There was plenty of intrigue hours before the New Orleans Hornets met the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night, resulting from a player-coach spat that forced Kings Coach Paul Westphal to banish starting center DeMarcus Cousins from Power Balance Pavilion.

Westphal, who indicated that Cousins had demanded a trade, calling that “just the tip of the iceberg,” told Cousins to stay at home instead of coming to the arena to play against the Hornets.

The Kings were visibly undermanned in the post and along the front line, but they nonetheless scored an emotional 96-80 victory against New Orleans as Westphal, who has a 49-115 record with the Kings in his first two seasons, desperately tried to regain control of his team’s direction.

The way Sacramento played in the second half, overcoming the Hornets’ inside advantage by increasing defensive intensity and finding shooting range, Westphal’s actions seemed well received.

“I think it’s time for this solution,” Westphal said. “You can only have so many chances, then something has to be done. It’s time that something has to be done.”

With Cousins out of the lineup, Sacramento was forced to go with undersized, 6-foot-6 Chuck Hayes in the middle, sliding 6-9 J.J. Hickson over to Hayes’ customary power forward spot.

The Hornets, with the superior size of 6-10 Emeka Okafor and 7-footers Chris Kaman and Jason Smith, dominated Sacramento on the glass, which kept New Orleans close despite another miserable shooting effort, especially in the first half.

New Orleans had a plus-12 rebounding advantage through the first half, 36-24, and had 14 offensive rebounds.

Nonetheless, Hornets Coach Monty Williams was certainly not conceding any advantages despite the void left by Cousins’ absence.

“For us, we’re in no position to do that,” Williams said. “We’re undermanned (shooting guard Eric Gordon missed his third straight game with a bruised right knee). They have young bigs over there who can step up. They’ve got (J.J.) Hickson, they’ve got (Jason) Thompson. Those guys have been chomping at the bit wanting time.

“Obviously Cousins is a big part of what they do. He is, in my opinion, one of the best bigs in the league. So when you have a situation like that, guys will want to step up and show they deserve more minutes. And we can’t allow that to mess with who we are. We have to go out there and play the Kings and not what their lineup might look like.”

Williams had good reason for his concern.

The Kings increased their defensive pressure in the second half, forcing turnovers and capitalizing on New Orleans mistakes, while heating up from the field just enough to build a substantial cushion.

Cousins has had his difficulties with Westphal since coming into the league last year as a rookie.

By Sunday, after a reported shouting match between the two following the Kings’ 114-92 loss to the Knicks, Westphal had had enough.

Sacramento players were caught off guard when they arrived at the arena to learn of Westphal’s actions.

“I think that each individual player will have a different way of looking at it,” Westphal said. “At the same time, we have a game tonight, we’re going to go play it, and we’re going keep trying to build this team with the people who want to take it in the same direction that everybody wants to go.

“I think, I hope that DeMarcus has a change of heart and joins up with full reinstatement. That’s all up to him. I hope that. This will give him the best chance to do that, and if he chooses not to do that, then we’ll be better off moving forward in the same direction. It’s just something that I think the team can use to band together, which is the most important thing for a new team.”

Certainly on Sunday night, Westphal’s message had gotten across to the rest of his team.

Sacramento battled back in the second half, building a lead of as many as 20 points while the Hornets appeared to be settling for too many outside shots and playing generally carelessly.

The Kings were led by Tyreke Evans, who had 27, while former LSU and Hornets guard Marcus Thornton put in 25 and John Salmons had 13.

For the Hornets, Kaman had 14 points and 15 rebounds, Okafor 13 and 12 and Trevor Ariza had 17 points.

Sacramento’s starting backcourt of Evans and Thornton outscored Hornets starters Jack and Belinelli 62-12.

New Orleans did not make a 3-point basket in 15 attempts, breaking a club record.

Westphal, in a statement he issued late Sunday afternoon, says he took the drastic step because of continued difficulty with Cousins.

“When a player continually, aggressively, lets it be known that he is unwilling to embrace traveling in the same direction as his team, it cannot be ignored indefinitely.”

Jimmy Smith can be reached at jsmith@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3814.

