Hornets Hype

True. NBA Coverage is sparse these days. Of games that is. I’m sure there’s all kinds of Finals nostalgia here and there. Especially on NBAtv. Nonetheless, my NBA Hunger Strike has continued. No basketball since the Hornets lost. A modicum of Hornets blog reading, but no major media outlets. As you all know, The End hit me hard. It didn’t feel right. San Antonio fans might disagree with that sentiment with our series, but are likely just as bitter about their own team’s demise. The Stern Button has been activated. The big markets win. Celtics-Lakers Finals. But still, I am a basketball fan. A huge one. So I’m wavering. There are a lot of storylines that intrigue me about these finals.

I might watch. One more day to consider it. Thoughts?

Finally! The NBA plans to impose fines on floppers next season. (Why oh why couldn’t they have come up with this idea sooner, so we could all be watching Hornets/Lakers right now?) So, right on. If players feel they’re not doing the right thing unless they fall on the floor to “sell” calls, something is awry. Hockey eventually began to penalize diving, and that’s worked out pretty well. Of course, the best part of this article is what Rasheed Wallace had to say about it. I won’t quote it here because, hey, this is not a Sheed blog, but trust me. You’ll be (expletive) entertained.

Over on the official blog, it’s been announced that they’re going to have Hornets Insider articles, along with a couple of other new features, next season. The first one is Eight Things to Know About NBA Scouting, which was an interesting read, especially the parts about the off-the-court stuff the Hornets look at in prospects.

And don’t forget to go to At the Hive and vote on the How’d He Do? season player review series. He’s done Ely, Peterson, West, and Wells so far. (Wow, I decided I was gonna go with all last names on that one to keep it consistent, but it felt really weird to type. Like my fingers really were resistant to not throwing in nicknames or initials. Wah.)

And here’s a sentence you never thought you’d see:

The Spurs are going to have to put better players around their big three. They’re going to have to get younger and more athletic, and they’ll need to get a better power forward to match up with David West in N.O., and Pau Gasol (who will move to the 4 when Andrew Bynum returns) or Odom in L.A.

That’s from the ESPN Roundtable today, which discusses the Spurs’ future. I just love the name drop of D West. A year ago, you didn’t think you’d see that, did you? (Of course you didn’t think Gasol would be in L.A., either, come to think of it…) They also call the Hornets “ascendant.”

Ascendant. Great word.

Anyhow, tomorrow morning I’m taking a flight to Syracuse, on my way to visit the (expletive) awesomeness that is St. Lawrence University, where I will be getting up to All. Sorts. Of. Trouble at my 5 Year Reunion. So I will clearly not be seen in these parts until Monday, not that I’ve been posting much lately anyway. But I do want to go through that playoff swag next week and figure out what to send to who. So ticktock6 = partying. Ticktock6 = not in the NOLA.

And then next Friday is my birthday, which, if someone wants to make it a real memorable one, you know, it would be great to wake up and be notified that next year’s season tickets are now free. Or like, Tyson Chandler on my doorstep… I’m just saying. No? Fine, I’ll just have a Tanqueray and tonic, I guess…

Later, Buzz Friends. I’m out like Ginobili’s flop.

Hear that?

No?

Oh well.

… That sound you did not hear emanating from the southern U.S. was thousands of fans in Phoenix and New Orleans completely failing to summon up a collective cry of concern and outrage on behalf of the San Antonio Spurs.

I’m trying to move on, really. I’ve been posting on other blogs. I’ve been trying to stay upbeat. I still have the fleur-de-bee desktop picture on my work computer. But being that guy who believes in conspiracies, I started thinking about the teams not named the Magic or Hornets and wondered why David Stern might favor those match-ups….

It could be a Spurs-Pistons, whereby these new Motown kids finally assert their championship pedigree as more than a fluke, or the Spurs solidify their status as a dynasty. Or maybe Kobe does what Shaq couldn’t, namely, beat the Pistons, and makes his own legend; or on the flip side, the Pistons prove they are true champions, beating the Lakers again. Of course, Celtics and anyone is a win for Stern. Beantown’s glory restored by the Boston Three Party; a group of revered veterans get their shots. If they play the Spurs, either the Boston team returns to glory, or the Spurs prove that they are one of the best teams ever. If the Lakers, well, what more can you say, it’s Lakers-Celtics. Stern’s dream come true.

