Smartly, the Hornets braintrust offered up a player for the media horde at the press conference announcing the firing of Byron Scott and the ascension of Jeff Bower. It was David West, the All-Star power forward, who said generally negative things about recent times under Scott and who publicly placed some faith in Bower. Of course, the media (and fans) really only cared what superstar Chris Paul thought ... but Paul was otherwise tied up Thursday.
Eventually, John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune found Paul and got his thoughts on the move. And you understand why the Hornets are glad Paul was unavailable, and he was not nearly as optimistic about the change as West.
Word leaked soon after Hornets coach Byron Scott's dismissal became known that New Orleans GM Jeff Bower would take the reins as head coach, with former Hornets disaster coach Tim Floyd coming back to assist him. At a press conference announcing the moves, Hornets exec Hugh Weber told reporters Bower does not have an interim tag on his title: he is the coach for this season.
Now who exactly is Jeff Bower, other than someone who looks more like a professional bowler than someone involved in basketball?
Flash forward seven months from now. Teams are rife with cap space, even under a substantially lowered cap. Friends of yours are all traveling to different teams, finding which team is the best fit financially, personally, and most importantly, in terms of playing for a contender. The world is their oyster. There is nothing but possibility and with the right decision, they'll walk away not only even more obscenely rich than they were before, but in a better situation to put the ring on their finger.
Had Byron Scott been fired last May instead of today, he'd certainly be in a better financial position, as Scott would have been highly sought-after by at least a few teams, Sacramento and Minnesota among them. As it stands, Scott has no contract for the 2010-11 season ... and few leads for decent gigs.
Not that either Sacramento or Minnesota are glamorous jobs, but they were rebuilding teams with low expectations, much like the Hornets were when Scott first came to New Orleans. This summer? I imagine the Nets job will be available, but that bridge has been ashes for ages. The Pacers and Grizzlies will be the other most likely openings, barring a surprise retirement from Jerry Sloan, Don Nelson or Larry Brown.
But there's one job Scott has always been tied to that could also become available and happens to be pretty plush: the one currently filled by Phil Jackson.
How good are the Phoenix Suns this season? It may be too early to tell, but they're at least good enough to get their latest opponent's head coach fired just nine games into the season.
Byron Scott has been relieved of his coaching duties and the team will make the formal announcement at a press conference later this afternoon. This comes in the wake of a disappointing 3-6 start to the season, and, most recently, a completely lackluster and discouraging performance against the Suns in a nationally televised blowout on Wednesday night.
Who doesn't like a list, especially on a Monday morning when that's about all you can handle?
Training camps are opening, so here are five coaches likely to start feeling the heat if their teams don't get off to good starts.
Mike Dunleavy, L.A. Clippers: The Clippers head into the season with expectations, which might not be the best news for Dunleavy. He's got to figure out a way to reconfigure his relationship with Baron Davis so that the veteran point guard once again can thrive. If Dunleavy and Davis aren't on the same page, there's no hope in L.A.
New Orleans Hornets owner George Shinn has taken a lot of guff for his ownership habits. Notable decisions have included moving the Hornets to New Orleans from Charlotte, making noise about the required attendance threshold to tether the team to the city, and trying to offload Tyson Chandler for peanuts to save a few bucks.
Most NBA experts and pundits (and yahoos like me) will murmur about Shinn's thrifty disposition and hint that he's itching to bust out of New Orleans for a more profitable market. But this summer, he's put his money where his mouth is and wants some return on that investment.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
For the past nine years the Harold Pump Foundation, created by David and Dana Pump (known as the gurus of high school and college basketball) has raised over $3.5 million dollars to fight cancer. The foundation's efforts have not gone unnoticed. Major stars such as Magic Johnson, Paul Pierce, Sugar Ray Leonard, Pete Sampras and Denzel Washington have all joined the Pump brothers. In this report we also hear from young NBA stars like Kevin Love, Brandon Jennings, and Blake Griffin.
There really are no words to describe the Hornets' 58-point home loss on Monday, in what was unquestionably a must-win playoff game against the Nuggets. But embarrassing, humiliating, inexcusable, and unconscionable are all good places to start.
After trailing by 22 points at the break, there was no fight in New Orleans to start the third quarter, and they managed just 11 points in the period while Denver continued to play as if it were Game 7 of the Finals.
Part of the blame for the second half lack of effort falls on Byron Scott, but a more than equal share should also fall on the shoulders of Chris Paul. Either way, give Denver their due for providing teams with a blueprint for how to defend one of the league's best point guards.
Smartly, the Hornets braintrust offered up a player for the media horde at the press conference announcing the firing of Byron Scott and the ascension of Jeff Bower. It was David West, the All-Star power forward, who said generally negative things about recent times under Scott and who publicly placed some faith in Bower. Of course, the media (and fans) really only cared what superstar Chris Paul thought ... but Paul was otherwise tied up Thursday.
Word leaked soon after Hornets coach 
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Who doesn't like a list, especially on a Monday morning when that's about all you can handle?
For the past nine years the Harold Pump Foundation, created by David and Dana Pump (known as the gurus of high school and college basketball) has raised over $3.5 million dollars to fight cancer. The foundation's efforts have not gone unnoticed. Major stars such as Magic Johnson, Paul Pierce, Sugar Ray Leonard, Pete Sampras and Denzel Washington have all joined the Pump brothers. In this report we also hear from young NBA stars like Kevin Love, Brandon Jennings, and Blake Griffin. 
There really are no words to describe the Hornets' 
