| Hornets Trying To Adjust To Life After Scott Authored by Brian Reynolds - November 16, 2009 - 12:21 pm
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At least for now.
Just days after the surprise firing of former Head Coach Byron Scott and hours after losing their All-Star point guard to an ankle injury, the Hornets locker room remained upbeat - even after another defeat.
Following the Hornets 121-98 loss to Atlanta on Saturday night, I caught up with starters David West, Peja Stojakovic, Darren Collison, and Devin Brown to see how the team is handling the bumpy ride to start the season.
“I was real sad,” said David West about the dismissal of Byron Scott. “He was my coach for a long time. But it’s just the profession and things like this happen, so you just have to move on.”
Scott was fired after a 3-6 start and replaced by general manager Jeff Bower. He was the head coach of the Hornets since 2004, which includes the time spent in Oklahoma City, when New Orleans was recovering from Hurricane Katrina.
“I was surprised,” said Peja Stojakovic when I asked him about his reaction to the Scott firing. “This is the first time something like this has happened to me during my NBA career. But, you have to adjust. We are all pros. We have to deal with it and get it together, as soon as possible. Especially now since Chris [Paul] is injured. We need to find a way to get better.”
That might be easier said than done. Although it is still very early in the season, New Orleans is quickly falling out of contention in the deep Western Conference. They already have eight losses which is the second most in the West (Minnesota has 10). If Paul doesn’t heal up soon, the Hornets could be out of the picture completely by Christmas.
With Paul out, however, New Orleans will get a glimpse of their future, as Darren Collison will start in Paul’s absence. As the 21st pick in last year’s draft, Collison was selected to learn under Paul and give the team depth at the point guard position. I asked the former UCLA Bruin if the coaching change was especially hard on him because as a rookie, he was just starting to understand Scott’s tendencies.
“At the end of the day, it’s just basketball,” said Collison. Whether it’s Coach Scott or Coach Bower, you have to be able to adjust. We know what to expect. We’ve all been playing the game a long time, we just need to go out there and execute.”
Starting shooting guard Devin Brown took a similar stand. Rather than blame the organization or the coach, Brown simply said, “We just need to play better basketball.”
“Sure, we have some different terminology we are trying to put in right now, but it really just comes down to getting back in transition and rebounding the basketball,” Brown said. “That will never change no matter who is coaching. We need to get better in those two areas and everything will work itself out from there.”
So while the players seem to have the right attitude about the current situation of the team, you can’t help but wonder how much longer that will last. Scott was the NBA’s Coach of the Year just two years ago and now he is gone, replaced by a guy that hasn’t been called coach in his lifetime – in college or the pros – prior to his debut Friday against Portland.
If there is one thing I have learned over the years, it’s that losing doesn’t necessarily bring out the best in players. So while the Hornets are acting as professionals now, it’s unlikely to continue if the losses persist.
But maybe, just maybe, Jeff Bower is the guy with the answers.
--Brian Reynolds is a contributing writer for RealGM and a recent graduate of Emory University. He can be reached at Brian.Matthew.Reynolds@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter at BReynolds404. |
