At The Hive

Game 13: Hive Live

2009-11-20T05:25:37Z

More photos » by Layne Murdoch - NBAE/Getty Images

Phoenix 103 (10–3) | New Orleans 110 (5–8)

Wow, right? How did that happen?

I have to admit, 15 minutes before the game tonight I sat down in my seat at the arena and thought, "Oh yeah, this is a TNT game. Now everyone will get to see the slaughter. Like the Christmas Day Massacre all over again."

And why not? Despite beating the Clip Show the other night, we've been playing some pretty uninspiring ball. Not to mention that the glue that holds this team together is sitting on the sidelines in a (formidable) suit. Take that and throw it out against the team with the best record in the conference and who do you think walks away with the W? Thankfully, no one on the Hornets was buying my sour nancy act.

The Suns scored first, but then Hornets rattled off 15 unanswered points, capping an improbable run that brought the previously listless crowd roaring to their feet. 15 points for the Hornets, 2 for the Western Conference-leading Suns. (I would like to reiterate that CP3 did not play. At all.) Sure, those numbers were unsustainable–Phoenix had to start hitting shots at some point–but the by then, the buzz in the arena was flying. It almost felt like home-court advantage again. Like, dare I say, 2007. More correctly, it was fun in a way that the previous 10 or so games hadn't been.

At any rate, Phoenix closed the gap and even took the lead a few times, but Hornets dominated in a few key areas to seal the deal. For starters, we rebounded like crazy tonight. 56 to 38 was the final tally, but more importantly we finished with a 51% rate on the offensive glass (that would be 25 to 14) which led to a 31 to 13 advantage on second chance points. It probably didn't hurt that we shot high percentages from deep (52%) and the stripe (83%), but it was our aggression on the boards that gave us the real advantage. Oh, that and we finally played like a "team" (Devin Brown passed! Like 5 times!). Byron had run that notion out of the locker room, so it's nice to see it make a return.

Bullets after the jump.

Peja!!! You win the "Who will put up the gaudiest stat line CP's absence" of the game award. 25 points on 19 shots, 7 of 11 from deep, 13 boards, 1 assist, and 1 turnover in 35 minutes. Thank you, sir.
Emeka also had a nice night, finishing with 13 points, 12 boards (7 of which were on offense), 2 steals, and 1 block. Actually, "game" might not be the right word. More like "15ish minutes of a game. He started hot and then cooled quite a bit. Which is a shame, since he was on pace for your general 40 point, 28 rebound game after the first quarter.
Emeka had a filthy block on Stoudemire. Trust me, it deserves its own bullet.
Solid performances for the rookies as well. Thornton continues to impress with his aggression, while Collison seems to be getting better with his decision-making. Both are still a little reckless, but that's to be expected. Buckets finished with 19 points on 12 shots, 4 boards, 1 assist, and 1 steal while Dime contributed 15 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, and only 1 turnover in 32 minutes.(Of course, it's be nice if Collison did better than 4 of 15 from the field, but he almost made up for it with a perfect 6 of 6 from the stripe... almost.)
"Bleh" performance from DX. Granted, he only played 30 minutes, but really he couldn't seem to get it going. Finished the night with 6 points on 2 for 11 shooting, 4 boards, 5 dimes, and a steal.
Yes, I'm avoiding Devin Brown.
The Suns came out cold tonight, bricking quite a few shots early on. They snapped of it somewhere in the middle of the first quarter, but failed to really take control of the game at any point.
Channing Frye impressed me quite a bit tonight. His line wasn't stellar–11 points and 10 boards isn't going to turn too many heads or anything–but I really liked his game... well, not the 1 for 7 from deep, but he's been hitting those at a crazy clip this year, so I can forgive him. I always wanted the Hornets to go after him during our "we need more solid big men coming off the bench" era. Oh, wait...
Was anyone else amused to see that a team is rostering one of the Collins brothers?
Fine. Devin Brown. You did well tonight. Even though I cringed every time you touched the ball, I have to admit you earned your keep tonight. Yes, there were plenty of dumb shots, poor passing decisions, and really dumb shots, but I suppose I can positive on you for one recap.
In case anyone missed it, we rolled out a "Mardi Gras" uniform yesterday. I don't care what Paul Lukas says, it's ugly. That may be the point–you know, to revel in being tacky–but it's still ugly. Who knows, maybe it'll distract the other teams when we wear them in February.

Composed to: DJ Shadow's Entroducing...

The Opponent's Take: Bright Side of the Sun

Jeff Bower Gets First Victory; Hornets Beat Clippers

2009-11-18T09:12:28Z

The Jeff Bower era has produced its first win! It feels good to get back in the win column. As terrible as the Hornets have been, the Los Angeles Clippers proved to be the perfect antidote, yet again.

At 4-8, the Hornets aren't looking great right now. Over the next three weeks though, we get six games against Minnesota (2x), Sacramento (2x), New York, and Milwaukee. None will be absolute roll-over games, and Miami, Phoenix, Atlanta, and the Lakers are the other four opponents... but we're really getting a break here. We could potentially go 6-4 over the next 10, without Chris Paul. If the 3-4 week estimates are anywhere near correct, we could get CP back for a December 14th game at Dallas, or roundabouts. As horrible as it is to see him down for an extended period, there may not be a better time, schedule-wise, for the injury.

And hopefully tonight sets the tone for the team to pick up victories against bad teams. It was an ugly game for sure, but plenty of struggling players stepped up. Chief among those was David West; after arguably the worst game of his 7 year career at Atlanta, West responded with 24/10/5 tonight. Impressively, those 24 points came on just 14 shot attempts. He also finished with 6 offensive boards.

I actually wrote 3/4ths of a post after the Atlanta game, completely bashing West. I'm kind of glad I didn't get to publishing it, after the way he performed tonight. If this LAC game can be the turning point after a poor start, all shall be forgiven.

