A new beginning? You can call it that, if you look back on the six-season era of CP3. What you had Wednesday night was a welcome-back-home to the man that spanned both eras.

I say this remembering it was at an early stage of last season, with the New Orleans Hornets on their way to coming out of the starting bocks a surprising 8-0, that I posed the question to Chris Paul.

“What do you think about your rookie head coach?’’

There was no hesitation.

“He knows how to relate,’’ came the reply from the All-Pro point guard. “All coaches are busy sending messages. In some cases, not all messages are received. Coach (Monty) Williams makes contact, and that has plenty to do with the man and his personality. You get the message because you respect the messenger.’’

The messenger at the time was 39, the youngest head coach in the NBA, and once he started talking you realized you were dealing in mutual admiration.

“Right now,’’ said Williams, “Chris could be a head coach in this league. I’m more impressed than I was before I got to know him. He knows so much more than I did at his age. His attention to detail is amazing, and when it comes to individual defense, team defense, everyone has bought into what coach is selling.’’

Dell Demps, the General Manager who hired Williams from a list of candidates, says, “whenever Monty’s involved, it’s a soft sell. Monty has a special calmness about him. He doesn’t wear his emotions on his sleeve. But, inside, you’ll find a competitive fire and a smart man.’’

There was the Hornets coach Wednesday, preparing to bury the Boston Celtics 97-78, preparing for the first home game in an abbreviated season of 66 games, wondering how long it would take him to assess what he had. .

Only four games into his rookie season, Williams figured it was going to take at least 25 games of an 82-game season to find out “how good, how bad, we were.’’

All he knew then was he had the best point guard, the best pick-and-roll player, in the game, and he had to do his best to keep Chris Paul as fresh as possible.

Now he’s dealing with virtually a new roster, still getting acquainted with one another, in some cases still getting acquainted with the English language.

In a way, Williams has been dealing with nothing but change from Day One on the job.

“It continues to be a learning process for most of us,’’ he said, ‘’and that’s what makes it so interesting. It’s not an excuse.’’

Williams had no excuses last season when his 12-3 Hornets lost their first home game to the San Antonio Spurs, in the hands of Gregg Popovich, the man who helped shape Williams’ coaching career.

“I was outcoached by a lot,’’ said Monty who watched a 17-point halftime turn into a 14-point loss. After shooting 62 percent in the first half, the Hornets went 5-for-15 in the third quarter and turned the ball over five times to bring the Spurs back in the game.

“Coach Pop made move after move after move, and I had no answer,’’ said Williams.

The way he handled that defeat told me the Hornets had someone who could rock with the punches that would come and never look back.

On Thursday, you had Williams’ ball club, with a roster of nine new faces, without his top scorer, Eric Gordon, the hero of an opening game victory, send a serious message as to what you can accomplish with a take-it-to-you defense for a full 48 minutes.

Quite simply, the Hornets held a team known for its aggressive defense with one that not only limited the men in green to 78 points, but also limited them to 37 percent shooting, by forcing nine turnovers, by forcing seven steals, by blocking a dozen shots.

Meanwhile, Williams watched five of his players hit in double figures, led by Jarrett Jack’s 21 and Carl Landry’s 20.

He also watched 7-footer Chris Kaman come off the bench and contribute 27 minutes that included 12 points, some from the outside, nine rebounds and three blocks.

All things considered, two games into a new start, there’s more sunshine than clouds.

Welcome home, Monty Williams.

Desiring a backup point guard with NBA experience, the New Orleans Hornets traded second-year small forward Quincy Pondexter to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday for guard Greivis Vasquez. Vasquez, 6 feet 6, 211 pounds, can play both guard positions and averaged 3.6 points and 2.2 assists last season as a rookie with the Grizzlies.

Vasquez was a first-round pick by the Grizzlies in 2010, becoming the first Venezuelan-born player to be drafted and only the third Venezuelan to play in the league.

The Hornets have no player on their roster who was drafted by the franchise. Pondexter, 6-6, 225, was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder as the 26th overall pick in the 2010 draft then traded to the Hornets on draft night.

Pondexter played in 66 games last season with six starts. He averaged 2.8 points and 1.3 rebounds.

Veteran center Emeka Okafor is the only remaining player on the Hornets’ roster not acquired by General Manager Dell Demps, who was hired by the Hornets in July 2010.

“We feel this is a trade that benefits both teams,’’ Demps said in a statement. “We will miss Quincy, and we thank him for his efforts, professionalism and work ethic. We are excited to add Greivis Vasquez to our team, organization and community. Greivis is an exciting big guard that plays with a passion that we hope will thrill our fans at the Hive.”

