November 19
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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In the three games since General Manager Jeff Bower took over coaching duties from Byron Scott, it's been evident he wants the team's guards to spread the court with proper spacing and use quick ball movement. It worked against the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday, as Devin Brown, Bobby Brown, Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton combined to score 52 points in the Hornets' 110-102 victory at the New Orleans Arena. However, the Hornets (4-8) face a stiffer test tonight against the Phoenix Suns (10-2), the second-highest scoring team in the league with a 111.3 pionts-per-game average. Last week, the Hornets lost to the Suns 124-104 in Scott's final game."
November 17
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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They may not be able to shed their alter egos until season's end, but Ariel and Tinkerbell are growing up rather quickly. Forced to become vital options in the Hornets' plans because of a slow start and the injury to All-Star point guard Chris Paul, rookies Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton are being used in the rotation more quickly than either imagined and earning respect, excess baggage and all. As part of their rookie indoctrination, Collison (Ariel) and Thornton (Tinkerbell) are required to tote Disney-themed bags bearing the likeness of their respective characters all season. Leaving their pink and purple carry-ons behind brings a fine -- the forfeiture of their on-the-road per ..."
November 17
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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The long-anticipated medicalon the condition of Chris Paul's sprained left ankle was neither expansive nor encouraging Monday. The Hornets' All-Star point guard will be out indefinitely , but the team provided no information on the severity of the injury. Ankle sprains are assessed by grades. A Grade I is the least severe, and a Grade III is the most severe, involving the tearing of ligaments within the ankle that require a lengthy rehabilitation period. Hornets Coach Jeff Bower said Monday the team would not place a number grade on Paul's injury. Paul shed no additional light on what was revealed by an MRI exam Saturday. "They don't know when I'll be able to play yet," Paul said ..."
November 16
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Hornets General Manager/Coach Jeff Bower is expected to provide details today on how long Chris Paul could be sidelined and discuss the MRI test that was performed Saturday on Paul's severely sprained left ankle. Paul, who had to be helped off the floor after suffering the injury in Friday's loss to the visiting Portland Trail Blazers, did not travel with the team to Atlanta for Saturday night's game and underwent medical tests and evaluations in New Orleans. "You are obviously concerned when any of your players get hurt," Bower said. "Chris' absence changes things quite a bit as far the contributions of everyone on the floor. But we got to look to make up the difference in a number of ..."
November 15
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Six years ago, Jeff Bower, at the time finishing his second season as general manager of the Hornets, decided to take an assistant-coaching position at Penn State, where he began his career as an aide two decades earlier. It was time, he figured, to get back to the bench where he'd spent a dozen years before joining the Charlotte Hornets as an advance scout in 1995, along the way fleshing out a résumé that eventually would garner him a corner office, a key to the executive wash room and the day-to-day headaches that become an unwanted perk of the powerful. The moving van was practically loading up the Bowers' worldly possessions for the trip to Happy Valley and a return to his native ..."
November 15
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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On several possessions Saturday night against the Atlanta Hawks, Hornets starting shooting guard Devin Brown noticed a big difference in the way New Orleans got into its offensive sets from previous games this season. The Hornets did not have a facilitator who instinctively knew when to run the call given from the bench, deviate from the offense or draw the attention of the defense to create shots for teammates. Without Chris Paul, who missed his first game after his left ankle was severely sprained Friday night against Portland, the Hornets weren't in sync, falling to the surging Hawks 121-98 before a crowd of 18,572 at Philips Arena. Rookie Darren Collison made his first start, filling ..."
November 15
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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On several possessions Saturday night against the Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Hornets starting shooting guard Devin Brown noticed a big difference in the way New Orleans got into its offensive sets from previous games this season. The Hornets did not have a facilitator who instinctively knew when to run the call given from the bench, deviate from the offense or draw the attention of the defense to create shots for teammates. Without Chris Paul, who missed his first game after his left ankle was severely sprained Friday night against Portland, the Hornets weren't in sync, falling to the surging Hawks 121-98 before a crowd of 18,572 at Philips Arena. Rookie Darren Collison made his first ..."