Let's jump into the bullets:

Devin Brown has scored 41 points in 60 minutes against the Clippers this year. He's scored 29 total points in his 100 non-LAC minutes.
For some reason, while watching the game, I got the impression that Baron Davis couldn't miss. In actuality, he went 7-21 and a horrible 3-12 from three point range. Kind of brings back memories of the season he set the all-time 3PFGA mark with us.
Rasual Butler had a very nice homecoming (inasmuch as New Orleans is his "home"). He finished with 12 points off 8 shots, and both of his three point attempts splashed right through the net. It's nice to see that he's quickly found a role with the Clippers.
Marcus Thornton can fill it up. We're discovering it, game by game. He missed some open shots tonight, but still finished with 12 points on 10 looks. The most impressive thing to me? His release. It's so quick, his shots look wide open even when he simply pulls up on a defender. I love everything he brings to the floor, and it looks like the coaching staff does too. The best part is he really doesn't seem to have found his range from three- it's only going to get better from here. I've got a full post planned for him (including video! yay!)
While Buckets was flashier, Dimes had an equally efficient night. 12 points, 6 assists, 2 turns on 11 shots... in his second game as a starter. He wasn't intimidated by Baron Davis; in fact, his defense was a major factor in Davis' struggles. The decision to give Devin Brown late ball-handling privileges annoyed me... but more on this in a second.
The defense on Al Thornton was pathetic. Give him a lot of credit for being aggressive. But there's really nobody on the roster that can guard him (which doesn't portend well in terms of other, better players across the league). The coaching staff needed to recognize this and come up with a more comprehensive strategy for Thornton. Some of this, I think, is partially due to the fact that Thornton's crazy lay-up sprees sort of came out of the blue. Even the LAC commentators remarked how it was out of recent character for Thornton. So the Hornets' coaching staff may not have had too much time to adjust. But still, pretty inexcusable.
Darius Songaila had yet another productive night. He produced 6 points, making his only three shots. His defense was solid, and he finished as a team high +11 in just 11 minutes on the floor. I really wish the team would utilize him more. Unfortunately, the double guard sets of Bobby Brown/Devin Brown really remove a space from the on-floor five... and Songaila has regularly been the victim.
Speaking of Bobby Brown, he was bearable tonight. He continued to jack up shots at crazy rates; tonight, though, he was (a) more wide open than normal and (b) made his shots. 12 points on 8 shots isn't the end of the world. My real gripe is with his boneheaded passing decisions. He routinely passes into traffic, and forget telegraphing; he's e-mailing and texting passes left and right. Four more turnovers today strongly suggests he should be moved to a 2-guard role.
Posey, 1-7, 0-3 from three. Yuck.

Overall, good game, ugly win. Going back to Collison, the team really needs to dedicate a full-time ball-handling role to him. As a starter, he's been provided this duty by default. But Devin Brown would regularly "steal" the inbounds while playing with Collison. I counted no fewer than five instances where Collison would come to the inbounder for the ball, only to see Brown take it and race up court. Dimes and Buckets are becoming increasingly more valuable to this offense, and it would be best for the team to acknowledge this process.

And finally, I can't let the Clippers' broadcast team escape without comment. I used to sort of like Ralph Lawler, back in the day (for those that don't watch unhealthy amounts of League Pass, he's the guy that yells "Oh me, oh my!" when something cool happens). But now I really can't stand him or his partner. His partner's this younger guy that manages to pull off the impossible- being a Clippers' homer. Now, I know that most broadcasters are homers. Bob and Gil are prime examples. But where this Clippers' guy differs is in voice inflection and delivery; he just has this really whiny voice, which he uses to, um, whine. A lot. About everything. Secondly, the dynamic between Lawler and Commentator #2 is just.. weird. Lawler often likes to make fun of everything #2 says; for a while it's kind of funny, but when Lawler contradicts/demeans #2 for the eight thousandth time, it's not funny any more and seems kind of mean. And thirdly... Lawler's Law. For those that don't know, Lawler's Law, named for Mr. Lawler, is his "law" that the team that scores 100 first will win. He takes great pleasure in announcing that Lawler's Law is now active and that it cannot be broken, as if it's some great thing he's discovered. In actuality, it's pretty stupid. The team that scores 100 first, by definition, is in the lead. Additionally, the 100 point mark is most often achieved late in games. So Lawler's Law says that a team leading late in a game is more likely to win. Brilliant.

Anyways, that's enough Clipper bashing for one night. Actually, wait, one more. Mike Dunleavy sucks. Okay there. All finished.

Hornets home for the Suns Thursday. Just a hunch: 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, Community, or the Office will all provide vastly more entertainment/fun/lack of desire to kill yourself.

No Timetable for CP3's Return

2009-11-16T20:21:56Z

No Timetable for CP3's Return

The team says an MRI confirmed the initial diagnosis. Paul twisted his left ankle in the Hornets' loss Friday night to Portland. Team spokesman Dennis Rogers said Monday that Paul will be evaluated daily but remains out indefinitely.

The Prospect of Losing Emeka Okafor

2009-11-14T22:35:47Z

More photos » by Elise Amendola - AP

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Thanks to Ziller for breaking it here on At the Hive, below.

According to Sam Amick: "A source with knowledge of the situation says the Kings are discussing a trade with New Orleans that would send Kenny Thomas to the Hornets and bring center Emeka Okafor to Sacramento. No deal is imminent and this is merely a discussion between the two sides at this point."

Here's the salary situation, via Sactown Royalty, via ShamSports:

Player	'09-10	'10-11	'11-12	'12-13	'13-14
Thomas	$8.7M	--	--	--	--
Okafor	$10.8M	$11.8M	$12.8M	$13.8M	$14.8M*

First of all, this isn't a surefire deal for Sacramento. On their end, they have to question Okafor's health a little bit, the length of the contract, the overall money, and Okafor's eventual ceiling (which he's, almost beyond a shadow of a doubt reached). They have to worry about the development of younger guys in Spencer Hawes and Jason Thompson with Okafor around. And finally, they have to wonder whether a nearly 9 million expiring can get them something more useful.

From New Orleans perspective? It's basically a straight salary dump, the likes of which the league doesn't see very often. The Hornets slash about 46 million off guaranteed salaries over the next four years. Kenny Thomas hasn't played competitively for multiple seasons now. The sale of Okafor would likely force Hilton Armstrong or Sean Marks into a starting role, effectively ending the Hornets' season.

What does this trade discussion say about the Hornets? Well, three different options, off the top of my head.

(a) Money Problems

The team is in dire straits, financially. After the recovery of the last two years, in terms of fan attendance and general marketability, I would have deemed this unlikely as recently as two weeks ago. Now? I'm not so sure. The team is paying the luxury tax right now and is scheduled to do so next year, without adding any new money to the payroll. Not only would the addition of Thomas save more than 2 million this year, it puts Shinn off the Okafor hook for four more years. The Hornets can simply add minimum contracts to fill out the front court over the offseason and save tons and tons of money.

The more this team struggles this year, the more attendance is going to drop off. It's a simple fact of life. In the short term, there are no signs of a turnaround. Shinn could have gone all-in during the offseason, opting to trade Chandler for a player of similar contract value. Early on in the season, he has a quick option here to opt out of his initial decision. So this trade could very easily be financially motivated.

(b) Chris Paul

Chris Paul's injury is worse than has been left on. The current estimate is that he'll be out two weeks at least. If that number escalates into the months, then this season is pretty much over. If the team has any reason to believe that Paul won't return until December/January, they won't trust the 3-10 Hornets to recover to a playoff spot.