But none of these scenarios include the Hornets and their Hive–which had begun to feel like a second home. And this still feels wrong. So I make a decision to stand by my gut reaction. I decide to refuse to acquiesce to David Stern’s vision of NBA harmony. Sorry, not everyone accepts his Cancer Man-like manipulation. I choose to exercise my freedom not to watch his pre-fab games.

Maybe I’m wrong. But, yes, I still believe he has the power and the will to control games. No, it’s not something that shows up in box scores. It’s not about comparing free throws. It’s about momentum. It’s about psychology. It’s about subtlety. Ask Tim Donaghy. It’s about knowing when what calls will change something without anyone being able to prove anything. Because that’s what makes it a good conspiracy.

But I won’t bite. No more NBA for me. I’m on strike. I won’t just eat whatever bread crumbs are led for me to follow. It’s an NBA Hunger Strike. And this revolution will not be televised. But it will be blogged. Check it out. Or not. That’s your right.

OK, so we all appear to have perked up remarkably fast. It’s good to see that Hornets fans are resilient. Since people seem to be interested in discussing the future in the previous post, I’m going to start a thread. We are definitely in the market to upgrade the bench, particularly at SF and SG. Backup PF to play behind David West and a decision on whether Hilton Armstrong’s going to be enough to backup TC in the future, or whether we dump our umpteen centers-Byron-doesn’t-trust for one good guy, are also considerations. If Pargo doesn’t opt to stay, we need another point guard.

We’ve got Melvin Ely ($890K), Jannero Pargo ($2M), Chris Andersen ($1.2M), Ryan Bowen ($1M), and Bonzi Wells ($2.2M) who could walk. We have Mike James ($6M) and Rasual Butler ($3.6M) who we might be looking to dump because of their large salaries/limited playing time.

Keep in mind the Hornets’ major priority is signing Chris Paul to an extension this summer, since he’s still on his rookie contract, and they’ve already said they’ll be giving him whatever he wants. They’re also looking to extend Byron Scott.

Here are some free agents available (I’m sticking to the ones that I’ve seen tossed around and are mildly realistic):

• Chris Duhon, PG (depending on whether Chicago wants to draft Beasley or Rose with their #1 pick)
• Eduardo Najera, PF
• Monta Ellis, SG (pipe dream, people, his price will go up)
• Matt Barnes, PF
• Mickael Pietrus, SF
• Elton Brand, PF (cannot afford)
• Corey Maggette, SF (cannot afford, but Byron Scott apparently has always liked him and might pull something to get him)
• DeSagana Diop, C
• Stromile Swift, PF
• CJ Miles, SG (restricted but real young)
• Josh Childress, SF (restricted, but if the Hawks are willing to deal…)

Update: Hornets247’s analysis of what we could get with our slightly crappy 27th pick is here.

Discuss.

First off, At the Hive has an excellent extended recap of last night’s 104-107 loss to the Lakers. Why? Because he was there. I was not there, so I’m going to do some stats right now instead. Briefly, though. I had to DVR Battlestar Galactica to watch this game, and it is calling to me.

The Good: 1.) I loved the Hornets’ tenacity coming back from a 30-pt deficit. It reminded me why this team is so exciting to watch. 2.) I don’t think the game was decisive in a big way for either Kobe or CP3’s MVP chances. They both had big plays. They both had solid, not outstanding (for them), statistical nights. Those members of the media who would vote just based on this one game are idiots. Yes, Kobe’s team won. But here’s a little known fact: the Hornets have won games too this season. 55 of them, actually. I know, right? You weren’t aware?

The Bad: 1.) Hornets still lost a close one that I thought they were going to pull out. 2.) I was going to snark on ESPN here, but then I realized it was J.A. Adande who wrote it and the team the Hornets played was the Lakers, so I’m not even going to bother. See how well I learn there.

The Ugly: 1.) The first quarter. Lord, but it was ugly. I realize the Hornets are a second half team, but they cannot allow themselves to get behind like that in the playoffs. 2.) Hilton Armstrong. I like him, but it has to be said. He comes in for Tyson Chandler, and the first thing he does is drop the ball on what would have been a guaranteed 2 points if Tyson had caught the pass. Things did not get better from there.

And now on to the Hornets’ Magic Number. It’s 3.

