2008-09 NBA Preview: New Orleans Hornets

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New Orleans Hornets

2007-08 Record: 56-26

Cool 2007 Stat: One of the best seasons ever for a PG? Chris Paul is the 2nd (Isiah Thomas, ‘83-’84) player ever with 21 ppg, 11 apg and 2.5 stl/g. Comparing his season to Thomas’, Paul had a better FG%, 3-PT%, more RPG, and less turnovers and personal fouls.

Anticipated Starting Five

PG- Chris Paul
SG- Morris Peterson
SF- Peja Stojakovic
PF- David West
C- Tyson Chandler

Bench: James Posey, Mike James, Julian Wright, Rasual Butler, Hilton Armstrong

Biggest Strength – Chris Paul

Best point guard in the NBA, most productive player in the NBA last season and his leadership ability is unquestioned.  Chris Paul makes the Hornets tick.  He dominates the ball like many other guards, but his effectiveness is other-worldly and something not seen since the days of Michael and Magic.

“Since 1991-92, no guard in the NBA has produced more than 25 wins in a single season.” – David Berri, Wages of Wins

His impact offensively is very clear.  His penetration creates openings for Peja Stojakovic and Morris Peterson on the perimeter.  His uncanny ability to throw lob passes without looking and make tough passes through traffic to Tyson Chandler makes opposing defenses look confused on the floor.  He does all of this while hardly turning the ball over in relation to how often he has the ball.  Dude is ridiculous, and he is only 23, which begs the question, considering what he did last season is he still getting better?  Scary!

Biggest Weakness - Front-court depth

After Tyson Chandler and David West the Hornets are looking at Melvin Ely, Hilton Armstrong and Julian Wright as reserves.  That is a tremendous drop off.  Every team is vulnerable to injuries and foul trouble, but the Hornets are especially vulnerable because the drop off behind West and Chandler is so huge.  In order for them to get to the Western conference finals and have a chance to beat the Lakers, they will need their back-up bigs to step their games up.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Byron Scott limits the minutes of those three guys during the regular season in preparation for them playing heavier minutes in the post season.

Key Player in ’08 – James Posey

Posey is coming in with this unfair assumption that wherever he goes, they win championships, kind of like a newer version of Robert Horry. Then again, I guess it isn’t unfair since they gave him $25 million to play for them. In addition with bringing a championship attitude to the club, I think the Hornets might expect him to put up more than the 7ppg he has for the last 3 seasons. Posey is the only addition to this solid club, and whether or not he’s really got the “intangibles” that can take a team to the next level, or was just in the right place at the right time with Miami and Boston, will play a big part in the success of the bugs.

Their Thaddeus (exciting player 22 or under) – Julian Wright, 21

It is interesting that Wright is the player here because at the time of the 2007 draft, he was the guy I wanted. He’s an intriguing point-forward type with loads of potential, but I’m not sure he’s needed to contribute enough on this team to be able to reach his potential. He only played in 57 games last year and played only 11 minutes per game. On a team like Sacramento, he’d get a lot of time and really find out what kind of player he is. I think he can be better version of the Blazers’ Travis Outlaw, but there’s no way I would take him over Thad like I would have last year.

Pete’s 2008 Outlook: 2nd place, Southwest division / 3rd place, Western conference / 4th place, NBA

If I was drafting an NBA team from scratch right now, I would take LeBron James 1st, and Chris Paul 2nd. At 23, Paul is already the best guard in the game, and he is the definition of the type of player that makes his teammates better. Because of him, the Hornets are going to be relevant for a long time. This year, I don’t see them making a jump from last year, when they won 56 games. Posey will help, but I don’t see them getting the same contributions from Peja and Mo-Pete. Also, they avoided the injury bug all year last year, and you don’t usually see that 2 years in a row.

Dannie’s 2008 Outlook: 1st place, Southwest division / 2nd place, Western conference / 3rd place, NBA

I like the Hornets, and I think people need to realize Chris Paul WAS the best player in the NBA last season.  That makes him just as capable as LeBron or Kobe to get his team to the Finals.  I like the two off-season additions of Posey and Devin Harris to add some quality perimeter depth and upgrade their perimeter defense as well.  But the Hornets are still in desperate need of a solid back-up big man who can play either PF or center.  The front court is a bad place to lack depth in the Western conference especially with Bynum back for the Lakers.  If I were Jeff Bower I would look to acquire a P.J. Brown-type big for hire around the trade deadline if they can going into the postseason.

Philly Connection: Rasual Butler

Butler, a Roman Catholic H.S. product, stayed in the city and went to LaSalle. He became one of the best players in the school’s history averaging 19.3 points per game over 4 seasons. He was the 21st LaSalle player to play in the NBA after the Heat took him in the 2nd round of the 2002 Draft. In his 6-year NBA career, he’s averaged 7.7 points per game and been a scoring spark off the bench for the Heat and now the Hornets. His best season came 2 years ago, when he averaged 10.1ppg, but last year his minutes went down with Peja and Mo-Pete taking up more time.

October 18, 2008