Maybe they can turn it on in late April and continue it through early June. But, in the meantime the Hornets have too many games where they appear uninterested.
The Celtics were in the exact same situation tonight at home against the Toronto Raptors. Boston trailed in the third quarter, before the fired up Celtics rallied for a 115-109 victory.
The Hornets do two things that, for me, don't add up to playoff success. That is they don't rebound the ball well, and they are spotty defensively. Center Tyson Chandler is their best rebounder, but even with Chandler, New Orleans started the night 28th in rebounding in a 30 team league. Don't let the Hornets 52-45 edge tonight on the boards fool you. New York had two many second chance points.
Defensively, the Hornets have too many lapses. The Knicks had cart blanche in the lane against a passive New Orleans defense.
With a little more than five weeks to go before the deadline, GM Jeff Bower and head coach Byron Scott have this decision to make: Do we, a team that doesn't rebound well, trade one of our quality pieces (Tyson Chandler ) to shake up our team and attempt to get better.
Guard Jannero Pargo, playing now in Russia is an option, but if he were to get his release from FIBA, Pargo would be a free agent. The Hornets would be adding salary to a team that is already over the salary cap.
Ed Daniels
11:32 pm
Monday night
January 12