November 15
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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The final score cast the matchup about right. The process to get to the Hawks' 121-98 win over the New Orleans Hornets on Saturday night at Philips Arena didn't necessarily follow convention. However, it revealed a certain mettle within the Hawks, who lead the Southeast Division at 8-2, also tied for the best record in the NBA."
November 14
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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In his debut game, Hornets Coach Jeff Bower looked concerned after marching on the floor to see his franchise player, Chris Paul, sprawled and writhing in pain from a severely sprained left ankle. With 40.3 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Paul stepped on the back of Portland's center Joel Pryzbilla's foot after soaring to make a pass to Hilton Armstrong in the lane. As Paul landed awkwardly, his left ankle turned and he landed hard on the floor, grimacing in pain as he tossed his mouthpiece and grabbed his ankle. With Paul having to be carried off the court by teammates Sean Marks and Darius Songaila and not returning, New Orleans lost to Portland 86-78 Friday night in front of ..."
November 14
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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On a couple of occasions in his basketball coaching career, New Orleans, and specifically the Hornets, has offered a lifeline for Tim Floyd. The latest rescue came this week when Hornets general-manager-about-to-be-head-coach Jeff Bower telephoned to gauge Floyd's interest in rejoining the team that had dismissed him as its head coach in 2004. Before the Hornets, Floyd spent four unsuccessful seasons as coach of the Bulls. Floyd, who once again moved to New Orleans in June after his resignation at Southern California in the wake of a recruiting scandal, couldn't believe his good fortune, regardless of how bizarre it seemed to some. "Over the course of the last five years, and ...
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November 14
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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In his debut game, Hornets Coach Jeff Bower looked concerned after marching on the floor to see his franchise player, Chris Paul, sprawled and writhing in pain from a severely sprained left ankle. With 40.3 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Paul stepped on the back of Portland's center Joel Pryzbilla's foot after soaring to make a pass to Hilton Armstrong in the lane. As Paul landed awkwardly, his left ankle turned and he landed hard on the floor, grimacing in pain as he tossed his mouthpiece and grabbed his ankle. With Paul having to be carried off the court by teammates Sean Marks and Darius Songaila and not returning, New Orleans lost to Portland 86-78 Friday night in front of ..."
November 13
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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The Hornets weren't progressing this season, didn't appear even to be the equal of last year's team, which won 49 regular-season games and then was historically submissive during a first-round playoff dive against the Denver Nuggets. They had begun to moonwalk under Byron Scott, gliding backward from a franchise-record 56 regular-season wins two seasons ago, to 49 last year, to a 3-6 start this year. So if this season is to be salvaged, there's no arguing that Thursday was a good time for Hornets owner George Shinn to fire Scott. Scott getting shoved out the door nine games into his sixth season in New Orleans, and less than two full seasons after being named NBA Coach of the Year, might ..."
November 13
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Byron Scott has seen it all during his coaching career in the NBA 2000 -- Scott took the reins of the New Jersey Nets. 2000-01 -- In Scott's first season, New Jersey was 26-56. 2001-02 -- In his second season, the Nets went 52-30 during the regular season and advanced to the Finals, where they were swept 4-0 by the Los Angeles Lakers. 2002-03 -- Scott again led the Nets to an appearance in the Finals. New Jersey, however, lost the series 4-2 to the San Antonio Spurs. 2003-04 -- Dissension in the locker room, particularly by All-Star point guard Jason Kidd, led to Scott's dismissal after a mediocre record halfway through the season. 2004-05 -- Scott landed on his feet when he was hired ..."
November 13
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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As Hornets players gathered at the Alario Center on Thursday morning, team president Hugh Weber met with captains Chris Paul and David West to inform them that Coach Byron Scott was fired and his replacement would be General Manager Jeff Bower. Paul wasn't happy with the decision, and he wasn't pleased with being caught off guard by the announcement. He said New Orleans should have sought his and West's input before the decision was finalized. "I felt like maybe somebody would have at least consulted with me and asked how I felt before it happened," Paul said by telephone Thursday night. "It's not to get my approval, but we feel we should know about the decision before it takes place." ..."
