Still want the Hornets in OKC?
Funny how time can change one’s perspective.
When the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City 16 months ago, a familiar comment around town was something along the lines of: “I’m glad we’ve got our own NBA team. But it’s a shame George Shinn refused to sell the Hornets to Clay Bennett.”
What a difference a year makes.
At the time, the Hornets were coming off a season they were the No. 2 seed and lost to the Spurs in an entertaining seven-game Western Conference semifinals series.
Some national analysts predicted New Orleans would make a run at the 2009 Finals, possibly win the NBA Championship. Meanwhile, the Sonics were coming off a 20-62 season.
The disparity between the two franchises widened when the Thunder got off to a disastrous 3-29 start while the Hornets once again were well on their way to another playoff berth.
A year later, the landscape has changed. Dramatically!
Chris Paul’s confrontation with Rajon Rondo Sunday night after a 10-point loss in Boston was a reminder Paul essentially has to carry the Hornets on his back similar to what Dwyane Wade faces in Miami. The post-game war of words evidently was instigated by Rondo, who reportedly insinuated Paul’s siutation inflates his stats.
During post-game interviews, Paul said Rondo is a quality point guard who was lucky to play on a team with three perennial All-Stars, that Rondo owns a championship ring, something he hopes to someday acheive.
Reality is Kevin Durant and the Thunder probably has a better shot at eventually winning a championship than Paul has in New Orleans.
The Hornets probably will finish with a better record than Oklahoma City this season. But even that’s not a given. Peja Stojakovic’s back is so bad it’s dicey how many games he will play. Tyson Chandler is in Charlotte. The Hornets depth is sorely lacking. CP3 is special. David West can still fill it up. But overall New Orleans is in decline.
Compare that to Oklahoma City. Durant, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook are showing signs they’re maturing. The Thunder signed defensive stopper Thabo Sefolosha to a four-year deal and drafted James Harden, who is showing signs of someday being a key contributor. OKC is building a solid foundation.
If you took a poll in the summer of 2008, a majority of local sports fans probably would have picked the Hornets by a 3-to-1 margin or better if given a choice of which team they would want to watch play 41 home games in the Ford Center.
Ask that same question more than a year later and my guess is it would flip flop to at least a 3-to-1 margin in favor of the Thunder, although some would pick the Hornets simply to watch Chris Paul play.
Patience. That’s something GM Sam Presti has preached since he arrived in town. Now we can see why.
In just over a year’s time, the Thunder’s roster is starting to look a lot more appealing than the Hornets’ roster.
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Comments
Good article. I never attended a Hornets game after I moved to Oklahoma City, so count me in the group that would have voted with the Thunder from the beginning.
That being said, I think that if Bennett had purchased the Hornets, they would be in much better shape today, even with Peja’s contract. Presti has shown the ability to make tough and, mostly, good decisions. If you look at the Hornet’s drafts, trades and free agent acquisitions since they took Chris Paul with the fourth pick in the 2005 draft, it’s not been very impressive. I have to believe Presti would have done better.
Only one problem, MartzMimic. You counting on Clay Bennett firing the current Hornets GM (Jeff Bower) to hire Presti? Bower has a pretty solid reputation.
Granted, Bennett’s ownership might not have been so anxious to shed payroll but the Hornets are above the luxury cap. In this market, Bennett probably would have wanted to trim some payroll.
We’ll never know. What we do know is the Thunder has a solid, young nucleus with some cap space to add, not subtract while George Shinn is trying to shed payroll, thus the Thunder has a brighter future.
P.S. The Hornets lost tonight at Madison Square Garden to fall to 1-3 as the Knicks got their first win at the Hornets expense.
I heard that story about Chris Paul after the game and thought it was very out of character for him to go after Rondo like that. But Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe explains what really happened:
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First, Paul walked over to shake hands and exchange congratulations with Paul Pierce following the Celtics’ rugged 97-87 win over Paul’s New Orleans Hornets. In the midst of that conversation, Paul was approached by Celtics guard Rajon Rondo – less than 24 hours away from signing a long-term extension in Boston or staying perhaps only one more season – who said some unkind words to his point guard counterpart.
Paul shot back at Rondo and the two had to be separated. Rondo was ushered to the tunnel by Celtics director of security Phil Lynch, while Paul continued his testy conversation with Celtics assistant coach Tom Thibodeau, and the two were seen yelling at each other while Paul slowly walked to toward the Hornets’ tunnel.
http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2009/11/02/rondo_paul_make_their_points____loudly/?page=1