In that case, Okafor vs. Thomas in 2009-2010 doesn't really matter much. Sure, Thomas will contribute far, far less, but for a team missing the playoffs, what does it matter?

This second option would obviously be linked with financial motivations. George Shinn could go ahead and save 2 million dollars (4 million with the tax) if he feels that the team won't make the playoffs anyways. And ostensibly, the team would stand to pick up a higher draft selection with Thomas, rather than Okafor.

(c) Strategy

I guess this could be an option; that an Okafor for Thomas swap could be executed completely strategically, with no financial impetus whatsoever.

What are the strategic gains, one might wonder. The major one is roster flexibility. With this swap, the Hornets go from committing 71.8 million next year, down to 59 million dollars. But I question the logic here.

Next year's salary cap is projected to be in the 53 million dollar range, with the luxury at around 65. So while the team gets away from the luxury tax, they'd still be unable to add free agents without the use of the exceptions (midlevel, biannual, veteran's). Essentially, they'd be trying to nab a free agent center at a discount or attempting to draft a quality rookie. The 2010 draft class will be better than this year's, in my estimation. But both those things are obviously risky propositions.

If the Okafor move is made strategically, it must be part of a larger fire-sale strategy for the Hornets to get under the salary cap (and thus make a run at a bigger free agent). Overall, there are just far too many ways this can backfire. One or two slip-ups, the Hornets have another horrible year next year, and the following season could be Chris Paul's last in New Orleans (he can choose to leave in the 2012 offseason).

Overall

There is something to be said for building a team through smart drafting. It's definitely the best way to create a stable, long-term franchise plan, something any team in New Orleans desperately needs. In this case, though? The sale of Okafor for Thomas would indicate severe financial issues more than strategic foresight. Could it work? Absolutely. If Paul is going to miss serious time, the Hornets could seriously free themselves financially (especially in the 2011 offseason) and pick up some sharp rookies.

But you're going to have a hard time convincing me the Hornets' hand wasn't forced if this deal goes through.

A source with knowledge of situation says [Kings] and New Orleans have had discussions regarding an...

2009-11-14T20:40:16Z

A source with knowledge of situation says [Kings] and New Orleans have had discussions regarding an Emeka Okafor for Kenny Thomas deal.

Sam Amick, Sacramento Bee

Game 10: Hive Live

2009-11-14T19:26:28Z

More photos » by Bill Haber - AP

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Portland 86 (7–3) | New Orleans 73 (3–7)

Well, that could have gone better.

Sorry I'm so late with the recap. I'm on the road all day, so this one will be short. Then again, most of us probably just want to forget about this game all together, so there's that.

For the Hornets, last night was a game of new coaches, bricked shots, an injury which we shall not reference (lest it become more serious), and a couple of rookies running all over the place. For the Blazers, last night was about bricking shots but still finding a way to win.

By the way, I don't think I can over emphasize the amount of poor shooting we saw in this game. Both teams combined to miss over 100 shots... without factoring in the clangers from the charity stripe. Combined percentage from the field for both teams: 37.3%. Even worse, from deep both teams managed to hit only 5 of 27 shots from deep (which is roughly 18.5%)... Oof.

You know what? This is depressing. Let's just move on to the bullets.

The score at the end of the first was 14 to 12. Fun.
Not to keep ragging on the poor shooting, but if you took away DX, Thornton, and Collison's performances, the Hornets shot a paltry % (that would be X of X).
Stop it, Devin Brown. Just stop it.
It was nice to see the rookies out on the court. Collison looked a bit lost at first (he needs to work on his awareness in general), but by the second half, you could tell he was already getting more comfortable in his role (which started after he knocked down a beautiful floater in the lane). And holy bajesus is he fast. Thornton came out the gates firing on all cylinders and was responsible for two thirds of our threes. He looked aggressive for most of the game (if not a tad reckless), but overall he and Collison impressed.
Jeff Bower is way more animated than Byron. Then again, so is my pet rock. I don't know if waving your arms and yelling helps you win games as a coach (probably not), but I suppose we'll soon know.
LaMarcus Aldridge has a nice stroke. The guy was sinking shots all over the court. I thought I'd check the box score to see that he'd sunk 75% of his shots or something, but instead he was just shy of 50. Of course, for last night's came 50% was unstoppable.
Another Portland point: where was Bayless all night? Andre Miller was firing careless shot after careless shot and Bayless still only saw 11 minutes of playing time. He did have the worst +/- for any Blazer and finished without an assist, but the guy seems way better suited be platooned rather than eating up garbage time.
Last Portland point: Juwan Howard? Really? Are you guys just rubbing it in to the rest of the league that you have plenty of cap space and draft picks galore? Stop making everyone jealous. Isn't it enough that you beat us?
Part of me wants to rant at how bad some of the officiating was, but we were so terrible it seems like a moot point. But still, Mark Ayotte, get your act together.
To the injury that shall not be named: feel better soon, buddy. We need you. Like a lot.

Composed to: The Feelies' Crazy Rhythms

Opponent's Take: Blazer's Edge

Game 10: Portland v. New Orleans

2009-11-14T00:43:33Z

Might as well kick off an open thread for the game tonight. So Scott's been replaced by the Flower regime (FLOyd/BoWER) Let's see if the Hornets can up the effort a bit against a tough Portland squad. Firing coaches usually makes this happen, right? Also, let's see how many differences we spot tonight. Rotations. Minutes. Plays. Etc. Don't naturally expect too much but I'd be nice just to see a few things. Geaux Hornets!

Coachmas Eve

2009-11-13T05:02:50Z

On the eve of Coach Jeff Bower's first game, I thought I'd wade through previous Hornet coaches and how they did their first time out.

Byron Scott, November 3, 2004 (Game 1): The Hornets lost at home to the Dallas Mavericks by 15. New Orleans actually would not win its first game for another 19 days, on its tenth game of the season at Utah. Oddly enough, New Orleans would only win in Salt Lake City once more over the next five+ years.

Tim Floyd, October 29th, 2003 (Game 1): A little more than a year before Scott got his start, Floyd debuted for the Hornets in an overtime win against the Hawks at home. This iteration of the Hornets would actually win its first three before losing to those same Hawks on the road, five days later.

Paul Silas, March 9th, 1999 (Game 16): The Hornets trounced the Boston Celtics at home by 18, a day after Dave Cowens left the team. Suiting up for Charlotte that day: Brad Miller and Ricky Davis. Silas would last as coach until the end of the '03 season, overseeing one of the more successful eras of Hornet basketball. Silas took over a 4-11 team, leading it to a 22-13 record down the stretch (lockout season).

Dave Cowens, November 2nd, 1996 (Game 1): Cowens took over a 41-41 team from the year before. On his first game, the Hornets swept aside the Toronto Raptors by 11, at the Hive in Charlotte. The team would go on to win 54 games before losing to the eventual champion Michael Jordans in the first round.