November 13
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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As Hornets players gathered at the Alario Center on Thursday morning, team president Hugh Weber met with captains Chris Paul and David West to inform them that Coach Byron Scott was fired and his replacement would be General Manager Jeff Bower. Paul wasn't happy with the decision, and he wasn't pleased with being caught off guard by the announcement. He said New Orleans should have sought his and West's input before the decision was finalized. "I felt like maybe somebody would have at least consulted with me and asked how I felt before it happened," Paul said by telephone Thursday night. "It's not to get my approval, but we feel we should know about the decision before it takes place." ..."
November 13
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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By the numbers, it should have been no contest. And the numbers didn't lie. The Phoenix Suns entered Wednesday night's game at US Airways Center the No. 1 scoring team in the league, the No. 1 shooting team, and the team with the best 3-point shooting percentage in the NBA. Phoenix didn't need to pad that league-leading 3-point percentage, which entering the game (.471) was better than the New Orleans Hornets' overall shooting percentage (.463). Yet it did anyway. In routing the Hornets 124-104, Phoenix did some of its damage inside, scoring 42 points in the paint, dominating New Orleans on the offensive (15) and defensive glass, outrebounding the Hornets 45-29 and becoming the second ..."
November 12
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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The New Orleans Hornets have fired Coach Byron Scott and will make the formal annoucment at a 1 p.m. press conference. General manager Jeff Bower will assume coaching duties, according to a league source. Bower is a one-time Hornets assistant, but has never been a head coach in the NBA. A league source confirmed the termination. The Hornets are 3-6 this season. Scott was in the last year of his contract. Scott could not be reached for comment."
November 11
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Even though he was the last one on the floor for Wednesday morning's shootaround at US Airways Center, New Orleans Hornets guard Chris Paul said his slightly sprained left ankle responded to treatment and he'll play tonight against the Phoenix Suns. Paul tweaked the ankle near the end of the first half in Monday night's blowout win over the Los Angeles Clippers when he inadvertantly stepped on the foot of former Hornets guard Rasual Butler after making a short jumpshot just outside the lane. He played the entire third quarter, but was limping noticably at the beginning of the period, before the ankle loosened up. He and the rest of the New Orleans starters sat out the entire fourth period. ..."
November 11
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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It was, of course, only the Los Angeles Clippers. Nonetheless, the victory-starved New Orleans Hornets, winless in four previous road games, didn't care who the competition might have been Monday night at the Staples Center. Having lost four of their past five games, the Hornets needed a win against somebody. And the pent-up frustrations of the past week were all relieved with a victory that featured the latest edition of a re-tooled starting lineup that seemed to provide the necessary spark that propelled the Hornets to an easy 112-84 victory. Starting Peja Stojakovic at small forward and Devin Brown at shooting guard, along with Emeka Okafor, David West and, of course, Chris Paul, the ..."
November 11
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Now that the Hornets seemingly have discovered a starting lineup with which they can be comfortable, and a new-look rotation to go with it, the next step would seem to be a carry-over performance tonight against the sizzling Phoenix Suns. On Monday night against the Los Angeles Clippers, Hornets Coach Byron Scott reached back into a relative comfort zone, inserting veteran forward Peja Stojakovic into the starting lineup in place of erratic third-year player Julian Wright, and the result was a fast offensive start that carried over into the rest of New Orleans' performance. "Yeah, you hate to say it, but they say you don't want your offense to predicate your defense," said guard Chris ..."
November 10
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Whenever Hornets Coach Byron Scott brings a basketball team to this area, he's usually inundated with questions about his future, and whether that might include the top job with one of Staples Center's tenants. Since Scott spent the bulk of his playing career with the showtime Los Angeles Lakers, ordinarily media questioners want to know if he may be taking over as Lakers head coach should Phil Jackson opt to retire at season's end. That Scott is in the final year of his current contract with New Orleans merely serves to multiply the questions, and this year, playing an unusual back-to-back against the Lakers and on Monday night, the Clippers, Scott has gotten a double-dose of inquiries. ..."