Hornets (0-0) at Suns (0-0)

C: Emeka Okafor … Marcin Gortat

PF: Carl Landry … Channing Frye

SF: Trevor Ariza … Grant Hill

PG: Greveis Vasquez … Steve Nash

SG: Eric Gordon … Jared Dudley

Key Hornets subs: Chris Kaman, Jason Smith, Al-Faouq Aminu, Carldell Johnson, Greivis Vasquez.

* New Orleans starting point guard Jarrett Jack is suspended for tonight’s game due to a February DUI arrest that was later prosecuted for a count of reckless driving. The Hornets are considering sliding Eric Gordon to point guard or starting newly acquired point guard Greivis Vasquez. The team is listing Vasquez as the probable starter. Jack had played in 371 consecutive games, an active streak that was second only to Derek Fisher (492).

* Alvin Gentry on Gordon, who he has always touted as underrated: “He reminds me so much of what Joe Dumars was when Joe Dumars came into the league. Just a real, strong powerful guy that can shoot the ball. He gets to the foul line. He creates a lot of tough situations defensively for you.”

* The Suns are 14-5 in home season openers but only 3-2 since moving to US Airways Center.

* The Suns were not permitted to practice Sunday because it was Christmas but New Orleans was allowed to do so on Sunday afternoon at US Airways Center because it traveled.

* Grant Hill’s sore right knee still is not 100 percent. Gentry said he is going to limit Hill, 39, to playing stretches of six to seven minutes this season. He still is a key defensively, as a communicator, help defender and lockdown defender for top scorers.

“I think he’s still got some ways to go,” Gentry said. “But you know him. I can put him in the game and he’s going to compete like crazy and we’ll see where it is. I just have to be careful to monitor what he does.”

* Rookie power forward Markieff Morris was one of the few highlights of the preseason despite fouling out in both games. Morris’ all-around game and acumen was so strong that Gentry considered starting him.

The Suns have not had a rookie debut with a double-figure scoring game since Amar’e Stoudemire in 2002 but Morris is capable. The franchise rookie debut record is 20 points by Walter Davis in 1977.

“He’s not afraid,” Gentry said of Morris. “That’s a major part of the battle right there.”

* New Orleans coach Monty Williams’ style will be to have a defensive, physical team. With Okafor and Kaman, the Hornets will likely be post-up heavy and that will test where Marcin Gortat is most vulnerable because of the broken right thumb. His ability to battle for position and hold off someone backing him down has proven more difficult than shooting.

* Phoenix Phactoid Pharaoh Vince Kozar is back to phinding phun phacts. He researched that this is the first time in 21 years that the Suns will open a season with the same starting lineup that closed the prior one. That lineup was Kevin Johnson, Jeff Hornacek, Kurt Rambis, Tom Chambers and Mark West.

* New Orleans went 2-0 in the preseason against Memphis but Jack was the team’s standout.

* The Suns are not expecting to sell out their home opener tonight for the first time since 2005, which was against Dallas after a conference finals season.

* When you look at the Suns bench tonight, you will seven coaches. Elston Turner is the new lead assistant, forcing one of the usual front-row assistants from last season (Dan Majerle, Bill Cartwright and Igor Kokoskov) to take turns sitting in the back row. Only four coaches are permitted to sit on the bench’s front row.

* Nash starts the season as the NBA all-time free throw percentage leader at 90.3933 but still could lose the record with Mark Price at 90.3895. You can monitor the record at www.nashwatch.com.

* New Orleans power forward Gustavo Ayon signed Thursday, becoming the NBA’s third Mexican-born player but he might not be cleared for action yet. The Suns signed the first NBA Mexican-born player, Horacio Llamas, in 1996 and Eduardo Najera remains in the league for a 12th year with Charlotte.

* Charlotte cut former Suns forward Taylor Griffin on Friday.

* Former Suns guard Vince Carter started in his Dallas debut Sunday and scored five points on two-for-six shooting in 21 minutes.

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After trading four-time All-Star point guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Clippers and losing two-time All-Star forward David West in free agency to the Indiana Pacers, the New Orleans Hornets are ushering in a new era of building for the future around younger players. When the Hornets open the regular season Monday night against the Phoenix Suns, it will be the first time in seven seasons their roster won’t be built around a franchise player.