Allan Bristow, November 1st, 1991 (Game 1): This one's well before my time; Bristow's Hornets lost the season's first game to the Boston Celtics on the road, by 3. The leading scorer for the Celtics? Larry Bird.

Gene Littles, January 31st, 1990 (Game 41): I don't remember much about Littles other than that his was among the first basketball cards I ever owned. The Littles era started stunningly poorly- a 34 point loss at the Spurs, the sixth in a 9 game losing streak.

Dick Harter, November 4th, 1988 (Game 1): And of course, Dick Harter oversaw the inaugural game of the franchise, a 40 point loss at the Hive. That Hornets team would find the perfect antidote a few days later, beating the Clippers by double digits. Some things never change.

So basically, coaches have gone 3 of 7 in their first games with the Hornets. This is the part where, if I were a commentator, I would tell you that the Hornets have a 3 in 7 shot of winning their game tomorrow. You know, historical evidence and what not. Statistics suck, but 20 year old empirical evidence? Ooh, give me some of that.

Seriously though, who knows what's on tap. Maybe the change lights a fire under our guys, and they go out and beat a very good team. Maybe we lose by 59.

Whatever happens, Jeff Bower becomes the eighth coach in Hornets' history tomorrow, and it's sort of exciting.

Which One's Pink?

2009-11-12T21:56:04Z

My fandom in various sports is highly diverse and sort of crazy. I'm a New York Yankees fan in baseball, a Denver Broncos fan in football, a fan of the New Orleans Hornets in basketball and a general fan of the Pacific-10 in college sports. I haven't even been to half these places. But those last two things have given me pretty good perspective on new assistant coach Tim Floyd.

I remember the 2003-2004 Hornets' season pretty vividly. The team had just moved to New Orleans, but it was the team's last season in the Eastern Conference (it had already been announced). At the time, the disparity between the conferences was pretty vast. Switching over to the West was a death blow for a team that was pretty good, but not fantastic, like the Hornets. In many ways, I felt like it was the Hornets' last chance to advance far in the playoffs for a while. When the Hornets crashed and burned to a 41-41 record and lost in the first round of the playoffs (with a very young Dwyane Wade absolutely toying with Baron Davis), I associated much of the failure with Tim Floyd. He was an easy target, having won 49 games in 3+ years with the Chicago Bulls.

Floyd's time with the Hornets ended ignominiously with his dismissal and his subsequent quote about his time in the NBA: "I wasn't very good at it."

He sat out a year before USC's basketball program hired him in 2005. To be perfectly honest, Floyd's Trojan days will be most remembered for his weird, off-court incidents. In his first season, he famously attempted to recruit a 14 year old who had not yet played a high school basketball game. At the end of the 2009 season, Floyd strangely turned down an offer from the University of Arizona, a far more established basketball program. Soon after that, accusations surfaced that he had hand-delivered $1000 cash to former Trojan O.J. Mayo's handler. As if all this wasn't enough, he broke up a random fight in Vegas a couple weeks ago.

On the court, though, Floyd hasn't gotten the credit he deserves.

Background

Floyd's coaching history is pretty extensive. A graduate of Louisiana Tech, he first broke in to the coaching ranks at the University of El Paso in 1977. After 9 very successful seasons (3 NCAA tournaments, 4 WAC championships), he earned his first HC job at the University of Idaho. Then, in 1988, it was back to the state of Louisiana, this time as the head coach at the University of New Orleans. In his time there, UNO posted 6 20 win seasons in 8 years.

In 1994 came Floyd's big break- a move to a bigger conference and bigger program at Iowa State. From 1994-1998 he was so successful that numerous NCAA coaches referred to him to the press as "Timothy the Great." He parlayed the ISU success into an NBA head coaching job, completing 20 years of work in college basketball. Of course, as his luck would have it, he walked in the door just as Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Steve Kerr exited past him. Oh, and Michael Jordan.

Floyd absorbed 3+ horrific seasons in Chicago, with a 17-65 second season being the high point. Among other players he coached during his tenure were Ron Artest (3 seasons), Jamal Crawford (2 seasons), and Tyson Chandler (25 games).

A Year in New Orleans

In June of the 2003 offseason, the Hornets decided to bring Floyd aboard for their final season in the Eastern Conference.

I mentioned earlier how I associated our failures with Floyd at the time. Looking back at it now, I don't know how I could have possibly been very objective. Paul Silas had been one of my favorite coaches; it was his departure that opened the door for Floyd. Under Silas, the Hornets were only a year or two removed from some of the franchise's greatest successes: 2001 when they advanced to Game 7 of the conference semifinals, and 2002, the year that Baron Davis absolutely dismantled Tracy McGrady and the Orlando Magic.

Floyd didn't really have much of a shot at success in his one year. Jamal Mashburn missed 64 games, while Baron Davis missed 16 for good measure. The roster was littered with washed up veterans, a George Lynch here, a Stacey Augmon there. Not too much young talent was available, excluding the rookie David West, who couldn't do much but rebound at the time. Overall, Floyd undeniably had more talent at his disposal than in Chicago. But as with the Bulls, he was put in a position to fail, relative to the fans' expectations. In Chicago, fans had just witnessed the greatest dynasty of the modern era. In New Orleans, fans had arguably just seen the three most steady playoff seasons in franchise history. In both cases, Floyd lacked the players that made those two runs possible.

And thus ended his brief NBA career.

From NOLA to LA

After another year off, Floyd joined USC, as their second choice behind Rick Majerus. And all his ridiculous incidents aside, he was undeniably a very good coach for the Trojans. He led his team to an 18-12 record his initial season. His second season saw even more success: a 25-12 record, a 3rd place conference finish, an appearance in the conference tournament finals, and the school's first Sweet 16 appearance in nearly 30 years. In 2009, the team won the conference tournament and went to a third straight NCAA tournament.

More than anything else, his teams were defined by tight ball control and excellent defense. The Trojans annually finished among the slowest teams in the country, which is odd since this didn't allow highly touted recruits O.J. Mayo and Demar Derozan to pile up fancy stats for draft purposes. Floyd was best known for his ability to draw up exotic defenses to slow the nation's better offensive attacks. In 2008, the Trojans came within a combined five points of defeating both of the year's eventual NCAA finalists- Memphis and Kansas. Defensively, Floyd used a variety of zone-man combos (most commonly, the "box and one," which combines a box zone defense plus a single man defender, free to roam the floor).

The Gorilla in the Room

The circumstances under which Floyd left USC are highly questionable. Any way you slice it, Tim Floyd probably, most certainly, almost positively performed some illegitimate maneuvers during his tenure.

A rule violation? For sure. Excusable? This is where we get into a grey area.

