Hornets Hype

Free hats. Disclaimer: This picture was not supposed to look so naked. There's a strap. Dammit.

We checked out the official Hornets draft party last night down at Gordon Biersch, as some of you who might have been following my Twitter feed already knew. Living in New Orleans we usually try to make it out to as many of the Hornets events as we can.

It was about an hour before the draft when I hopped into a space at the bar and started to follow the rumors that were going down on Twitter, which was creaking along there and might have actually died at one scary point due to Michael Jackson’s death (RIP). Everyone was running with the idea that Phoenix might be trading Amare Stoudemire to Golden State or Ben Wallace to New Orleans for Tyson Chandler or possibly both. Meanwhile an older gentleman at the bar was buying me shots of Jager and trying to convince me that I did not, in fact, want to watch the draft at all– I wanted to go across the street to Harrahs and play the slots.

I was pretty sure I wanted to watch the draft, however, so I stayed, and chatted with some nice people I’d been Twittering back and forth with (I’m not sure Twittering is the verb, but I really hate to say Tweeting, so I’m going to declare that, on this blog at least, I was Twittering.) After a while mW got there. Oh, in fact here we are (The below video is approximately 12 seconds of me yelling because I can’t hear myself. I actually had no idea if you could hear me at all until I just watched it. Um, you can. Because I’m yelling.):

Hornets draft party! on 12seconds.tv

Now, for those of you looking for all the salacious celebrity pics, I forgot my camera and was following the draft on my laptop, which I had out on the bar. I also realized that I’d picked a spot close to one Hornets table, but the players were actually at a different table on the opposite side of the room. So not only did we not want to lose our spot, which I had staked out 2 hours prior, but there were about a hundred people packed into the approximately 30 foot space between us and CP. I was more concerned about melting before we even got as far as the #13 pick than stalking Hornets players. Therefore I had to acquire all these pics the good old-fashioned blogger way: uncredited, from Getty Images. But I will assure you that Chris Paul and Julian Wright were there. I could hear their voices, even if I couldn’t see them. (If it had been Tyson Chandler, I probably could have seen him over the crowd from my barstool, but we are talking about CP here.) The Hornets ran some interactive fan contests, and it seemed like everyone packed into that itty bitty area had fun.

CP is interviewed outside by some local stations, ticktock6 realizes in terror that this is the same CST mic that was stuck in her face into which she has NO. EARTHLY. IDEA. what she rambled on about. Oh help.

I have to admit I was unenthusiastic about #21 pick Darren Collison. I know next to nothing about him. Well, I know next to nothing about college ball in general, so that’s hardly a surprise. But I really thought we should’ve take DeJuan Blair, who ended up falling into the second round presumably because teams were scared off by his knee surgeries. I am fairly sure I managed to control these opinions when some cameramen came up and shined a light on me and asked me what I thought. I am also fairly sure I talked for a while. I am also fairly sure the two Jager shots had a significant effect on the fact that I kinda forgot about this whole experience till the above picture of Chris Paul and the CST mike jogged my memory and I realized that’s who I talked to. So, if you’re watching whatever draft montage they put together and air as a pregame or halftime feature next fall, and the girl wearing turquoise and (I think, oh lord) a Hornets draft cap backwards comes on and talks a mile a minute, that is me. CST, feel free to not use this footage. Anyhow, I feel a lot better about the Collison pick today, having checked out At the Hive’s post regarding his stats (they’re right up there or better than some lottery PGs). He was a 4 year college kid and didn’t have the hype of some of the others, but I think we’ll all remember we have a guy named David West who was in a similar situation when we drafted him and turned out all right.

I should make a note here that by the time we left the party I’d managed to collect Hornets beads, a turquoise T-shirt (I already have this particular one, and it’s XL… we may have 1 or 2 up for grabs), and the aforementioned Hornets draft cap, which was given to me by @hornetsdotcom. I have been asked a lot of times around town where I got such and such magnet or sticker or whatever, and the answer is you should try to make it to at least one official watch party a season, because they give out massive amounts of Hornets shwag. This particular party, however, should probably have been at a larger venue, because the place was packed wall to wall from when the draft started through when Chris Paul left. But overall, the staff at GB is highly awesome and they’ve hosted some solid Hornets events.