Demps had been in discussions with the Grizzlies the past few days and said he was trying to acquire a proven backup guard. Jarrett Jack moved into a starting role after Chris Paul was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Staff writer Jimmy Smith contributed to this report. 

WESTWEGO, Louisiana — The New Orleans Hornets have wrapped up an agreement on a one-year contract with free agent Carl Landry, who is expected to step back into the starting power forward spot he had late last season and during New Orleans’ first-round playoff series.

Landry’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, said the deal is worth about $8.8 million.

Hornets general manager Dell Demps and coach Monty Williams “did an unbelievable job communicating to him how bad they want him back, and what they were trying to build,” Bartelstein said. “Carl really enjoyed playing for Monty.”

The deal on Thursday came less than 24 hours after the Hornets traded All-Star guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Clippers for shooting guard Eric Gordon, center Chris Kaman and forward Al-Farouq Aminu.

Aminu is a second-year player who is likely to back up the 6-foot-9 Landry, who averaged 11.8 points and 4.1 rebounds in 23 games with the Hornets. Landry was acquired in a trade with Sacramento last season and initially backed up David West, but moved into a starting role when West injured his left knee.

West, who was a free agent after last season, decided last weekend to sign with Indiana, opening the way for Landry to return as the likely starter.

“He understands the system. He really thrived later in the season after the injury to David West,” Demps said. “He had some big-time moments for us in the playoffs last year. We want to grow on that. … He fits our system and we’re excited about the agreement.”

Bartelstein said his client agreed to only a one-year deal because of Hornets “uncertain ownership situation.” The team is currently owned by the NBA, but is hoping to have local ownership by mid-January or February, team officials have said.

Still, Landry was willing to give the Hornets at least one more season and remain open to signing an extension if the ownership situation becomes more stable, Bartelstein said.

“He’s going to have a great year and we’ll obviously revisit things in a few months from now,” Bartelstein said.

Free agent forwards Carl Landry and Jason Smith are both currently mulling offers to re-sign with the New Orleans Hornets, their agent Mark Bartelstein said Wednesday night, and likely will decide whether to accept the deals sometime Thursday now that the Chris Paul trade to the Clippers has been consummated.

The Hornets’ contract offers aren’t the only ones that Landry and Smith have received.

Bartelstein, reached late Wednesday night, said both players have garnered interest from several teams, though each played key roles with the Hornets last season.

“We’ve talked with the Hornets a bunch today,” Bartelstein said, “and I think both Carl and Jason will both move toward making a decision maybe as early as (Thursday).

“They’ve got a number of teams that have pursued both of them. And they’re looking at things. We’ve had good talks with the Hornets, as well as a bunch of teams (on Wednesday) and I think both are eager to make a decision (today). I don’t want to characterize that they’re leaning one way or another.”

Landry has, in recent week, expressed his affection for New Orleans and the reception he received from both the Hornets and their fans when he arrived last season at the trading deadline. He was a critical part of the Hornets’ stretch drive, especially after David West went out with a knee injury.

Should he re-sign in New Orleans, Landry would immediately step into the starting power forward role.

“I like New Orleans and everything about the team,” Landry said this week, “the front office. I know (General Manager) Dell Demps and (Coach) Monty Williams, and those guys are doing an excellent job. They’re trying to build a team. My agent is still talking to a couple of other teams and just trying to make sure I pick the right team and make sure it’s the right fit, just trying to make sure it’s the right fit, just trying to get me in the right situation. Not necessarily financially, but just placed in the right spot to have an opportunity for success in the next couple of years of my career.”

Smith said last week, before the start of training camp, he was keeping his options open.

New Orleans Hornets General Manager Dell Demps said trade talks has resumed involving Chris Paul and the completion of a deal is possible. He didn’t specify if discussions still involved the Lakers and Houston Rockets.

NBA Commissioner David Stern nixed Thursday’s  blockbuster three-team trade that had Paul going to the Lakers, while the Hornets would had received guards Kevin Martin and Goran Dragic, forwards Luis Scola and Lamar Odom and a first-round draft pick.

“Since that deal did not go through, we’re going to keep plugging away,” Demps said. “Everything is open and we’re trying to fill our roster. We’re doing everything we can to get a good team here; we only have six guys.”

Demps confirmed that Paul declined to sign a long-term extension earlier ths week, which prompted the franchise to begin serious trade discussions.

Paul is currently participating in the Hornets’ opening training camp practice at the Alario Center.