Who are These Guys?

Now that the somewhat miraculous, somewhat uncanny, three-game winning streak has come to an end, it’s safe to talk about it.

I’m not overly superstitious, but with all that’s happened in New Orleans this season, why take the chance?

But it’s over now, if only by a point, and shooting straight is a trait I’ll now gladly share with the team. Three wins over three teams with a combined 28-15 record is some pretty staunch evidence that this team isn’t done, isn’t out, isn’t giving up. Not yet.

Not when the heart and soul of the team injured his ankle and bruised the hopes for a rebound start. Not even when a coach with a stellar resume’ and a proven ability to win was unfairly fired a tenth of the way through the season. And certainly not with two of the NBA’s best teams coming to the New Orleans Arena.

In fact, the only sign of selfish play has come in the form of David West. West, with the game on the line, down one on the road in Miami, decided that his chances to steal another one were greater than his team’s.

With 12 ticks left on the clock, West repeatedly waved off help from fellow Hornets, and took the shot himself. In case you didn’t notice, he missed. And yeah, maybe he was fouled on the tip, but it wasn’t enough for a call. It wasn’t enough for the officials to step in and change to outcome of a great game. In the end, it just wasn’t enough.

If the Hornets are serious about dumping some salary, why not dump West? Look, he’s a talented player, but he’s on the fast track to becoming the TO of the NBA. Immensely gifted, athletic enough to draw attention from opposing defenders, and whiny to a fault. After rumors surfaced of a possible trade involving Emeka Okafor, purely to save some much needed money, why not drop a guy who could be holding this team back from special things, even with CP3 on the bench?

During the three-game streak, West’s play has been helpful, even necessary, but his dedication to himself was a costly trait in Miami. No, the entire weight of the loss doesn’t fall on his shoulders, and he’s not a saboteur, but the wins are coming because of inspired team play, not individual attention grabbing.

So, before I sound like I hate West, which I don’t, let’s look at the bright spots here.

Marcus Thornton, a nearly hometown kid from LSU, has really come on as a shooting guard. 13 ppg on 46% shooting, 39% from deep, in 18 minutes a game is a nice surprise. He hasn’t supplanted Devin Brown in the starting lineup, but that may be for the best. He’s found a groove as the sixth man. And his defense hasn’t yet reached the level of a surefire starter… despite Brown’s other obvious shortcomings, at least the veteran’s defense is pretty damn solid. Not to mention, the strategy behind Thornton coming off the bench is nearly infallible. He’s exposing other team’s second-tier talent when our primary scorers are leaving the court, and he’s keeping the pressure off of other starters.

Then there’s fellow rook, Darren Collison, who has played like a man possessed of late. Collison has been an admirable stand-in for Paul over the last four, averaging 15 ppg and 7 assists during that stretch. Not that it’s a bad problem to have, but Jeff Bower has to find a way to create minutes for the two newcomers once Paul returns. Collison and Thornton are strictly guards, and neither could move down.

And finally, how about the emergence of Okafor and the resurgence of Peja? Okafor’s old enough now to provide a veteran presence, and he’s starting to allow the game to come to him. He’s been steady, savvy, and strong with 42 boards in the last four, and you get that feeling that big things are coming if he can just develop better chemistry with CP3. We saw him get back to his oddly off ways in Miami, and that can’t happen if New Orleans wants to right this ship. He’s got to settle down and keep from pressing early in the game. As for Peja, let’s hope this sick streak of threes from the last trio of games (58%) continues once Paul returns and the team is whole again.

Overall, this season is starting to remind me of what the Colorado Rockies went through during the last MLB season. Big time manager gets canned in favor of an in-house solution and the team bands together, plays with a purpose, rallies around their new head man and shocks the world with a postseason appearance. Heck, Bower and Jim Tracy even look alike. Okay, they don’t. Not even close. But still, the similarities are there between the teams.