taking care of West. He's forcing bad shots and even blocked one. Foul trouble with the Bees bigs is really concerning. Hilton just got his third. Tyson is back in. Byron activated Melvin Ely for this game, it appears his six fouls will be needed. ...Scott Cody in Dallas writes: Minutes before tip off... LOUD, packed house. Hornets are in their gold uniforms. I'll put it out there right now, I think this game goes to overtime. The Hornets are 4-and-0 in OT this season. The hornets bench players, in tribute to the New Orleans fans I guess, stand until the bees score their first bucket. David West let them sit down. Paul and West each hit their first shot, promisi... Chris Paul says there really wasn't that much difference in a playoff game on the road - except that the Hornets couldn't hit their shots. ...Dallas used a spirited crowd to keep their long home win streak against the Hornets intact. ...CP3 was 2-of-9 in the 1st half, he hits his first three point attempt of the second half. A sign of things to come? Paul seems lethargic tonight, not assertive. Driving lanes are there and he can beat any of the Mavs defenders off the dribble, but he seems to be trying too hard to get others involved. The Hornets have just two fast break points as of the 9:38 mark of the 3rd. 8:43 mark and the Mavericks are already in the pe... Scott Cody in Dallas writes: Bonzi Wells opens the Hornets scoring with a great baseline move. He needs to have HUGE game, if it's going to be a slugfest. Pargo continues to keep the Hornets close, he just had a loose ball fall into his lap and he calmly knocked down his ninth and tenth points of the game. Despite all the bricks from the rest of his teammates, Hornets trail by just one 27-26. This has be demoralizing for the... Scott Cody in Dallas writes: Tyson just picked up his second foul on a play where the Mavs corraled three loose balls. The Hornets intensity to start the game is not there. 8:53 left in the 2nd and Hilton Armstrong is in. Foul trouble could be a BIG problem tonight. Both teams are cold from the floor and it's saving the Hornets. Dallas is missing alot of open looks. Jason Terry just hit his first bucket. If he heats up, i... Scott Cody in Dallas writes: After watching all of the teams that were down 0-2 win last night, I knew game 3 in Dallas would be interesting. Then Mavericks forward Jerry Stackhouse went and made it all the more interesting. On a local radio talk show, Stackhouse told a story involving he and Byron Scott earlier in the season. Stackhouse said the converstation went something along the lines of Scott telling him to keep quiet until h... Talk about your 'non-fan' club. Jerry Stackhouse of the Mavericks has some not-too-flattering' things to say about the Hornets coach Byron Scott including some several 'ouch' comments. ...
It's quite a lofty ranking for a franchise that hasn't even been here for two years, but the Hornets are rated third in fan satisfaction among ALL major sports franchises. They get high marks for wins vs. salaries, having good player/fan relations and affordability. The Saints finished 53rd, receiving low marks for ownership, stadium experience and track record o... So says ESPN's Scoop Jackson. In his column Guess Who's Coming to DInner, Jackson details how the league viewed the Hornets as invited guests, but never thought they'd do much more than show up, be happy to be there, and then leave. ...John Hollinger of ESPN.com says the Mavericks were hoping to slow Chris Paul down, stop him and let others struggle to get their points. He says what they're getting is the worst of all possible options. They can't stop Paul, and they can't stop anyone else. ...Okay, I hesitated to go here, but after my colleague Bradley Handwerger confirmed for me that there were a good amount of empty seats in Game 2, like I observed in Game 1, I have to ask the question: Who is buying these seats and then not showing up? Granted, I may not be the best at counting but there had to be several hundred empty seats Saturday night, scattered about, but most prevalent in the corners of the upper bowl. However, t... David Moore of the Dallas Morning News asks >> Continue reading: This is the matchup Dallas wanted? Just quickly, the Hornets set franchise marks all over the place Tuesday night. The Hornets: New Orleans hasn't won in Dallas since 1998, or, as Paul put it, "since Muggsy Bogues was running th... Chris Paul just recorded his 15th assist of the night. That ties a franchise record for the playoffs (Muggsy Bogues). He also has 29 points right now, pending a free throw. And Dallas can do nothing about him. Oh