This nice man drew CP's picture

There were other fun moments about the draft, like the Minnesota Timberwolves Mad Point Guard Rampage of 2009, but the other significant moment for the Hornets didn’t happen until we were already home. We watched Blair finally go to San Antonio (where he’ll probably be perversely good, causing us to hate San Antonio more than we already do), and LSU product Marcus Thornton go to Miami at 43. Then a couple of minutes later, David Stern’s apprentice minion (I didn’t know that Stern doesn’t hang around to do the second round, funny!) came to the podium again. As soon as he said, “The Miami Heat convey the rights to the #43 pick Marcus Thornton…” I just had a feeling it was us. And sure enough, it was! So the Hornets ended up with two picks after all. (From what I’ve read today, Thornton was always on our board, and as soon as he didn’t get picked in the first round, the Hornets got on the phones.)

Whew. Crazy end to a crazy week in the NBA. But you know what? We got through another big trade week without selling low on Tyson Chandler, who, I have been vehemently arguing to anyone who will listen, deserves a chance to prove he can rebound from his injury before we melodramatically rant and rave about how he’s “NEVER GOING TO BE THE SAME AGAIN!” We turned a lone low #21 pick in a junky draft into two guys who can hopefully fill roles on the roster and allow CP to get some rest and the Hornets to shop Antonio Daniels’ expiring contract with no worries. We drafted safe, 4-year player types. The Hornets’ front office sneakily drafted a 2nd rounder who, if he makes the team, will appeal to local fans and create buzz. Sometimes I am concerned that they don’t “get” this market, so that was a good thing to see. And maybe I’m being a girl here, but it kinda made me all warm and fuzzy to see the team give the local kid a chance to play for his hometown team.

About the t-shirt. I’d give it to a commenter who wears an XL, but I don’t know…. I think the Hype Cat has an interest in it…

Hype Cat's New Hornets T-Shirt

Major style improvements for CP since then

Come see who the Hornets select with their #21 pick tomorrow night at the official draft party. The fun starts at 6 PM at Gordon Biersch. With celebrity appearances by ticktock6, Chris Paul, and Julian Wright. (What? I’m a celebrity appearance. I mean, Chris Paul’s a cool kid and everything, but he’s no ticktock6, am I right?)

Seriously, though, it’s cool that CP’s in town. Hornets Hype is gonna be at this shindig. Because we like hanging out with Hornets fans. And because we want to see how draft night goes down. But most importantly, because I haven’t had Southwest egg rolls  since the season ended. You think maybe they’re free?

Official flyer and info here.

I’m not sure even how to react to the fact that someone actually wrote an article entitled “Hornets, Pistons win in Chris Paul trade” which begins:

Joe Dumars should go after New Orleans point guard Chris Paul.

It’s not as outrageous as you might think.

Um, except for yes it is.

Just like this was also stupid.

Sigh. Insert joke involving me having ______ (amount A) of ____________ (highly undesirable object B) to sell you if you think for more than 10 seconds about these articles.

Tell me what y’all think of the following excerpt:

I’ve said it before and I will continue to say it — Chris Paul is a punk. Paul personally instigated the chippy play Sunday night with his antics. Paul not only flopped continuously but had the nerve to get an attitude with both the referring crew and the Nuggets players. And how Carmelo Anthony was called for a foul when Tyson Chandler veered sharply and ran Melo over, I’ll never know; to say the officiating in the Denver New Orleans game was spotty is being kind.  In this series the scenario is this: if Paul is feted and treated like an untouchable, the Hornets will upset Denver. If the refs officiate the game as it happens and not as Paul or head coach Byron Scott say it’s happening, Denver wins.

Sigh.

Uh, did any of you notice the officiating in this one being particularly in the Hornets’ favor? I certainly didn’t. I think the Hornets got screwed because the more physical team was allowed to be physical with them and they weren’t physical enough back (NOTE: This is not the refs’ fault). Which, as we know, is familiar because it’s the pattern in our big stack of Jazz losses too. Yeah. I’m sure the physical play of a team known for physical play is solely the fault of the guy on the opposing team who’s under six feet tall. And also, in case he didn’t notice, the Hornets lost! Which kind of ruins his whole argument. Not to mention the fact that during games Byron Scott shows the approximate emotional range of a clam. I’m not sure what coach he’s watching.

And then I remembered this was the douchebag who, in like the first game of the season, accused the Hornets of getting post-Katrina pity reffing. No, I am not making this up. He’s the internet’s foremost Chris Paul hater. It hit me like a freight train of deja vu: “I’ve made fun of this guy before, haven’t I?”

