BullsDynasty
03-30-2009, 02:08 PM
By Dave McMenamin, NBA.com (http://my.nba.com/profile.jspa?userID=300001889)
Posted Mar 30 2009 1:23PM
Injuries have devastated the Hornets, dropping last season's No. 2 seed to the No. 7 seed, if the playoffs started today. But if Peja Stojakovic returns from his back injury and if Tyson Chandler's left ankle is mended come April 18 when the postseason starts, there won't be many Western Conference teams that will raise their hands in answer to the question, "Who wants to play the Hornets?"
"I'm pretty comfortable if I've got my starting unit together," New Orleans coach Byron Scott said on Friday. "I know how they can play and I'm pretty comfortable that we can beat anybody in the West."
Scott's team showed that he can be comfortable even without his starters, as reserves Julian Wright and Antonio Daniels combined for 19 points in the Hornets' 90-86 win over the Spurs on Sunday. The win was significant because it snapped a two-game losing streak and it came against a healthy San Antonio team that lost for just the 10th time in 38 games when it's had its "Big Three" intact.
The threat posed by any potential postseason meeting with New Orleans starts with Chris Paul, the Hornets' multi-talented point guard. Paul, who finished second to Kobe Bryant in voting for the MVP, clearly has improved his game this season. His points, shooting percentage, rebounds and steals per game all have increased. With two-fifths of his starting rotation out, Paul has upped his averages to 24.8 points, 10.5 rebounds, 5.7 rebounds and 3.3 steals per game in the month of March.
The Hornets also have leaned heavily on David West, who was an All-Star along with Paul. Scott has to be careful that he doesn't ride his horses too hard, though; West and Paul both have played 40 minutes or more in 11 of the Hornets' 15 games in March.
The major minutes have been necessary because, aside from Chandler being expected to miss at least another week with his bad ankle and Stojakovic being day-to-day with his balky back, James Posey was recently suspended for a game for throwing a ball at a referee and Hilton Armstrong missed a game with a sprained ankle.
The heavy workload probably won't ease any time soon, either; Posey sprained his left elbow Friday night and is expected to miss the next three games.
New Orleans has defeated all but one of the seven other teams in the West that are pointed toward the playoffs. The Hornets will get the chance to make it 7-for-7 when they host the Jazz on Sunday. By that time, both Chandler and Stojakovic could be back.
"It's been a long time since our starting five has been together, and that's the scary part," Scott said. "The one thing that I do feel pretty comfortable about is the fact that they have been together, last year and most of this season. So they have a pretty good idea about each other and we have a pretty good idea about them as a group."
Posted Mar 30 2009 1:23PM
Injuries have devastated the Hornets, dropping last season's No. 2 seed to the No. 7 seed, if the playoffs started today. But if Peja Stojakovic returns from his back injury and if Tyson Chandler's left ankle is mended come April 18 when the postseason starts, there won't be many Western Conference teams that will raise their hands in answer to the question, "Who wants to play the Hornets?"
"I'm pretty comfortable if I've got my starting unit together," New Orleans coach Byron Scott said on Friday. "I know how they can play and I'm pretty comfortable that we can beat anybody in the West."
Scott's team showed that he can be comfortable even without his starters, as reserves Julian Wright and Antonio Daniels combined for 19 points in the Hornets' 90-86 win over the Spurs on Sunday. The win was significant because it snapped a two-game losing streak and it came against a healthy San Antonio team that lost for just the 10th time in 38 games when it's had its "Big Three" intact.
The threat posed by any potential postseason meeting with New Orleans starts with Chris Paul, the Hornets' multi-talented point guard. Paul, who finished second to Kobe Bryant in voting for the MVP, clearly has improved his game this season. His points, shooting percentage, rebounds and steals per game all have increased. With two-fifths of his starting rotation out, Paul has upped his averages to 24.8 points, 10.5 rebounds, 5.7 rebounds and 3.3 steals per game in the month of March.
The Hornets also have leaned heavily on David West, who was an All-Star along with Paul. Scott has to be careful that he doesn't ride his horses too hard, though; West and Paul both have played 40 minutes or more in 11 of the Hornets' 15 games in March.
The major minutes have been necessary because, aside from Chandler being expected to miss at least another week with his bad ankle and Stojakovic being day-to-day with his balky back, James Posey was recently suspended for a game for throwing a ball at a referee and Hilton Armstrong missed a game with a sprained ankle.
The heavy workload probably won't ease any time soon, either; Posey sprained his left elbow Friday night and is expected to miss the next three games.
New Orleans has defeated all but one of the seven other teams in the West that are pointed toward the playoffs. The Hornets will get the chance to make it 7-for-7 when they host the Jazz on Sunday. By that time, both Chandler and Stojakovic could be back.
"It's been a long time since our starting five has been together, and that's the scary part," Scott said. "The one thing that I do feel pretty comfortable about is the fact that they have been together, last year and most of this season. So they have a pretty good idea about each other and we have a pretty good idea about them as a group."