yeah, the crowd continues to shout M.V.P! M.V.P.! This guy. He's good. The NBA playoffs - it's where Chris Paul happens. Update: 3:41 left You know, there were a bunch of people - we'll call them experts - who said Dallas was just too good for New Orleans. Too much, what do they call it? Oh yeah, experience. Chris Paul and his friends have stepped on that theory and crushed it pretty darn good. And their feet aren't off the pedal. This game is completely in New Orleans' control. It's shooting 64 percent and holding the Mavericks to 45 percent. On... Peja Stojakovic just pretty much put this one in the bag. Sure, it's early to call it. There's still 7:47 left in the game. But "Treyja" just hammered home a 3-pointer and the place went nuts (as they normally do whenever Peja steps back to line up for a 3-pointer). He followed that with a lengthy 2. It's 80-58 and the Hornets are doing whatever they want to...and the fans are loving it. The best part of this run - th... Chris Paul has 12 points and 10 assists. David West is 7-of-11 for 18 points. Peja Stojakovic has 14 and Jannero Pargo has 10. You know what that says? It says that New Orleans is getting contributions from more than one player, and that means the Mavericks aren't doing a very good job of containing the Hornets. But the stat that stands out the most right now is this - New Orleans is leading Dallas in fast-break points 17-4. <... New Orleans leads 67-51 at the break. I personally don't get the feeling that this one is over. I can't explain it other than Dallas doesn't seem to be going away. It has no reason to. Now, aforementioned WWL ace reporter Juan Kincaid's take: Says he - "The Mavs said their game plan was to get the ball out of Chris Paul's hands. Paul has 10 assists at halftime; four guys are in double figures, including Paul and (Janne... As stated before, New Orleans shot 70.8 percent. Here's some more: The Hornets outrebounded Dallas 11-5, held Dallas to 11-of-19 shooting and forced one Mavericks turnover. New Orleans' 39 points was a franchise playoff record for the first quarter, and the Hornets outscored the Mavs 18-10 in the paint. ...Dallas is shooting nearly 58 percent from the floor. That's not too bad. Do you know how to combat? OK, good answer. Good defense helps. But no, New Orleans is shooting 70.8 percent, scorching the nets. Chris Paul is on fire again. He only has 6 points, but he's running the offense to perfection and has eight assists after one quarter. He's on pace for 32 assists in the game. That won't happen, but that ain't bad. ...OK, it's not from the Mavs. But the Hornets are on a roll, running off a 9-4 run that has the Arena rocking. And the fans are waving their white towels. WWL Ace Juan Kincaid talked with this guy Byron Scott yesterday, I don't know if you've heard of him. He's the Hornets head coach. Scott told Kincaid that he expected Dallas to pressure Chris Paul more. He wanted Paul to attack the pressure by dribbling through the double. >> Continue reading: White towels are waving in the Arena We're 4 1/2 minutes in and Tyson Chandler has set an early tone. First, he blocked Eric Dampier, then ran the floor and graciously accepted a pass up high from Chris Paul for an alley oop that rocked the Hornets Nest. For the first time in I can't remember how long, the Hornets have started a game fast. I'd say this is exactly what the Hornets needed to do tonight against Dallas. So far, I've yet to see any of the prom... I say that, but there's like 12 people here with 10 minutes left before the 6 p.m. hour. This is one thing I've never understood about the Hornets, and to a lesser extent, Saints fans. There's a show up at halftime mentality in this town. No one would ever show up late to an LSU football game. And here we are talking about the playoffs. Playoffs! We're talking about the playoffs, not just some random game against oh, ... CBS Sportsline's Mike Freeman says you can forgive Byron Scott if he enjoys having Jason Kidd booted from the playoffs. He says Kidd was the reason Scott was dumped in New Jersey. ...TNT's announcers think Dirk Nowitzki was too nice in not retaliating when the Hornets' David West tapped his chin. The Mavs management says it was the right move because a hit would have resulted in a suspension. ...The Dallas Morning News says that while it's hard to stop Chris Paul, the Mavs can't afford to let him run wild with a peformance like the one he had Saturday night. ...Even though it was Chris Paul's first-ever NBA playoff game, Byron Scott knew what he had to do with his team down 12 at halftime and in an offensive funk. He talked to his young