And guys, this one hurts. Because my New Year’s Resolution this year was honestly, I promise, to try to use alternate words in place of “douchebag,” because I feel I am guilty of overuse. But what am I supposed to do? Dude is a douche.

So, whatever, Ball Don’t Lie. I don’t think you should be quoting people like this. He’s clearly got a bias against Chris Paul (said in November, and I quote, that people who think he’s great are “guilty of worshipping false idols” !!!!). Not to mention trivializing a national disaster that we happen to take pretty seriously around here. (Edited to Clarify: I am not saying CP isn’t a punk on the court– he is– but I think people should know these are the words of a serial CP-hater, so they can choose to take them with or without a grain of salt!)

Move along, there’s nothing to see here…. except an archaic genital hygiene product.

Okay, folks.  Tough order today.  A fully healthy Spurs team against a depleted Hornets squad.  No Tyson.  No Peja.  Posey suspended.  Hilton is gimpy.  This would be a tough game at full strength, let alone with what we have.  So can the Hornets win?  I don’t know.  But I know one thing.

Chris Paul and David West have to go Nova.

No iffs ands or buts.  Well, unless we put up like 18 three-pointers, but Butler, Mo, and the rest of the cast haven’t seemed to have been putting up that many lately, let alone making them all.  But otherwise, if our two All-Stars don’t rip it up, well, it’s back to the Ledge for Hornets fans.  (Speaking of, haven’t seen those Phoenix people lately…where they at?)  But I don’t see our guys failing.  Win or lose, these two are going to leave it all out there.

CP and DX understand that this isn’t just another game to put one in the win column.  This isn’t even important because it’s a Western Conference or Divisional game.  Nope. This is the team that knocked us out of the playoffs last year.  On our home court.  In Game 7.  It’s about revenge.

We can all say that we have good “character” guys, who don’t care about things like that.  But I say that’s bullshit.  These guys are competitors.  They get angry.  They harbor dark feelings.  You may not see that side of them in interviews or at charity events, but if you watch our guys on the court, they have that dark fire in them.  So tonight, I hope they will unleash that dark side.  They’ll need it.

Chris Paul sucks.  27-8-8.  Can’t even get a triple double.  Only 2 steals and only 7-7 from the free throw line.  Only led the team to victory over the woeful Warriors, and let them crawl back from the -20 they were all game to lose by ten.  Horrible.  I can’t believe Hornets fans want him mentioned in the MVP conversation.

Psych.  Chris Paul = Where Amazing Happens.  I really can’t sum it up better than a friend of mine, Alden, who turned to me after the first quarter of the Lakers game, and said straight-faced, “that Chris Paul is a wizard.”  Right?  CP does seem to routinely defy the laws of physics.  How better to put it?  Incredulously, though, no one calls CP “the Wizard,” “the Little Wizard,” or anything similar.  So how to describe his play?

I mean, most great players have some kind of nickname, right?  We know this much, Chris is often referred to as CP3, or just CP.  Sometime last year, the nickname was coined “Baby-Faced Assassin.”  Not bad, but ever since I’ve seen Kevin Martin play (who, by the way is not “K-Mart”, that one’s already taken, thank you very much), I have trouble calling Paul “baby-faced.”

Luckily, some of our Chinese friends over at Hoop China helped us out. You may recall that during the Olympics, the commentators talked about the Chinese giving several marquee NBA players nicknames.  While, at that time, they reported Chris didn’t have one, we’ve learned since this is not true.  The following comes from HornetsHype poster, Jonas:

[The Chinese] call CP3 “little baby” cause his last name Paul…sound[s] like chinese word “baby”, and he’s so lovely that we call him “little baby”.  We also call CP3…“King of hornets”…we finally call him CP3 as you guys in US. But also we call him…“black ghost”, “small cannon”(Paul also sound[s] like Chinese word cannon), [and] “sun of hornets” (The King is also the sun of hornets).

Also, from HornetsHype poster, Lucialanlan:

CP’[s] other nikename is “pineapple”, in Chinese, pineapple is called boluo, Paul’s Chinese name is baoluo,and CP3’s fans [are] also called boluomi,which means pineapple fans.

Great stuff.  TT6 says she likes “Small Cannon.”  I also want to add another, courtesy of our enemies of the night, though cool blog, Golden State of Mind, who posted a comic featuring CP, where the “Name Forge of Destiny,” decides that for CP’s “obvious virtuosity,” and “ability to thoroughly lay waste to all who stand in your way” that he be referred to as the “Grief Merchant.”  That’s my favorite.  Grief Merchant.  

