Hornets Hype

So. How was your week?

You wish there was a moment to stop and take a breath, but it’s the Lakers up tonight, the Jazz tomorrow, Mardi Gras in full effect till Tuesday. On the other hand, I’ll argue that we learned things about this team in the whirlwind of the past three crazy days. And they are good things.

We watched as, instead of collapsing, the Hornets won two games in the wake of the Chandler trade.

We learned who the leaders are. True, it wasn’t really surprising. But we saw David West speak up. (If there’s any word to describe D-West, outspoken is not it.) On a night when the Hornets organization seemed to be bombarding the fans and the press with cheerfully spun declarations about how they traded for two shorter guys to improve their rebounding, he was the one voice to say that the trade wasn’t a basketball decision, and he wasn’t happy with a move that would seriously handicap their playoff chances. I will always admire him for that. We saw Chris Paul tell the press, “Me and D-West talked about it before the game last night — if we go down, we’ve got to go down fighting.” And we were heartened by it.

We learned that the fans of New Orleans, despite comments to the contrary, are going to support this team, coming close to selling out the arena on a parade night with many fans bitter about what they saw as purely a cost-cutting move. And those fans were treated to a late Christmas present.

We learned that, when implemented wisely, the Hornets’  assortment of backup bigs can stand up to Dwight Howard. I don’t know what that says about other future games, but it’s not a bad thing.

We learned that, once every few months at least, John DeShazier and I will agree on something. I know, right?

We learned that we will follow Chris Paul wherever he leads us. And so will this team.

I’m not going to worry about the whole failing-the-physical thing right now, because there’s no point. Let’s focus on the short term. Tyson is the guy we have. And he says he’ll be back Monday or Wednesday. That’s enough for me.

What the Hornets got Wednesday night was one last chance to get it done with the guys on this roster.

They have to take it.

The Hype is taking a much-needed vacation.

A little warm weather relaxation,  a little All Star watching, maybe a little site redesign, but mostly hitting the streets of Uptown with a dash of Bring Your Own Beverage for the first big parade weekend.

But before you head out there, you should totally check out At the Hive’s excellent post on the State of the New Orleans Hornets. I can say this stuff a hundred times, but at the end of the day it’s based on love, not stats, and no offense, love ain’t gonna get you many rebounds and second chance points. But numbers don’t lie, and the post has a numerical breakdown of what’s gone wrong for the Hornets this season so far, and what needs to happen for it to go right in the final 32 games.

So, go forth, friends, and remember to rep the Hornets in your teal & stripes at the parades this weekend! ‘Cause there’s a lot of basketball yet to be played. And no one gets drunk or laid at a pity party.

See you on the flipside of the season.

P.S. I would like to thank the Great NBA Love of My Life Paul Pierce, who singlehandedly dropped Dallas in the 4th quarter last night to put the Mavs below the Hornets in the standings heading into the All Star break. Forgiven!

David M.F. West on Jim Rome last week. He talks about being selected to the All Star game, and his general low-key-ness.

He made the team!

West Reserves:

Shaq, Gasol, West, Nowitzki, Parker, Billups, and Roy

I don’t know how I feel about that. I mean, obviously, we’re happy. But Gasol averaging 17/9, West 20/7, Shaq 18/9…. Al Jefferson 23/10. Let’s not quibble over who’s a forward and who’s a center. Let’s not say who out of those three guys should have been left off. But um… yeah.

There are two other equally on-the-bubble bigs, but you know the haters are totally gonna pick David West to hate on. “David Who?” Sigh. STFU.

Guys. This is actually really cool. Last year when we got Tyson Chandler bobbleheads, I complained about how it couldn’t really look like Tyson because it had no tats. I mean, that’s pretty lame. If they can get Chris Paul’s two-colored bracelets right, you’d think they can at least stamp some ink on it.

I can see it if the guy has one tattoo, but when even the Allen Iverson bobblehead is pristinely inkless, it just becomes weird. Whatever. You can’t tell me that’s AI. It’s like Iverson’s preppy clone. If it’s acceptable that Iverson the person has tattoos, how come it’s not acceptable for Iverson the bobblehead doll to have them? I THINK THE CHILDREN HAVE EYES. Like, the secret’s out of the bag. The impressionable youth already <gasp> know he has them.