star and told him to take over. "Before we started the second half, I told him superstars that are MVP candidates, when games like these are up in the air, they impose their will," said Scott. "I told him he probably wouldn't come out in the second hal... If anyone had questions about Chris Paul as an MVP candidate, he answered it in the third quarter. Big time guys step up when needed. Kobe does it for the Lakers, Nash for the Suns and LeBron for the Cavs. Paul is the reason this team won tonight. Does he have to score 40 every time for this team to win in the postseason? No, but he needs to be involved an awful lot. ...Well, it's not technically over, but Peja jst hit a three to make it 101-86 and that just about put in the dagger. The Hornets go up 1-0 after a pretty poor first half, boding well for the rest of the series and giving them the evidence that they are the better team if they play to their capabilities. In this one playoff experience was no match for an MVP candidate. ...CP3 has 22 points and seven assists for the Hornets in the second half. The Mavs have 26 points in 21 minutes. ...Juan Kincaid said the Hornets had to fix their defense in the second half and fix it they have. They're helping out on defense and not giving up second chance tries. The Mavs have 24 points in a quarter and a half. ...They're now up 80-74 and Paul has 17 points and six assists in the second half alone. He just alley ooped it for a Chandler slam and then followed it with some good moves and a short jumper in the lane. His moves allow him to get open in the land of the trees for short jumpers that he's hitting He's beating the double teams. Heaven help the Mavs if someone can start hitting perimeter shots. ...Chris Paul is single-handedly keeping the Hornets in this one. It's only 68-65 Mavs and that's because Paul has 13 points and three assists so far in this quarter. Jason Kidd can't guard him and when he splits the double teams he's geting easy, short jumpers and hitting them. Now, someone needs to join him. ...The Hornets trail 52-40 and I'd say the most disturbing thing is the defensive effort. Dallas leads 14-7 in second chance points. The Hornets need to defend better, rebound better and get back better in transition. Dallas is beating them down the court, even after made baskets. The Hornets haven't matched up well, haven't found the Mavs open man well...I think the offense will come. ...The Hornets suffered in the first quarter as two of their offensive stalwarts, David West, who went 1-7 and Peja Stojakovic, who went 1-4, were both ice cold. FInally, they've gotten some offense, led by a couple of Bonzi Wells hoops and a Peja three pointer. It's now 30-27 and you just get the feeling that the Hornets couldn't have played much worse offensively. Maybe that's a good sign. ...Considering they only made 9 of 27 shots (33 pct) and that the Mavs are hitting 48 percent, perhaps it's fortunate they are only down by 7. Chris Paul hit a prayer almost at the buzzer. Nowitzki has 11 of the Mavs 26. ...Playoff experience may count. The Hornets look tight. They are getting beat in transition.Those are things you can adjust to. They are only down 7 when it could be a lot worse. ...I was concerned that they would have a slow start, and they have on offense, but the defense has been getting back and making the difference. Now the shots are starting to fall and I think they'll be okay. ...Saints owner Tom Benson has just arrived courtside. A large contingent of cameras were following him as he sat down right next to George Shinn. Benson was sporting a Hornets cap. ...Fans entering the game are being given 'teal' colored oversized shirts to wear on TV. It seems as if most of the fans are doing just that, which should give the picture on TV a decidedly 'blue' tint. Speaking of the fans, the modest amount of them that were in the arena by 5:30 were enjoying the end of the double overtime San Antonio-Phoenix game, with most seeming to be pulling for the Suns, who, unfortunately for those fans, fell in a drai... It seems the word in the media workroom, from some in the know and from a Hornets' source is that Saints owner Tom Benson will be a guest of Hornets owner George Shinn at courtside, perhaps wearing a Hornets' cap. ...Bleacher Report.com says the Mavericks are just a flat out better team than the Hornets and say it showed Wednesday night when both teams put out their best efforts. Their analysis? Hornets get swept. ...It apparently slowed down the Mavericks star in the last two postseasons, so Dallas expects the Hornets to smother Dirk Nowitski with constant double teaming. This