So tell me, what is your favorite CP nickname?

Stop me if you’ve heard this one: the MVP race is a three way contest.  Be it the writers at NBAtv, ESPN, Yahoo, or wherever: it’s all about Kobe, Lebron, and Dwyane.  What about the guy who came in second in the MVP voting last year, Chris Paul?  Never mentioned.  These major media outlets run through highlights, and someone almost inevitably says something like “CP is playing is out of his mind, and he’s not even in the MVP conversation,” with a tone that’s somewhat apologetic.  But then they move on.  They have bigger markets to address, after all.

I guess the first thought might be that CP is having an off year.  Wrong.  Higher FG%, FT%, higher rebound rate, more steals per game, and more points per game on less shots than last year.  Oh, but his assists are down 0.6.  But he still leads the League in assists per game.  Don’t believe me?  Check out Basketball-Reference.com.  A great site.  (I got the numbers below from there too.)  Maybe the lack of discussion of CP3 for MVP is the Hornets record?  Nope.  We’re only a few games below last year’s pace, and well ahead of Wade’s Heat.  Okay, so forget this year and last.  There are no answers there.  So ask yourself a more pertinent question.  Is CP3 having an MVP-caliber season?  I figured the best way to find the answer was to compare his stats this year to those of past MVP point guard seasons.  Any predictions on how CP will stack up?

You hear now and then that Chris broke one of Oscar Robertson’s records.  Well, Oscar won the MVP in 1963-64.  Byron also likes to call CP a six-foot Magic Johnson; MJ won the MVP three times: in 1986-87, 1988-89, and 1989-90.  And, of course, the most recent point guard to win the MVP, was Steve Nash, back-to-back in 2004-05 and 2005-06.  So how does CP stack up?  Pretty damn well.  Not the best year ever by a point guard, but certainly within the spectrum of MVP-caliber play.  Let’s get to it.

One caveat must be given.  Oscar Robertson played in a different era, with different rules.  For starters, you’ll see he has no 3-point shooting stats.  There was no 3-point shot back then.  Also, they didn’t break the boards down into offensive and defensive, and didn’t count turnovers or steals. I’ve compared percentages and per game stats because obviously CP hasn’t played a full season yet this year.  The immediate impression that jumps out is that CP’s year is better really than either of Nash’s MVP seasons (something which the below stats will clearly confirm).  The other initial impressions are that Magic Johnson has some awesome years and the Big O played lots of minutes.

Minutes per game to me mostly means how important that guy is to their team.  One could suggest that CP’s longer minutes give him more time to accrue stats, but Nash and Magic played on higher paced teams.  (Yes, I know pace-adjusted stats are all the rage, but I’ll leave those to the real stat masters over at atthehive and hornets247 for now.  Plus, they don’t always work with guys as old as Oscar, as they didn’t keep all the same stats to input into the equations.)  Field goal percentage.  CP may be in the middle bottom of the pack, but he’s over the 50% threshold, which not many guards surpass.  His “weakness” if he can be said to have one, from looking at these stats, is 3-point shooting (one thing Nash excelled at), but CP’s kind of been on a slump from there lately, and he has 20 games to pull that  number up.

Free throw shooting?  CP may only come in at fifth here, but considering Duncan, Shaq, and Wilt have all been MVPs, well.  Yeah.  86% doesn’t sound too bad.  Rebounding, again mediocre, but notice that the only player his height, Nash, CP beats hands down.  Magic had 9 inches on Chris and Oscar had five.  Not bad, really.  Surprisingly, CP actually is only fifth at assists per game, as well.  You’d expect our little basketball wizard to be higher up, right?  Well, I’m going to cheat a little here and go to pace-adjusted stats.  We don’t have them for Oscar’s MVP season, but the best in his entire career was 37.8%.  Magic for his MVP years: 47.2%, 48.6%, and 45.5%.  Steve N with 49.2% and 44.4%.  How about Chris Paul this year?  54.8%.  Let me say that again.  54.8%.  By far the best.  You know how people say if CP played for D’Antoni, he’d average 20 assists a game?  Well, we need to start recognizing in the popular media the difference between pace and recognize CP’s greatness at any pace.