I should preface this by stating my hate of the NCAA: not the teams or programs, but the overarching board, committee, or whatever else they call themselves. To me, they combine two of the most base qualities one can find: greed and an exceedingly pathetic sense of self righteousness. On the one hand, they expect their athletes to be "students"; they expect no NCAA athlete to accept pay of any kind from any one. On the other hand, the NCAA pockets millions and millions of dollars through the abilities of young men and women across the country. A prime example of this hypocrisy: the NCAA allows EA Sports to make NCAA videogames; they make a ton of money off providing exclusive contracts to video game makers. In the video games though, they disallow the use of any player "names"; instead, all players are identified by numbers. It's absolutely ridiculous; the players all look like themselves in real life- the faces, the height, the everything. But the NCAA keeps them anonymous in the name of promoting "student athletics." To me, NCAA videogames are the perfect metaphor for the absolute garbage that is NCAA rules.

My point is this. The idiocy of the NCAA creates a black market for student athletics. Student athletes across the country are getting paid under the table; every year, a handful of these cases are revealed, many go unnoticed. What Tim Floyd did was illegal under NCAA rules. In my estimation, it does not deviate from the norm by much. Floyd just chose an extraordinarily bone-headed method of going about his business, and he was caught. So for those who won't accept this move on the grounds that Floyd is a cheater, I understand the viewpoint completely. I just can't shake the feeling that paid NCAA players is systemic. What Floyd did was wrong, but I certainly think it was at least partly the result of a larger culture.

Jeff Bower

And finally, we come to Mr. Bower. In name, it's Bower that has been named the official head coach. Honestly? I think this is a face-saving move for the Hornets. They don't want to name Floyd- whose reputation has been disgraced- the outright head coach for obvious reasons. But it's clear here who the more experienced of the two is. Heck, Bower served as Floyd's assistant coach during the 2003-2004 season. Bower will be the guy roaming up and down the sidelines (or sitting, I guess). But Floyd should be the guy doing everything else.

Overall

It will be hard to get a good read until tomorrow night vs. Portland. Floyd has run various offensive styles in his career- the triangle with Chicago, a heavy-iso based system with New Orleans, and a drive-motion system with USC. It will be interesting to see if the Hornets decide to stick with their current offense (which has become a lot more varied this year with Tyson Chandler's departure) or move to one of Floyd's base sets. Either way, defense is where I see this team improving the most. Floyd proved his defensive worth with USC, and even his New Orleans 2003 team finished 12 overall in D-efficiency whilst featuring such defensive luminaries as Baron Davis and David Wesley.

I anticipate Floyd sticking around till the end of the year, progressively gaining more control over the gameplay aspects of the squad. In that vein, I wouldn't be surprised if the team gameplan stayed the same for a few more weeks before we see changes gradually incorporated.

What's my overall point? I don't really know. I'm tired of writing about why the Hornets stink and who's responsible. The Hornets are a mess right now, but hiring Tim Floyd isn't the worst thing in the world.

Marc Stein: "Our own @ricbucher reports that the Hornets are adding head coach to GM Jeff Bower's...

2009-11-12T19:21:42Z

Marc Stein: "Our own @ricbucher reports that the Hornets are adding head coach to GM Jeff Bower's duties and bringing in Tim Floyd to be top assistant"

Whoa there.

Hornets Fire Byron Scott

2009-11-12T18:56:56Z

More photos » by Darren Abate - AP

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Looks like the move has been made, and will be officially announced later today, per ESPN.

More analysis of the firing should follow, but for now, this million word piece is just as applicable now as it was in May.

These were my thoughts back then:

In my mind, the best option is to roll the dice on Scott. Hang on to him, regain some health, field a solid defense, allow good and healthy players to self-correct some offensive shortcomings, and hope the front office can draft a solid rookie to Scott's liking. Byron has his flaws, but in an offseason promising to be among the most turbulent the franchise has ever seen, a little stability can go a long way.

And a 3-6 start hasn't exactly changed my mind. More than anything, this firing seems like a "light a fire under the players" sort of deal. Will it work? I doubt it; firing Scott isn't nearly as imperative as finding a new coach.

Hornets Fire Byron Scott

2009-11-12T18:48:52Z

Hornets Fire Byron Scott

The New Orleans Hornets have responded to their 3-6 start by making the first coaching change of the young NBA season, firing Byron Scott on Thursday, according to NBA coaching sources...

It was not immediately known who will replace Scott.

Looking at Steve Nash (oh, and Chris Paul Obviously)

2009-11-10T21:48:09Z

With New Orleans taking on a red hot Phoenix tomorrow, I guess this is timely.

One of the early trends of the season has been the revival of Steve Nash. The Suns completed one of the more impressive Eastern swings recently, with wins over Philadelphia, Miami, and Boston easily offsetting a loss at Orlando. And Nash, for sure, has been very solid. A lot more solid than some may have expected. Consider, for example, some of his trends the last three years:

Season	PER	TS%	eFG%	AST%	ORtg
2007	23.8	65.4	61.3	50.1	124
2008	21.1	64.1	59.7	47.3	121
2009	19.5	61.5	56.6	42.4	119
2010	22.8	65.8	61.1	56.5	123

Considering the trends from 2007-2009 (universally downwards in PER, TS%, eFG%, AST%, and ORtg), Nash has had a very impressive start to 2010. Couple that with team wins, a statistic that people very often use to overrate individual players, and Nash's value seems to inherently increase. But is Nash's pace- which, by the way, is just a shade shy of his "MVP" years, a.k.a. Chris Paul's rookie and sophomore years- sustainable?

My initial inclination is no. The primary driver of Nash's overall efficiency is his assist rate right now. He leads the league, right ahead of Paul, in assists per possession. A huge reason for this is that his team is shooting outlandishly from the field right now. Jason Richardson, a career 37% three point shooter, is shooting 58% on nearly 40 attempts. Grant Hill and Goran Dragic have put down 50% of their attempts. Channing Frye, who had made 20 threes in 4 years prior to this, has made 22 in 8 games. And even Jared Dudley has nearly attempted 30 threes. The Suns are shooting over 47% as a team from three. As a team, their eFG% of 57% is far and away the best in the league, and is totally unsustainable. Last year's leaders- also the Suns, unsurprisingly- shot 54.5 eFG%, a significantly lower figure. Last year's three point leaders- the Kings, surprisingly- were far and away the NBA's best at 40.6%.

The Suns will cool down, and it will affect Nash's assist numbers. So his overall efficiencies will go down. However, there may be a good case that he will sustain his own shooting figures. Last year's lower numbers (Nash's "lows" obviously being highs for anyone else) may very well have been anomalous.

Of course, I need to talk about Chris Paul at this juncture.