time, the Mavs say they'll be ready. ...John Hollinger is high on the Hornets. In fact, he's calling shenannigans on the whole "lack of experience" factor people seem to bring up day after day after day. (continued) Mark Kreigel of FOX Sports.com says the vote for MVP is easy. Even though he thinks Kobe will win it, he says Chris Paul singlehandedly saved basketball in a poor basketball town and that's why he should be MVP. ...Maybe it's good, maybe it's bad, but four of ESPN's six expertspick the Mavs to beat the Hornets in the first round. ...From the Hornets Staff: I've crunched the numbers. I've read the Times-Picayune. I've recrunched the numbers. I still can't find where the paper came up with its total since Dec. 1, the agreed upon date for New Orleans to average 17,735. After getting 17,388 fans - the team's sixth straight sellout and 12th in the past 17 games - New Orleans Arena is seeing an average 14,732. That's not ba... According to the league's web site, the Hornets return to New Orleans and its rise to the top of the West is the season's best story, even better than the wild race in the west, which the Hornets were also part of. ...That's a lot of initials and acronyms and such, but hey, the end rhymes and we're all about rhyming here in the Handwerger household. That said, ESPN put to a vote who its writers thought was the NBA MVP. KB24 - you know, that just doesn't work for me - Kobe Bryant came through with a close win. ...The Hornets will host a "Hornets Fan Up Playoff Pep Rally" Thursday from 6-9 p.m. on Harrah's Fulton Street. At this event, you can meet the Honeybees - the reason why the attendance has risen, right? No? - as well as the Used to Bees, Hugo and the Hornets Drum line. Oh, right. Coach Byron Scott and the players will be out there addressing the crowd, as well. There will be chances to win playoff merchandise and the Topcats will... ESPN.com has the Hornets 5th, down from 2nd after a tough week that saw them lose three times. ...OK, I've been a little late with this one. All right, a lot late. The Hornets have played three home games since I last updated this. But here we go. Heading into Tuesday night's home finale against the Los Angeles Clippers, attendance is flying high. In the past three games, New Orleans Arena's average attendance has risen by 300 fans to 14,651. That's fewer than 100 fans from the Hugo Line, ... OK, so maybe that doesn't sound as good as the monster truck or super sale slogan Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!, but I was trying to get your attention. Despite losing two in a row and three of their past four games, the Hornets still are battling for home-court advantage, at least in the first round. Heck, a dream of a division title is still out there. So, that said, New Orleans plays at home against the Clippers on Tuesday and at ... It really looks like it is down to Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant as the possible MVP winners. This writer makes the case for Kobe. ...Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post says the Hornets Chris Paul is the league's MVP ...J.J. Adande of ESPN says the playoff race in the NBA's Western Conference is still very much in doubt following the Lakers nearly blowing a 30-point lead to the Hornets. ...A couple of straw polls of writers shows that sentiment appears to be leaning slightly towards Kobe Bryant over Chris Paul in the voting for NBA's MVP. ...The Hornets check in at number two again this week in Marc Stein's power rankings. ...Marc Stein of ESPN.com has Chris Paul of the Hornets on his first team All-NBA squad. Who else is on the team? ...CNNSI's Ian Thomsen says the Hornets are the NBA's most efficient franchise - getting the most wins per dollar spent on talent. ...First, ESPN was giving love to Hornets guard Chris Paul. Now, the World Wide Leader in sports is all over New Orleans head coach Byron Scott. J.A. Adande says that if we're talking about Paul for MVP should the Hornets win the West, why not Scott for Coach of the Year for the same reason? ...The Hornets 5-1 East Coast swing has made them a team to be feared in the NBA playoffs whether they get home court advantage or not. ...You've heard the debate for at least the past two months. But ESPN's Jemele Hill takes the NBA's MVP race a step further and declares that it would be a slap in the face to give it to anyone other than Chris Paul if the Hornets stay in first in the West. ...So, with the playoffs fast coming upon us, ESPN's John Hollinger says he thinks the Hornets have enough in them to finish the regular season as the No. 1 seed in the West. ... |