• The Hornets need to win all three games left on the schedule to keep the #1 seed. This means beating Sacramento tonight on the second half of the back-to-back, the Clippers on Tuesday, and the Mavs in Dallas on Wednesday (this game was just picked up by ESPN yesterday).
• If the Hornets win 2 out of 3, they clinch the division title.
• Lakers are the closest, at 0.5 games back, after last night’s loss.
• San Antonio and Houston are 1.0 games back, but New Orleans has the tiebreaker on both.
• Since Phoenix lost last night, they can’t catch the Hornets for #1. This obviously makes statistical sense, because the Lakers clinched the division last night. New Orleans no longer holds the tiebreaker on L.A.
• Spurs play the Lakers Sunday. Gotta be watching this one closely.
• Playing the role of “We’re not making the playoffs but maybe we’ll destroy someone’s hopes” is the Sacramento Kings. Their remaining schedule? Get this: New Orleans, San Antonio, LA. Quite possibly, as the Kings go, so goes the race for #1.
• Hornets’ last game at Sacramento was a 103-112 loss, a.k.a. “The Game We Left a Perfectly Good Mardi Gras Parade Early For, Only To Find New Orleans Down 26 to a Shitty Team– WTF? I Missed Muses For This?” Possibly the low point of the season.
• I’m just throwing this out there: the Hornets dropping to the #2 seed would mean they’d avoid the 2nd round matchup with Utah, the only team in the West I don’t feel confident they could beat in a 7-game series.

Was there a full moon tonight? Detroit lost to the Knicks. Boston needed overtime to barely beat Milwaukee. And the Miami Heat won a game.

Meanwhile we were forced to watch the stultifyingly ugly… thing… that was the Hornets losing to the Jazz 77-66. Chris Paul played the worst game, possibly, of his career, scoring only 4 points. Entire minutes went by with both teams having turnover after turnover without resulting in points. Peja inexplicably sat in the moments he should have played. The officiating was stifling to the flow of the game in the 2nd, only to disappear in the 4th. Everyone was grabbing and bumping everyone. It was like… slogging through a field of mud for 48 minutes straight. And every time the mud starts to thin out and you pick up some speed, you trip over a rock. And at the end of it, you feel annoyed, slow, and dirty. Shit, the Jazz didn’t even play well. It was sort of like a pileup on the highway.

I think my little world will be happier if I pretend I was abducted by aliens for those missing 3 hours of my life… but I guess I can’t, because I just saw myself on the NBATV highlights. Which seems, unfortunately, to shoot all kinds of holes in the theory that I wasn’t there.

No, Chris! Tyson has it right. Whatever you do, don’t look at it!

Hyping the Hornets in his column in the T.P.:

And then the Hornets game came on TV. And I witnessed a phenomenon that I had associated only with the Saints for the past 25 years and it was this: Everyone in the bar was watching the game. And friends and strangers alike cheered, back-slapped, high-fived, hugged and toasted the team.

It was, dare I say, communal. It felt great. I watched and thought: I need to pay attention to this team.

And:

There is no question in my mind that the story of New Orleans’ recovery and rejuvenation has reached more Americans through sports telecasts than by any other means. The Saints’ return to the Superdome on Monday Night Football, Louisiana State University’s victory in the BCS Championship Game, the New Orleans Arena playing host to the NBA All-Star Game — they have all served as glowing, prime-time advertisements for our city, its charms and its resilience.

Check out the rest…

Plus an interesting dust-up in Dallas over bloggers’ credentials, as recapped on True Hoop. It’s not like I’m ever going to have a media credential for anywhere, but this is the sort of thing I like to keep an eye on. I think Mark Cuban & co. might be taking a stance here that they’re going to regret.

Bill Simmons plays “What If?” on ESPN’s Page 2, listing the Top 15 What Ifs? of the last decade in the NBA. The Hornets-related highlight:

Anyway, if Portland takes Paul, that sets off a crazy chain reaction: New Orleans ends up with Deron Williams instead of Paul; Utah never gets its franchise point guard; Oden and Aldridge land in other cities; maybe Roy doesn’t turn into a franchise guard playing second fiddle to Paul; and maybe Paul isn’t quite as driven because he’s not as ticked off for the next few years after three teams passed on him. I have to say, I like the way it worked out.

And ABC picks up another Hornets game, this time the home game against Golden State on April 6th. Tipoff has been moved to noon for TV, so make sure to mark your calendars!

Well, it’s official. The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association today granted the request of Chris Andersen to be reinstated as an NBA player. According to Nola.com, Hornets General Manager Jeff Bower said: “We will now begin the process of getting him back on the court and back in a Hornets uniform as quickly as possible.” Which means provided that Anderson passes a physical, he’s going to be a Hornet again. But by all accounts, Anderson has kept in good shape, so the odds look good.