November 9
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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When Hornets Coach Byron Scott met with shooting guard Morris Peterson following Saturday afternoon's practice to tell Peterson he'd been inactive for Sunday night's game against the Los Angeles Lakers, it wasn't as if Peterson hadn't heard such news before. A year ago, though troubled by injuries, Peterson lost his starting job to Rasual Butler and even when he regained his health, Peterson could not work his way back into Scott's rotation. Sunday night's start, and a defensive matchup against the Lakers' Kobe Bryant, went to veteran Devin Brown. Peterson watched in street clothes. "I guess Coach is doing what he feels is best for the team," Peterson said in the dressing room at the ..."
November 9
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Hornets Coach Byron Scott and guard Devin Brown are frequent golfing companions, sparking the obvious question to both Sunday night. Was Brown beating Scott on the links? Why else would Scott choose this, of all nights, to toss Brown into a potential inferno, making him the starting two guard against the Los Angeles Lakers and their other-worldly shooting guard Kobe Bryant. The query elicited laughs from both. But by game's end, Brown and the rest of the unsmiling Hornets had been torched by Bryant's 28 points -- 26 in the first half -- as the Lakers ran away to a 104-88 victory at the Staples Center, where the Hornets will play the Los Angeles Clippers tonight. Scott made the move to ..."
November 8
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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After hinting about it for almost a week, Hornets Coach Byron Scott finally announced a lineup change Saturday. Disappointed with the production at his two-guard spot, Byron Scott said he will start Devin Brown tonight against the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and put Morris Peterson on the inactive list. "It's a 2-4 start, and I'm not really getting anything out of Mo at the starting two guard," Scott said after practice at the Alario Center. "It just might be by committee right now; give Devin a chance, then six games from now, maybe give Marcus (Thornton, rookie from LSU) a chance and just go with (the most effective) guy."
November 8
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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The on-court demeanor hasn't changed, Hornets guard Chris Paul wants people to know. Paul's in-game countenance, a perpetual scowl, isn't anything new. It isn't a reflection of any dissatisfaction he might feel as New Orleans has broken from the starting gate with a 2-4 record as it struggles to formulate the kind of seamless chemistry that comes naturally to teams that have played together longer than two weeks. "There's no frustration. I'm fine," Paul, a two-time All-Star and one-time league MVP runner-up, said before the Hornets departed for a three-game West Coast road trip that begins tonight in Staples Center against the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. "The only thing is I ..."
November 7
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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With early signs of momentum carrying over from Wednesday night's overtime victory against Dallas, Hornets point guard Chris Paul appeared pleased as he headed to the locker room with his team holding a two-point halftime lead against the Toronto Raptors. However, four minutes into the third quarter, Paul had the same frustrating glare as he did during Monday night's loss to the New York Knicks when the Hornets were thoroughly dominated in the fourth quarter, surrendering 40 points at Madison Square Garden. On Friday night, not even the home-court advantage could save the Hornets as they were undone by the Raptors' franchise-record eight 3-pointers in the third quarter that led to a ..."
November 6
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Whenever New Orleans Hornets Coach Byron Scott sees his team sputtering, he goes into his bag of motivational tactics to try to break the slide. Unlike some NBA coaches, instead of extending the length of practices or overhauling his playbook, Scott gets his point across with harsh criticism that can either make a player feel shattered or motivated. "What you see is what you get with me," Scott said. "I am honest with my guys, and if I don't like something, I'm going to let them know about it. I kind of go by the seat of my paints with my feelings, and the last thing I want to do is hold it in." Scott becomes more demanding when the Hornets are on a losing streak, like this past week ..."
November 6
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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The NBA will not take disciplinary action against New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul or Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo for their verbal confrontation after Sunday's game at the TD Garden, league spokesman Tim Frank confirmed Thursday. After the game, Paul sought out Celtics forward Paul Pierce to shake his hand and offer congratulations for his performance. However, before Paul could finish, Rondo came up and bumped him, and that led to the two exchanging words. They had to be separated, and as Rondo was ushered from the court area by a team official, Celtics assistant Tom Thibodeau and Paul got into a shouting match in front of the Celtics' bench. Since Monday, the ..."