Hornets off to quick start
By 808Hornetsfan

Once again, the Hornets find themselves off to a 4-0 start, but we all know how quickly things can change in the NBA. It seemed like one by one, the Hornets lost key players that were supposed to lead the team into the postseason in ‘06-07 thanks to some harsh injuries, but this year looks different. Led by third-year superstar Chris Paul, who is averaging career-highs of 18.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg and 12.5 apg, the Hornets are doing all the right things.

Let me break down how things are going for the starting five… CP3 is putting up 18, 4 and 12 a game, David West is putting up 17 and 7 a game, Peja Stojakovic is putting up 19 per game, Tyson Chandler is putting up 11 and 12 a game, and recently-acquired guard Morris Peterson is putting up nearly 10 per game.

If those stats aren’t eye-popping enough, Paul dished out a franchise-high 21 assists last night against the Lakers! If this hot streak continues, the Hornets can find themselves right in the middle of the playoff race, but there is still 78 games left to play, and things are definitely going to get a bit tougher this week.

New Orleans will take on the Blazers before traveling back home to take on the Spurs, a team the Hornets have not beaten since December of 2005. A two-game road trip to New Jersey and Philadelphia will cap off the rest of the week, so if anything, this team needs to stay aggressive and stay focused. That does it for this little report, have a good week Hornets fans!

Noballer08

After a 4-0 start, the New Orleans Hornets are making waves in the NBA. With this start, the team ties their franchise record set last season in OKC. Let’s breakdown my impressions about the team and its success.

Three Point Shooting
Our play in this area is a huge part of why we are doing so well. Peja has hit 19 threes already (10 against the Lakers) and is shooting them at a 50% clip along with Rasual Butler. Mo-Pete has had his share of daggers as well along with Bobby Jackson, but I’d like to see them both do better in terms of percentage converted.

Chris Paul
21 assists against the Lakers is just a live reminder of how good this guy is. He’s coming up, and it won’t be long before he is recognized as a top 3 point guard if he isn’t already. He is the reason why this offense has been knocking down shots and scoring so efficiently.

Morris Peterson
He’s doing EXACTLY what I expected him to do- be a good role player at the two. He’s playing good defense and driving to the basket when needed. He could stand to hit more of his open threes, but he has never been a very efficient three point shooter.

Peja Stojakovic
10 threes versus the Lakers says it all- Peja is back. If he stays healthy and gives us games that are at least HALF as good, we can contend.

David West
He looks like a better shooter than he was last season, and has even hit 3 of 4 three point attempts. He started off cold, even from the free-throw line, but it looks like he has gotten it together.

Tyson Chandler
Him and Paul are completely meshing and he is still doing his job rebounding and blocking shots. He is also staying out of foul trouble, which is a good sign compared to last season.

Melvin Ely
I gotta say, sometimes I’m not too pleased with this guy at all. Scott brought him in to score, and he’s not doing that. Even if he only plays 15 minutes per game, the shots he takes gets frustrating at times because he LOVES to force it. At least he is rebounding.

Hilton Armstrong
Scott needs to give him more minutes. From preseason to now he has been playing quite well with the time he is given, and he is starting to step up his rebounding/defense.

Julian Wright
From the few minutes he has played so far he is looking pretty good. He isn’t forcing anything and has converted on all three shots he has attempted. It’s going to be hard taking away minutes from Rasual Butler, but this is how he has to play in order to win Scott’s favor.

Rasual Butler
Scott told him that he can be the Sixth Man of the Year if he applied himself, and it looks like Butler wants to go for that prize. He’s come out looking very good and has been wet from three-point range. I see the Rasual of the Heat coming out in him finally.