This is exactly what the Hornets were hoping for when the rest of the conference starting running at big men. Despite not playing in two years, he knows Coach Scott’s system, fits in it well, and the Coach loves him. He’s like someone with Bowen’s hustle, West’s moxie, and Armstrong’s physical build. He’s eight to ten years younger than guys like P.J. Brown or Shaq, while more agile and talented that others bigs we’ve seen moving around the league lately like Diop, Collins (Jason), Magloire, Mbenga, Ratliff, Thomas (Kurt), Brezec, or Johnson (Linton).

The HYPE is huge for this one!!!

Anyone who has followed the NBA knows that it is home to conspiracy theories. Like the Knicks mysteriously getting the #1 pick in 1985 draft to obtain Patrick Ewing, despite having the smallest chance to obtain that lottery pick. Or the phantom foul called on Scottie Pippen in the 1994 against the Knicks, the first year after MJ left, basically handing victory to the Knicks. Others accuse the league of moving the three point line forward in 1994-1997 to help the poor shooting Knicks advance in the playoffs. Others point to the 27 free throws awarded to the Lakers in the 4th quarter alone in the game 6 against Sacto in 2002. Or that league officials have been instructed to call fouls more strictly on Shaq because otherwise his combination of size, speed, and power would make him unstoppable and the Lakers/Heat/whoever would win every year. Others suggest expanding the no-charge box on defense is meant to help “exciting” teams like Suns and Mavericks, who run, or one-on-one stars like Kobe, McGrady, and Iverson.

Now these are conspiracies for a reason: there is absolutely no proof that these or others exist as any sort of deliberate action. And like any other sport, officiating can be subject to human error and limitations (such as being screened by players from seeing a foul). League rule changes, are similarly given the benefit of the doubt of being intended to benefit the league, not any particular teams. But here’s what I see as the latest conspiracy: New Orleans is a great story for the All-Star game, but too small of a market to compete in the NBA finals. (Just think how much already we’re being told to expect a Lakers/Celtics finals, or how much hype has centered around Kobe potentially going to Chicago or Lebron going to the big apple because he’s friends with Jay-Z. Conspiracies usually favor large market teams.) As such, it is my belief, after analyzing this season’s games, that the NBA officials have been instructed to make things hard for the Hornets.

Ordinarily, I am inclined to believe in my own bias, and those of any one else in the Arena, in that we will boo any foul against us or any perceived slight not called a foul. However, after the game versus the Wizards, I was apalled. The refereeing was horrible. I even watched the replay today on CST, to check my initial instincts and utilize instant replays and was again appalled.

Let me give you the bare bones highlights. Hornets fans feel free to comment here with your own. The technical foul in the final quarter against Tyson? There was NOTHING going on. They showed the replay several times. Two guys going for the ball, Tyson gets a personal, fine. (You could have let it go too, but anyway.) Then the guy shoots and makes the free throw, Tyson goes to take the ball out of bounds, and there is a phantom technical called. No apparent comments being made, Tyson’s not looking or calling to the ref. It just came out of nowhere. How about the so-called charge on David West with 35.7 seconds remaining and the Bees up by 1? Insane. David did NOT lower his shoulder AND the defender’s feet were moving . Are you kidding me? It should have been a block, sending D-West to the line . Do these refs not realize the game is on the line and they’re blowing these kinds of calls? I would say it’s inexcusable, but with the scrutiny these guys (and 1 lady) are forced to endure, that seems unlikely. So dare I say it, it must be intentional. Lastly, the foul on Hilton that gave the game away. Here we are again, with a player barrelling out of control toward the bucket who is rewarded for jumping into a player. Refs are usually smart enough to make a no call in this situation. Unfortunately, Hilton had the audacity to make a good play, jumping back, leaning over, and swatting the ball away. He should have just let DS (he deserves no name) miss the shot without the block. But with a block, refs felt they needed to employ Stern order #147 and the fall was called. DS jumped INTO Hilton, I don’t buy a foul there. Should have been a no call.

My whole problem I’ve seen this year is that David Stern’s shock troops have been inconsistent in Hornets games. Refs will call games tight or loose, and usually call it the same way on both teams. That’s fine. But when you call tight on one team and loose on the other, it is bullshit. I’ve seen it a lot and I’m sick of it. I for one, hope Byron Scott and the coaching staff send a tape of this game to the league for review. Someone should be censured for this.

That is, unless there is a conspiracy to stop the Hornets.