Now, the second set of stats make Chris’ case even more.  First, they show that CP is the master thief among MVP point guards.  Also, CP held onto the ball much better than any of these other guys.  Not surprisingly, thought, he’s not the best shot blocker.  Chris commits a few more fouls than anyone but Oscar, but as long as he’s not on average in foul trouble, which he’s not, who cares?  Magic and Oscar definitely kill CP in scoring, but CP crushed Nash.  Although, in fairness, Stevie was definitely the most effective scorer, as shown by True Shooting % and Effective Field Goal Percentage.

My final observation: CP dominates Hollinger’s Player Efficiency Rating.  Not only does he annihilate Nash, and handily beat the others, but he’s posting the highest PER ever for a point guard.  And guess what?  The guy who currently holds that distinction?  Chris Paul from last year.  And no one’s talking about this guy for MVP?  Seriously?  The case is clear.  CP3 is an MVP.  Not only that, but here’s a bonus stat.  Chris is in only in his fourth year; Oscar won the award in his fourth.  However, Magic won it in his 8th, 10th, and 11th seasons; and Nash won it in his 9th and 10th.  CP is just starting to peak.  Think about it.

The only remaining question is, then, is CP as good as Kobe, Lebron, or Dwyane this year?  One difficulty in making this determination is that they have different style games.  It’s like trying to explain why Nash beat out Shaq in 2006.  How do you really quantify what each one brings in comparison?  It’s apples and oranges.  Two 2 guards, a 3, and Chris at the 1?  You just can’t look at the same criteria for each one, but have to balance the overall impact of each player on his team, in some sort balancing test of shifting priorities.

Nonetheless, somewhat inexplicably, for “analysts,” all anyone ever says is that Chris doesn’t score as much as these guys!  If it was, Allen Iverson would have 4 MVPs and Tracy McGrady 2.  Yet, anyone who’s ever watched Chris play more than once or twice knows that he doesn’t try to dominate the game by scoring as much as these other guys.  That said, Hornets fans have seen him go off in a quarter for more than 20 on multiple occasions, just because he can, and the situation dictated it.  

But it’s not all about scoring.  It’s about making your team better.  CP knows it’s a team sport, and that even if he scores 50 or gets a triple double (the latter of which he leads the League with the most so far this year), and his team isn’t playing well, his team won’t win.  All that matters to Chris is winning, not personal stats, and his goal is a championship, nothing more, nothing less.  But along the way, he deserves to be mentioned by the rest of us as an MVP candidate.  And I say, as an MVP, period.  Here’s what some other people have to say:

• John Hollinger, ESPN;
• Dave Berri, The Wages of Wins Journal;
• Alejandro de Rios, The Gambit; and
• Rob Fitz, Celtics 17.

I know this much, Chris Paul’s stats this year compare favorably to those of past point guard MVPs.  Not just All-Stars.  MVPs.  So anyone that doesn’t at least put him in that conversation is crazy.

I’m going to flat out say this: I haven’t read the Charley Rosen “Deron Williams is better than CP” column.

I know, right? Amazing self-restraint… or is it just that I find it difficult to summon up the will to care about a piece of writing I know isn’t backed up by statistical fact, written by a guy — who works for Fox– who has had a penchant in the past for watching one Hornets game a year (usually a blowout loss) and making sweeping generalizations based on that one game? I think Rosen spent most of last season on my $#*tList. Because I have a deep and abiding hatred for him? No, because he just sucks. “Williams goes left better than Paul”? Is this basketball, or fucking Zoolander?

I dunno. You go read it if you want. Or instead you could check out this post by Rob Fitz of Celtics 17 to see how Chris stacks up to Magic and Stockton. Or you could just look at this:

2006
Paul:
16 points
8 assists
5 rebounds
2 steals
2.3 TO

Williams:
10 points
5 assists
2 rebounds
1 steal
1.8 TO

2007
Paul:
17 points
9 assists
4 rebounds
3 steals
2.5 TO

Williams:
16 points
9 assists
3 rebounds
1 steal
3.0 TO

2008
Paul:
21 points
12 assists
4 rebounds
3 steals
2.5 TO

Williams:
19 points
11 assists
3 rebounds
1 steal
3.4 TO

2009
Paul:
21 points
11 assists
5 rebounds
3 steals
2.9 TO

Williams:
19 points
11 assists
3 rebounds
1 steal
3.4 TO

FG% on 2-point jump shots this season:
Paul 47.4 percent, Williams 47.2 percent.

FG% on 3-pointers this season:
Paul 34.1 percent, Williams 31.9 percent.

FG% on inside shots this season:
Paul 63.1 percent, Williams 56.5 percent.