In the trade for Paul, New Orleans acquired shooting guard Eric Gordon, forward Al-Farouq Aminu and center Chris Kaman and Minnesota’s 2012 unprotected first-round pick from the Clippers.

“I think we’re excited to see what’s going to unfold over the next few seasons,’’ Hornets President Hugh Weber said. “As we’ve always said, we are taking a long view of this, and it’s not going to be built overnight. We said a year ago we were going to do it right and not cut corners. I think there is a kind of galvanized confidence among us that we’re definitely on the right path.’’

The Hornets are one of the youngest teams in the NBA, with no player on their roster older than 29. And Gordon, a potential star, is 22, despite entering his fourth season in the league.

“We’re not starting over. I think we have our core guys, and we’re going to build off that,’’ Hornets General Manager Dell Demps said. “Of course, Chris is not here anymore, and we wish him well, but we want to build a long-term program and also do some things on the fly.

“As a player and my background, I was in the minor leagues. In the minor leagues a lot of times, you have to rebuild your team every year, and so we’re not afraid to add the right pieces. But we want to have our core guys and add to it each year and build off it.’’

Hornets Coach Monty Williams said losing a player of Paul’s caliber is tough, especially now as they are trying to get several new players acclimated quickly before playing a tough, compressed 66-game schedule.

“Last year there were so many things I could put in play, and Chris understood exactly what we were trying to do, and there was always this synergy between him and I,’’ Williams said. “If we had a messed up play, D-West and Chris could always go back to pick-and-roll and make something happen. So it will be a different approach.’’

Williams is pushing for the Hornets to develop into a tough defensive team similar to last season, when they held opponents to 94 points per game, fifth in the league, and advanced to the playoffs before losing in six games to the Lakers.

Despite finishing 46-36 last season, the Hornets struggled against bigger teams such as the Lakers. But the Hornets appear to have improved depth in their frontcourt with the return of Emeka Okafor, Carl Landry and Jason Smith and the addition of Kaman and Gustavo Ayon, who was signed to a contract Thursday. Although Kaman missed 50 games last season with an ankle injury, he was an All-Star selection in 2009-10 for the Clippers after averaging 18.5 points and 9.3 rebounds. In his debut game with the Hornets in Wednesday’s preseason finale against Memphis, Kaman scored a team-high 18 points.

“We have a number of guys who can contribute, are harder to guard and make us more effective,’’ point guard Jarrett Jack said. “It’s harder coming into a game knowing you’ve got to defend seven people than maybe having two or keying in on just one guy.’’

Yet, questions persist how effectively Kaman and Okafor can complement each other if they are on the court together and how quickly Ayon, who has no NBA experience, will develop.

“I think we’re a team that’s going to play hard and defend,’’ Demps said. “I don’t want to put any expectations on Gustavo right now. He’s coming in and must learn our system. He has got to get over the language barrier. Hopefully, this is a long-term thing. He’s done well at every level, and now he’s taking that next jump. I want to see how the story ends.’’

In the backcourt, Jack takes over the starting point guard job, but the Hornets have yet to sign an established veteran backup point guard with the opener looming. At shooting guard, Gordon said he’s still trying to learn Williams’ offensive system and his defensive principles.

“I’ve got to keep on adjusting quickly,’’ Gordon said. ”I think we’re a team that cannot make too many mistakes, and we’re going have to play really good defense to be a playoff team.’’

TNT studio analyst Kenny Smith said the team’s new era without Paul and West may take a few seasons before the Hornets return to the postseason.

“It’s a rebuilding process, and as good as Eric Gordon could be, he isn’t,’’ Smith said. “As good as Chris Kaman can be, he isn’t because he was hurt last season and didn’t play much. There are a bunch of could be’s, and that’s a difficult situation to be in.’’

John Reid can be reached at jreid@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3407.

New Orleans Hornets starting power forward Carl Landry gazed into a bank of television cameras and a larger-than-normal post-practice contingent of reporters Friday, some of whom wanted to ask Landry about his newest teammate. “I know he’s very popular,” Landry said, chuckling. “We haven’t had this much media in a while, since the playoffs against the Lakers. I know he plays a forward/center position, and I think he’s the third Mexican player to ever play in the NBA so, hey, I’m sure I’ll get a chance to meet him. From what I know right now, he’s a special player.”