But check out the David West bobblehead we got on Monday. DX wouldn’t be DX without, well, the X? Would he? I didn’t think so. Amazingly, the bobblehead makers agreed, as you can see from the photo–

… HA. Yeah right. The bobblehead makers are corporate whores. But luckily, your friend TT6 likes small (and we are talking really, really small) art projects. I only did five out of the seven (um, unless he’s got some under the uniform we don’t know about, obviously), but I think I managed to create the desired effect. You shoulda seen how sweet the tat under the X looked before I accidentally stuck my finger on it and smudged it…

… David West Bobblehead Day!

Guys, don’t forget the game tips off at 2:30, which would place the Buzzfest at 1:00. But there are only 8,000 bobbleheads, so you’ve got to cut your free beer festivities short to get one.

In case you didn’t know, I’ve been waiting all year for the D West bobblehead, because my picture in the sidebar isn’t right without him. These bobblehead giveaways are usually a little hectic, but I’m prepared. I’m not big, but I play good positional D, and I can box out. My size allows me to duck through the crowd not unlike Chris Paul. And I know the art of throwing elbows.

But. If it doesn’t have the X tattoo on its left shoulder, I will cry… For three seconds, and then I’ll get out a sharpie.

He might not actually be a real person right now. He might not even be on the same planet as everyone else. Outscoring Kobe Bryant with 40-11! Make that the same planet as everyone else except Chris Paul (32-15!).

You know, to tell you the truth, I had a good feeling about this one. I had it all day. You ever read the Harry Potter books? The best comparison I can think of is when Harry takes the Felix Felicis potion, the one that makes you lucky, and he’s coasting through the day like, “Nah, man, it’s aaaaaaallll good. Let’s just roll with this.” And I can’t even explain it. I felt very relaxed about this game, very unstressed. And the Hornets just roll in and show us who they can be. No pressure or anything, guys. They did it with great performances. They did it with one of the best games of the season. (Three All Stars going off? Insanity. There was total insanity happening at the Staples Center.)

I’m scared to officially announce this, but the Hornets’ season might be out of beta. Looks like we’re scheduled to release on time after all.

It’s on. Tell your friends.

I love David West as much as the next person (shit, probably more than the next person), and it is true that he had a 21-12 night in a teeth-gritting loss to the Lakers… but. What’s an easy way to make people forget that? Oh, right, being responsible for more turnovers than any 3 players on either team added together.

I now present an illustration:

StarDestroyer Escape Pod Shooter Dude #1: There goes another one.

David West: Hold your fire. There’s no life forms. It must have short circuited.

Ineptitude… When you do your job perfectly all your life, and then drop the ball in those pesky clutch moments.

I came across this collection of Rhapsody playlists from different NBA players. Lo and behold, there’s a Hornets player on there, and it’s David West. Click over to read his explanation of why he picked the songs he did (and also learn what his favorite thing to order at Popeye’s is, among other stuff). Hey, and be reassured that there’s some badassery mixed in there and it’s not all Jesus songs like Michael Redd’s…

Damn, now I want some spicy chicken…

Obama/West 08

The Hornets were in Indianapolis to play their preseason game against the Pacers tonight. Barack Obama was there campaigning, following last night’s debate. Apparently their paths crossed. The entire Hornets team attended the Obama rally, and it looks like they also had some photo ops with the presidential candidate. (From which I learned that Barack Obama is taller than Chris Paul.)

This blogger, who was at the rally, posted a funny story about the Hornets, who were standing nearby. Apparently there was a protestor disrupting Obama’s speech, causing David West to yell down to him to shut up. Now, me, I would know not to mess with D. West, but the guy kept going and eventually got pulled out of the place by Secret Service. (Although I’m not sure about the comment re: Ryan Bowen and Sean Marks… who knows how/if they’re voting? I mean, it’s not exactly as if there haven’t been black players in the history of the NBA who were Republicans, and let’s just say it’s not exactly as if Barack Obama is falling behind in the white people vote.)

Anyway, I’m glad the team found something to do in Indiana. I knew someone from Indiana, once, and it didn’t sound that fun (At least I think I did. Is Purdue in Indiana? I get all those Midwestern vowel states mixed up. Same thing.)

Now who’s writing in Paul/West on the ballot next month? (KIDDING. Kidding.)

David West and Chris Paul at Indiana Obama rally. Photos courtesy Hornet Henry via Facebook.