These numbers have earned Nash early MVP and All-Star starter buzz and Paul... nothing:

Player	PER	TS%	eFG%	Reb%	AST%	TOV%	USG	ORtg
Nash	22.8	65.8	61.1	4.8	56.5	25.0	23.4	123
Paul	36.0	74.0	69.3	6.2	54.5	11.3	26.8	145

Are Paul's shooting rates as unsustainable as Nash's assist rates? Oh, absolutely, probably more so. But over the first two weeks of the season, they're not even playing the same game! By Win Shares, Paul has been twice as valuable as Nash!

Lately, I've been hearing a lot of commentators say "you know, I'd just put Chris Paul a hair above Deron Williams. Just the slightest of tiny edges on Steve Nash." We've finally seemed to reached the point where Paul is acknowledged to be better than his competition by most people, but most are reluctant to state it firmly. Tomorrow, we'll see the announcers talk about how this is a matchup of the league's two best point guards. That's probably true... but it's also a matchup of the league's second best lead guard and league's best player.

Lakers, Clippers: A Tale of One City

2009-11-10T09:55:56Z

A 28 points win a night after a 16 point loss. It was a pretty interesting Staples double dip for New Orleans, and we learned quite a few things. In no particular order, a double recap:

Emeka Okafor

It's tough to say he was bad. But he definitely wasn't good. Versus the Lakers, he put up a stat line of 10 pts (5-12), 14 rebounds, and a blocked shot. Versus the Clippers, he went for 2 points (1-2) and 6 rebounds. He played 26 and 25 minutes respectively on Monday and Tuesday. I'd argue that the Lakers' game was the poorer showing. Against the LAC, the Hornets' offense didn't really require him. As a result, Byron Scott drew up very few plays for him, certainly a wise move with the perimeter showing.

But against the Lakers, we finally saw some of the bad side of Emeka, some of the things that Charlotte fans have been complaining about for years. He had a couple cases of brick hands and missed at least four wide open layups. If this is going to be the season that he puts it all together- in the ilk of his first 6 games- then he'll need to have a short memory and forget this one fast. Not the best Los Angeles trip for the big guy- a poor showing one night, and then denied a chance to redeem himself the next.

JuJu, the Starter?

As much as we've bashed Byron over the last year, he has given Julian Wright a very fair shake this season. He's started him, he's drawn up plays for him, he's even defended him in the media after horrible games. For a long while, I hid behind the "Byron killed Julian's career by not playing him properly as a rookie/sophomore" argument. Now? I renounce it. Julian Wright is simply not very good at basketball right now.

He's struggled defensively, missing easy rotations. More annoyingly, he's just as tentative with his dribble now as he was his rookie season. Simply put, JuJu has not grown much over the last 2+ years. And the blame has gradually shifted from Byron Scott to Julian himself. It's absolutely the right call to bring him off the bench; nothing he's done warrants a starting role.

Peja, the Starter?

Stojakovic is showing that he's still got it. Of course, that was never really the question. The real issue was if Peja could sustain his health and shooting over the course of a full season, and that question won't be answered until, well, a full season is up. I don't see Peja as the long term answer at SF for that reason. I think we can really save him and his minutes off the bench. At this point though, who else can we plug in at SF? Posey? Songaila?

We're going to see some interesting lineup combos over the next few games. When the dust settles, I wouldn't argue if this was the final setup: Paul/Thornton/Posey/West/Okafor with Collison/Brown/Peja/Songaila/Hilton doing the bench work.

Rookies!

Neither Darren Dimes Collison nor Marcus Buckets Thornton played particularly well against the Clippers. What matters is they finally got off the bench, and they provided exactly the energy we all thought they would.

Thornton clearly has a sweet stroke. I'm impressed at how quickly he can release it, and how consistent it looks over defenders. He's clearly not gun shy either. I would like to see Byron commit regular minutes to him, and more importantly, draw up cutting plays for him. Thornton has the skill set to allow cuts of different sizes; he doesn't need to get all the way to the hoop since he can stop in the midrange area and pull up. At the beginning of the season, I felt a lot of the Jason Terry comparisons were cliche'd and obvious. The more I see Thornton, the way he moves, and the quick release on his shot, the more I like the comparison a lot. Of course, if Thornton plays even half as well as Terry- one of my favorite guys in the league- this year, it'll be well worth it.

As for Collison? He gets into the paint at will, that's for sure. As nifty as a couple of his up and under moves were, I foresee close range finishing as his biggest issue of the near future. In that vein, his scoring development should be similar to Chris Paul's. In the two games, Collison also showed great on the ball defense (well except against Baron Davis, which is excusable). If Collison can evolve into the full court press man that Jannero Pargo was, the Hornets' defense will be that much better. For now, he clearly has defensive fundamentals down pat, and far better than the majority of rookies. He moves laterally extremely well, and it's refreshing to see.

The Defense

Well, there's plenty of work to be done here. New Orleans has attempted a hybrid zone/man at various junctures, especially prominent in this LA back-to-back. In my mind, it's not a good idea. Zone is a very difficult defense to play, even with very good personnel and coaching. Can the Hornets pull it off? I wouldn't put it past them, but it would be tough to use it consistently.

Thus far, the rotations have been very poor all around. With the red hot Phoenix Suns on tap, we're going to need to figure out something, fast.

Ike Diogu and Sean Marks

This one perplexes me. In the very negative news department, it appears Diogu will be out at least a couple more weeks, with Rotoworld claiming his season could be in jeopardy. As a huge Diogu proponent over the offseason, that would be devestating news for me.

As for Sean Marks? He's apparently had a "sore neck" for approximately the last month. So either something is up and the team simply likes Hilton Armstrong over him or his neck is in very poor condition. Armstrong did have a strong showing against the Clippers, so I'd expect Marks' neck to be "sore" for at least a couple more games.

The Pick and Roll

I'm probably going to devote an entire post to this at some point, but for now, it's clear out dependence on the pick and roll has diminished drastically. Some see this as a negative, pointing out how many easy dunks we got with Chandler and Paul. I see it as a positive for sure. The 2008-2009 offense just became ridiculously over reliant on the P&R. It got to the point where our offense literally could not run anything else (the Christmas day Magic game was a prime example of this). This year, the pick and roll hasn't been run because Emeka isn't as good at it. But as a direct result, the offense has become far more varied. We saw maybe a dozen successful back cuts all of last year. In the LA series, I already saw a couple well executed ones by Bobby Brown, Devin Brown, and Peja.

The pick and roll will be something Paul and Emeka work on behind the scenes, I'm sure. The West/Paul pick and roll will still be run at similar levels. But while the P&R sorts itself out, the offense is becoming more diversified than it's been in years, and that's a very good thing in the long run.