Gustavo Ayon, 6 feet 9, 245 pounds, was introduced at a press conference at the Alario Center, where six months earlier he had participated in a free-agent camp hosted by the Hornets in June, after New Orleans assistant general manager Tim Connolly, then general manager Dell Demps, had traveled to Madrid, Spain, to assess Ayon’s ability.

Speaking with the translation aid of his manager, Emilio Duran, Ayon said Friday he knew almost at once New Orleans was the his preferred NBA destination.

“I am very excited and very happy to be here,” Ayon said. “It has been a dream for me to be in the NBA. … It all began this summer in the minicamp. It felt right. They were very nice, very inviting, and it felt like the Hornets are the right place.”

Ayon chose New Orleans despite overtures in recent days from the Indiana Pacers and Denver Nuggets, and past interest from the Phoenix Suns and San Antonio Spurs. Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak also had traveled to Europe to scout Ayon.

Ayon’s career has prospered in the Spanish ACB League playing for Madrid’s Fuenlabrada. He averaged 15.9 points and 8.2 rebounds this season, and he shot 65 percent.

NBA Director of Scouting Ryan Blake said Ayon, 26, has a skill set that should blend well into the league.

“The one thing I like is that he knows how to play in terms of intangibles,” Blake said. “(He’s) a 10-point guy, seven rebounds. He can pass the ball, set picks, anticipates well. He blocks shots. He’s very good around the basket. I think his mind-set is playing his role to make others better.

“One of the keys that we look at when you get a big is not just rebounding, blocking out, but really setting the screens, being able to pass, anticipating. This is what this guy can do.”

Realistically, Ayon knows he’s in for a difficult transition initially with the Hornets, trying to assimilate not only an NBA system, but the American lifestyle.

“I’ll work very hard and try to find a spot with the team,” Ayon said through Duran. “The league (will determine) how much I’ll play with this team. It’s going to take time. It will be a big change. There will be a period of adaptation to the league, to the culture, everything. Once I am settled, I will try to improve every day and do the best for the team.”

Fortunately for Ayon, the Hornets aren’t in desperate need for frontcourt assistance, giving both parties the luxury of a leisurely learning period.

“He’s a versatile four man who can pass a little bit, but we haven’t seen him live against our guys, so we really don’t know,” New Orleans Coach Monty Williams said. “I think (it will take) a while. Being real about it, any time you don’t speak English, well you’re certainly going to have a problem with basketball jargon.

“If I said three or four things about our team in our language, Trevor (Ariza) and (Jarrett) Jack know exactly what I’m talking about. He may look at me like, ‘OK, Coach.’ So I think it will take a while to start to pick up basketball, NBA language.”

Demps admitted Ayon’s future likely will be more important to the Hornets than his present, though Ayon’s abilities have graded out well at this level.

“He’s a smart basketball player,” Demps said. “The thing that really stood out to me is that he impacts the game in so many ways. He can pass, he has decent athleticism, rebounds. It’ll be interesting to see how his game translates. I love the story. Here’s a guy who started off playing in the Mexican leagues, worked his way up to playing Division III Spain then Division II Spain, then playing the top level in Spain, which is probably the best basketball league in Europe — and playing well.

“He’s not a potential guy. He’s a guy who’s played well everywhere he’s played. Now this is probably going to be his biggest challenge. It will be interesting to see how he reacts.”

Blake said Ayon’s versatility and unselfishness helped him this year start for Fuenlabrada ahead of 2011 lottery pick Bismark Biyombo, who was drafted seventh overall by the Charlotte Bobcats.

“He’s been on the radar,” Connolly said. “We weren’t the only team in pursuit. Short-term, we’ve got to get him acclimated. … but he really knows how to play.”

ROSTER MOVE: The Hornets released free-agent center Brian Butch, reducing the roster to 16.

All teams must reach the mandatory limit of 15 by 5 p.m. today.

Butch injured his right knee toward the end of practice last week and was unable to participate in the Hornets’ two exhibition games. Butch had played in the summer league for several NBA teams, as well as in the NBA Development League.