And 1’s this season:
Paul 31, Williams 19

(Thanks, Hornets Report and Hornets 24/7.)

When will it end? When? When? (UPDATE: Apparently never. Whatever. Ryne Nelson can’t really hide the fact that he’s laughably biased against Chris Paul at this point. In fact, I don’t even know why I linked to that. It killed brain cells. It literally had nothing to add except, “Haha! I found someone who thinks I’m not wrong.” UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: Hollinger knows.)

Chris Paul was quiet.

He’s been quiet for the past few games, content to dish and wait as David West played the leader role. His shooting looked a little off; maybe he was still feeling the pull of the groin injury. We weren’t concerned. We shouldn’t have been. But maybe the Mavs should have.

Because you don’t want to see Chris Paul quiet. It’s like the still, humid, blue-sky day before a hurricane.

And then it was the third quarter.

Interlude: So this is what happens on TNT after the Blazers/Nuggets game. First off, the TNT crew has been unnecessarily ripping on Portland all game, saying stuff like, “The Nuggets need to beat these teams that are vastly inferior to them.” Uh, Portland was half a game back. Seriously, guys? Biased much? I was already rolling my eyes at that. Then they bust out with, “Everyone on the Hornets is worse except for Chris Paul, who is the same. They all had career years last season. We don’t have the stats on that, but… they’re worse. And they don’t win unless he averages 25-15.” Which completely ignores the injuries, the recent fire that’s been lit under them, the 8-2 streak out of the All Star break, and the fact that Rasual Butler (remind me to do a post on this) is invisibly playing the best basketball of his entire career, after being a DNP-CD most of last spring. I was glad to see Barkley back, but I forgot that he’s so irritatingly changeable. (Chuck’s statement is also a rampant exaggeration, as ESPN’s Daily Dime and Elias Sports Bureau more factually stated this morning that “It was the ninth time in the last two seasons that Paul had at least 25 points and 15 assists in the same game. That’s one more 25-point/15-assist game than all other NBA players combined have recorded over the last two seasons.”) But the gist of the exchange is that, according to TNT, the Hornets are “out.”

Really, Chuck and Kenny? You’re gonna straight up tell Chris Paul he and his team can’t do something? You must not be watching the same Chris Paul I’m watching. And, while we’re at it, you’re wrong on another count too. He’s better than last season.

Back to the game. It’s tied 45-45 going into the third. You probably saw what happened next. At one point in the third quarter, mW remarked that it was like that scene in Happy Gilmore (which was fresh in our minds after being on TV approximately sixteen times last weekend) where he’s like, “Nah, I’m just gonna win now.” And then he does.

That was what it was like.

8-2 since the break, and 6-0 since Tyson came back. And I guess I feel sorry for the dudes on TNT, for Bill Simmons, for all these people who write these articles focusing on the wrong thing with this team, that they can’t just sit back and appreciate the whole “We’re getting the band back together!” what-the-hell vibe of it all. That they can’t see these past weeks for what they are– something rare and precious and swaggering and fun in these dark times of “sports as business” and “teams as cap space.” Just a bunch of guys who thought they lost their chance to play together… and then, against all probability, got it back. Just a bunch of guys playing for each other and racing to climb a ladder against time.

And then I realized something. I realized that, no matter what happens in the offseason, no matter what cost-cutting moves are made, if you live in New Orleans, it’s getting to the point where it isn’t a choice whether to buy tickets. I get the “let’s boycott the team because of Tyson Chandler” kick some disillusioned fans went on a couple weeks ago. Believe me, I get it. It’s a grand sentiment, but it’s a terrible idea.

Why do you go to games? For me, part of it is the lure of the tantalizing possibilities that lie spread out before you at the 12:00 mark of the first quarter. It’s about the chance– the slim, elusive chance– that you might see something transcendent. That someday you might be able to tell people, “I was there. I was at that game.”

‘Cause, see, last night I saw Chris Paul decide about halfway through the third quarter that he was going to win that game. He didn’t say it in words, but he said it in a thousand other ways– with a glare, a behind the back dribble, going through Jason Terry’s legs, a laugh and a spin. When Chris Paul asks you if you wanna dance, you say yes. And when he says he’s going to win, you believe him.

Really, at what point does it become less a question of expectation and more a question of plain mathematics? Like 2+1 is always gonna equal three. It’s 77 degrees in New Orleans, and Chris Paul dismantled the Dallas Mavericks last night. We’ve been here before.