Scott Rickenbach
2* (Top Play) New Orleans Hornets (-) vs Denver
If the Hornets were ever going to quit on their season, they had the perfect opportunity in Game Three. They got down huge early in that game. The Hornets had already been blown out in each of the first two games of this series and they were quickly down by a double digit margin to Denver in Game Three even though the game was in New Orleans! However, the Hornets definitely showed there was no way they were going to quit against these Nuggets and, in fact, they were the team that had the double digit lead when it mattered most - late in the fourth quarter. The final score showing the Hornets hanging on for a two point non-covering win doesn't do justice to how well New Orleans played considering some key issues. Tyson Chandler was in foul trouble and the Hornets big man spent much of the game on the bench and ended up fouling out after just 18 minutes of floor time. His absence hurt the New Orleans defense and rebounding. Still, it was guys like veteran James Posey that stepped up but note that even Posey than missed some key time as his absence was due to a minor knee injury. He's ready to go again tonight and so too are the Hornets!
Even though New Orleans has shortened their playing rotation to eight players and this has increased the number of minutes for the starters, note how well the bench responded in Game Three. The Hornets bench had a combined rating of +30. By contrast, the Nuggets bench had a combined -37 rating. As you can see, the move to a shorter rotation paid big dividends for coach Byron Scott and his group! Much is being made of how many minutes All Star guard Chris Paul is being asked to play but, keep in mind, this will be just the fourth Hornets game in the last 12 days. They had a little break after the regular season. The Hornets also got another break when this series shifted from Denver to New Orleans as there was an extra off-day tossed in between Games Two and Three. The point is that Paul can, and will, go the whole tonight if he has to and he nearly did just that in Game Three! The Hornets are fired up to even this series up at two games apiece and they have a lot of momentum (and confidence!) from the way they responded in Game Three! They won Saturday even without much help from Chandler and tonight he'll have fresh legs and be ready to contribute much more as he shouldn't be dealt the same foul trouble issues again. Including this series, note that Western Conference Playoff teams are 12-3 (80%) so far in this post-season. This makes laying the small number with the Hornets even more appealing as home court continues to play a big role in the West.
2* (Top Play) New Orleans Hornets (-) vs Denver
If the Hornets were ever going to quit on their season, they had the perfect opportunity in Game Three. They got down huge early in that game. The Hornets had already been blown out in each of the first two games of this series and they were quickly down by a double digit margin to Denver in Game Three even though the game was in New Orleans! However, the Hornets definitely showed there was no way they were going to quit against these Nuggets and, in fact, they were the team that had the double digit lead when it mattered most - late in the fourth quarter. The final score showing the Hornets hanging on for a two point non-covering win doesn't do justice to how well New Orleans played considering some key issues. Tyson Chandler was in foul trouble and the Hornets big man spent much of the game on the bench and ended up fouling out after just 18 minutes of floor time. His absence hurt the New Orleans defense and rebounding. Still, it was guys like veteran James Posey that stepped up but note that even Posey than missed some key time as his absence was due to a minor knee injury. He's ready to go again tonight and so too are the Hornets!
Even though New Orleans has shortened their playing rotation to eight players and this has increased the number of minutes for the starters, note how well the bench responded in Game Three. The Hornets bench had a combined rating of +30. By contrast, the Nuggets bench had a combined -37 rating. As you can see, the move to a shorter rotation paid big dividends for coach Byron Scott and his group! Much is being made of how many minutes All Star guard Chris Paul is being asked to play but, keep in mind, this will be just the fourth Hornets game in the last 12 days. They had a little break after the regular season. The Hornets also got another break when this series shifted from Denver to New Orleans as there was an extra off-day tossed in between Games Two and Three. The point is that Paul can, and will, go the whole tonight if he has to and he nearly did just that in Game Three! The Hornets are fired up to even this series up at two games apiece and they have a lot of momentum (and confidence!) from the way they responded in Game Three! They won Saturday even without much help from Chandler and tonight he'll have fresh legs and be ready to contribute much more as he shouldn't be dealt the same foul trouble issues again. Including this series, note that Western Conference Playoff teams are 12-3 (80%) so far in this post-season. This makes laying the small number with the Hornets even more appealing as home court continues to play a big role in the West.