Chris Paul

The man is simply brilliant. Leads the league in three point percentage, PER, true shooting percentage, eFG%, Win Shares, and is second in assist percentage. He absolutely toyed with Baron Davis last night; if Okafor and others had done a more competent job on Monday, he could have kept his team in the game a while longer. There's absolutely nothing Paul can't do right now- stretch the defense, pass, rebound, man defend, help defend, knock down fadeaways to beat the shot clock, drill threes... let everyone talk about Kobe and LeBron and Carmelo. We're watching the best player in the league on a nightly basis. Enjoy it.

For His Next Trick, Byron To Start Devin Brown

2009-11-08T02:10:12Z

Yep. Yep yep yep.

I've made clear who I want starting at the 2, despite his struggles. Honestly though, I don't have anything against trying out a committee and seeing who performs. I'm just dubious when that committee includes Devin Brown.

A fifth starter who plays with Chris Paul, David West, and Emeka Okafor needs to be able to shoot and not take over offensive plays with those three guys on. Devin Brown does not fit this bill at all. He really has no range to speak of, as he shot 29% from three last season and 30% the year before. The unfortunate thing is Brown seems to think he's good at shooting- he attempted almost 100 last year after 146 the year before. Byron Scott, for whatever reason, has allowed him to indulge this fantasy. Moving him into the starting lineup into a role that has frequently been on the receiving end of kickouts for three does not, well, solve this issue. At all.

There is really just one positive to Brown's game, and that's his ability to get to the foul line on broken plays. On units that don't have much creativity, he can force himself to the hole and occasionally pick up some cheap points. Thing is, this skill set will not be needed with Paul/West/Okafor on the floor. In the slightest.

Baskeball Prospectus' defensive stats indicate that Brown is actually a pretty solid defender. That's the one area I could see this move sort of working. If he can do a good job over the next few games on some upcoming opponents, then who knows. Perhaps he wrests control of the job from Mo-Pete for good. He's already shown the inexplicable ability to completely avoid Byron's doghouse.

In sum, I see this failing pretty badly on offense, and maybe, maybe, yielding some defensive results. Either way, Byron has indicated that this is a "6 game tryout." Which means we can start the Marcus Thornton countdown- Thursday, November 19th vs. Phoenix.

12 more days, people.

NBA's "Race" to the "MVP"

2009-11-07T20:30:48Z

NBA's "Race" to the "MVP"

1. Melo 2. Pierce 3. Kobe 4. Wade 5. Howard 6. Nash 7. Joe Johnson 8. Ariza 9. Bosh 10. LeBron

HAHAHAHAHAH

Game 6: Hive Live

2009-11-07T18:42:23Z

More photos » by Bill Haber - AP

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Toronto 107 (3-2) | New Orleans 90 (2–4)

Oof. That wasn't pretty.

The game was actually pretty close throughout the first half, but then the Raptors (who are the third highest scoring team this year) went bananas in the second half, shooting almost sixty percent and draining what felt like an endless barrage of threes (they finished with 14 to our 6... but they made theirs 50% of the time to our 30%). Credit the Raptors for shooting so well, but don't forget to thank the Hornet's new defensive scheme called "the sieve."

But seriously, though we did look pretty helpless on defense, the Raptors were simply on fire. For instance, there were several series where Emeka played Bosh really well on D giving him no space and always getting a hand in his face during shots. But Bosh seemed to sink every one of his shots anyway. And when I say every one, I mean every one. Bosh was a perfect 10 for 10 on the night (including a trey) and also managed 8 for 11 from the stripe. The guy was an absolute beast.

Our offense, on the other hand, looked so ineffective on the court that I was surprised when I looked at the box score and saw that we shot 48% from the field. If we could just cut down on the turnovers and play something that resembles defense once in a while, we might actually start winning games. You know, like in a row.

Bullets after the jump.

Your daily "Holy crap, Chris Paul!" line: 21 points (on 60% shooting), 7 boards, 18 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover in only 36 minutes. And it was all for naught.
No other Hornet had a line worth sharing.
Score for the third quarter: Toronto 34, New Orleans 14.
Turkoglu and Bargnani shot a combined 7 for 14 from deep. And here I was getting all excited that Emeka could shoot from outside the paint.
We shot 62% from the line last night. Ordinarily, I 'd say you have to step up a bit more than that to win games, but the Raptors finished with 65%... so now I'm just confused.
The Hornets managed to get in the bonus with 5:30 or so to play in the second. So did we take advantage and attack the basket knowing we'd likely come out with a high percentage shot or free throws on most possessions or did we only make it to the line once (on a questionable Bargnani foul on Chris)? Think hard before you answer.
Bobby Brown once again sank half of his shots (finishing with 16 points), but his shot selection continues to be pretty poor (especially from deep). I keep going hot and cold on the guy... but then I end up staying hot because I remember the Mike James era.
Dear James Posey, I know you landed your big fat contract and all, but it'd be really nice if you pretended to work that money. The lazy play and stupid fouls are getting really old, especially from a guy who was supposed to be the "glue" that held us all together. Thanks.
Quick bit of trivia for you. On February 5, 1977 Pistol Pete Maravich scored a career high 68 points in a game against the New York Knicks. His total could have been higher though, as Pete fouled out of the game. You know who blew the whistle on his 6th foul? Dick Bavetta. Who called the game last night. Holy crap. (Special thanks to Curry for this little tidbit).
Finally, I'm sure you're all aware of George Shinn's recent diagnosis of prostate cancer. I'm sure I speak for all us in wishing him a speedy recovery. For those of you who feel inclined to do a little more than wish, may I suggest Movember. For the month of November, this group is encouraging men everywhere to grow mustaches to raise awareness about prostate cancer (and collect donations).

Composed to: Crowded House's Woodface

The Opponent's Take: Raptors HQ

Mo-Pete Hops in the Delorean

2009-11-06T19:46:40Z

More photos » by Gus Ruelas - AP

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Morris Peterson has always been the definition of a fringe starter. There are reasons to sit him, but there are also some reasons to start him. And perhaps chief among those is the way he fits into most any offense. Nobody wants an invisible player on the court, but nobody wants the 5th man to stick out any either. For much of his career, Mo struck that balance well.

Five miserable performances into the 09-10 season, is his time in that role over?

A trip down memory lane may be in order to predict his future.

For starters, the precipitous decline in PER over the past 5 years is ominous.

2006: 15.3
2007: 13.2
2008: 11.2
2009: 10.7
2010: 7.2 (5 Games)

It's not entirely unexpected either; wings in the mold of Mo-Pete tend to fade and fade hard as they hit their 30's. Two of Mo's most comparable players are George McCloud and Jaren Jackson... which is never a good thing. But while PER can be useful for comparing high value players, it often needs additional corroboration in its measure low value players who exist in different playing systems.

