There’s no doubt the Los Angeles Lakers were the better (read: bigger) team in their first-round series against the New Orleans Hornets. So the fact that the Hornets were able to somehow steal two games in the series was impressive in itself.
I just wish New Orleans could have kept it a little more respectable in last Thursday night’s 98-80 loss to Los Angeles. I may seem like I’m being negative. The positives will come later.
To me, it’s as heartbreaking to lose in lopsided fashion as it is to lose a close game. It was hard to sit in the New Orleans Arena and watch the Hornets play as poorly as they did. It seemed nobody except Carl Landry showed up to play. And that lack of good basketball all starts with the captain: Chris Paul.
He didn’t do what makes him best — dribble-drive penetration that forces defense to focus on him, thus opening up lanes and shots for teammates.
He settled for jumpers instead.
On top of that, he never worked the ball inside to the big men. The Hornets just kept shooting — and missing — contested jumpers.
Maybe Paul was trying to prove a point, as one of my unbiased observing friends pointed out. In other words, he wanted to show management that he needs help because he can’t do it by himself.
I doubt this. He’s too much of a gamer to give up that soon, especially on his home court.
But it looked like he gave up on the game when things weren’t going his way. He didn’t assert himself as he normally would.
There’s a lot to be done during the offseason. Whether it involves trading Paul or trying to find a few more pieces is yet to be seen. But something has to be done because the bench just didn’t cut it down the stretch.
However, there are a few positives that come out of the pair of victories in the postseason.
First, looking further into the future, season ticket sales are rising as fans are starting to be “in” for the Hornets and their future in the city.
The more immediate impact is the fact that the Hornets sold out all three of their home playoff games. People in the city caught playoff and Hornets fever, especially after the first road victory.
Fans started to believe in the team, and they showed up in droves. I’ve never been so happy (while sad) to be a Hornets fan as I was in that 98-80 loss in the final game against the Lakers. The place was packed in blue, and everyone was loud.
When the game was ending and coach Monty Williams called a timeout with just under two minutes left to get the scrubs into the game, the arena stood up and cheered for the rest of the game. For a solid three or four minutes, everyone was applauding and there was even a “Thank you, Hornets” chant that reverberated throughout the arena.
That makes me proud. I’m glad the fans realize the bright future of this team in the city. But it’s only going to happen if they continue to support the Hornets next season by going to games that don’t involve NBA superstars.
I hope the momentum from the end of this season can carry into next season. And maybe — with a few offseason moves — the Hornets can be “in” the second round of the playoffs.
 
Andy Schwehm is a 21-year-old English and psychology senior from New Orleans. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_ASchwehm.
 
 
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Contact Andy Schwehm at [email protected]