For example, in Toronto, Peterson's scoring role was far more pronounced. He averaged more than 3 FTA/36. In the long run, this seems pretty mediocre. Given Mo was averaged just around 10 FGA/game, though, it speaks to his more creative role. Upon his arrival in New Orleans, Peterson was transformed exclusively into a spot shooter. As much as people associate "Princeton offense" with Byron Scott (and others on that New Jersey staff, like Eddie Jordan), Peterson's role was hardly one characterized by off the ball cuts to the hoop. It was him hanging out on the corners or the wing, hoping for the kickout. It's only natural that his overall value would diminish in this system.

But how does one explain away Mo's decline with the Hornets? Changing system is one thing, but as we're all familiar with, the Hornets run virtually the same offense they did when Mo arrived.

The answer lies hidden in his floor percentages. Oddly enough, even as Mo's three point ability has remained stable, he's become a very poor two point shooter.

Year	2P%	3P%
2007	52.3	35.9
2008	44.5	39.4
2009	40.8	38.8

Clearly, his skills are in decline. He can hit the standstill three, but he can't do much else at all. Then again, the Hornets need Peterson to literally do only two things: (1) make open threes and (2) perimeter defense.

Mo has looked awful to start the year because both those things, arguably, haven't been there. In terms of defense, images of Rodrigue Beaubois blowing by him on four consecutive possessions still lingers in my mind. But in a relative sense, who else do we have defensively? James Posey has lost a step on the perimeter; leaving him on small forwards and power forwards is easily our best bet moving forward. I'm more than willing to give Peterson some more time to evaluate his defense. The three point shooting? He's been poor; however, it's 5 games, and it certainly looks like statistically insignificant.

In the 9 years prior this season, Mo's three point percentage has never deviated outside of the 30-40% range. It hasn't come close to the low end since a poor third season in the league. Basketball Prospectus' projection system has him very similar to last year. Basically, it's too early to say that Mo has lost his three point shot; in fact, all signs point to the contrary. It's the one aspect of his game he's kept as he ages, and the one aspect he's likely to keep for a while longer.

The moral of the story: Morris Peterson may be done as an average basketball player, but in the role the Hornets have created for him, he still has value. The numbers say his shot will recover, without much doubt. His contract runs till 2011, and the two aspects of his game we utilize most- shooting and perimeter defending- will remain until then. Off the bench, the value of both those things plummets. He no longer has Chris Paul to create threes for him, and his perimeter defense is inherently less valuable if he guards the opposition's bench.

I'm all for Marcus Thornton getting minutes (as Byron has alluded to recently). From a relative value added sense though, I think it makes more sense to bring Thornton off the bench. From what we've seen of him at LSU, he doesn't need Chris Paul as much as Mo does. And Mo is the far safer defensive bet at this point. Essentially, Thornton can (potentially) do things off the bench that Mo cannot; on the flip side, Thornton's creative ability is diminished as the fifth starter.

Projecting Mo's future is tough; defending his recent play is even tougher. For all his struggles though, there still isn't a better fifth starter option on this roster.

George Shinn Has Prostate Cancer

2009-11-06T19:02:39Z

George Shinn Has Prostate Cancer

"NEW ORLEANS -- The owner of the New Orleans Hornets has announced that he has cancer.

George Shinn made the announcement in a news release Friday that he was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. Shinn says he remains healthy and is optimistic that he will conquer the disease."

Best wishes to the Shinn family for a speedy recovery.

How The West Is Won; Melo, Artest, and Other Stories

2009-11-05T19:25:31Z

More photos » by Jesse D. Garrabrant - NBAE/Getty Images

16 days ago: EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - NOVEMBER 4: Carmelo Anthony #15 of the Denver Nuggets shoots against Josh Boone #2 of the New Jersey Nets during the game on November 4, 2009 at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

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This should be the first in a weekly series documenting prominent stories in our conference.

Carmelo Anthony

Carmelo Anthony started his first 4 games ridiculously hot, before shooting 8-24 last night. It's ridiculously early, but he's drawn plenty of potential MVP talk nonetheless. A 31.1 PER, 36.2% usage, and 32 ppg will do that for you (well, unless you're Chris Paul, in which case it will earn you this). It's rather easy to see that Melo's base numbers are pretty unsustainable and a product of a small sample size. 47% three point shooting by a career 30% shooter. 12 trips to the line per 36 minutes vs. an average 8. A turnover rate slashed in half. Simple probability dictates that Melo will come down to Earth. But interestingly, his Nuggets team may truly be as good as they're playing. Chauncey and Nene have picked up where they left off. And like everyone but GM's predicted, Ty Lawson has been stellar.

Artest on the Lakers

I don't care that the Lakers have 4 wins in 5 games; they can't be happy with their play thus far. The offense has been downright mediocre, with offensive rebounding the only thing holding it up. Now Pau Gasol is out, but a team with Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, and Ron Artest playing marginally better offense than the Clippers? They've squeaked by the Hawks, Thunder, Rockets, and Hawks, with a convincing loss to Dallas mixed in. And the initial returns on Ron Artest? Not good, despite what ESPN and everyone else wants you to believe. The one, monumental question all offseason was how Artest's efficiency would adapt, with a lower usage rate. Right now, he has the lowest usage rate of his career (16.3%), almost ten (!) percent lower than last season. And, huh, his PER has also plummeted to the lowest of his career by far. I assume Gasol's return will only serve to take further possessions from Ron. Yes, this is only 5 games, but Artest is not Ariza, no matter how much L.A. tries to stuff him into that role.

Steve Nash

Steve Nash is surprising a lot of people with the way he ages. He's still shooting and passing extremely effectively. As Hornet fans, I think we'll never truly appreciate Nash's game. Much of that is because we have a point guard who's way better than him, but has 2 fewer MVP's. So that bitterness will always persist. But Nash is playing basketball at a level that no 35 year old should be able to.. and minus Shaq, the Suns are actually watchable again.

Houston

The NBA statistical community has long had one very unsettled debate- what exactly is the value of shot creation? Everyone realizes that unefficient players could very well be undervalued by figures like PER, because shot creation is very much a basketball skill, in the style of speed or court vision. Everybody realizes that shot creation is valuable, but how valuable is another question altogether. In light of that debate, Daryl Morey has concocted the perfect test tube in Texas- a collection of high efficiency, lower usage (and lower shot creation) players. With Tracy McGrady out, this effect is just exacerbated. As Houston continues to force feed Ariza into taking shots, it's becoming more and more clear that Ariza is no #1 option. It's early, but the initial returns on Houston's experiment look positive. They've played the Lakers to within a point, played Portland close, and also beaten them, Golden State, and Utah.

Houston really isn't your typical anonymous team; their play this year could really change the way teams are constructed. Their first five have not disappointed.