NBA: Tough times for New Orleans Hornets

The New Orleans Hornets have been one of the more consistent teams in the NBA in recent years. Can they recapture that form this season? Nick Shiambouros reports.

In 2007-2008 the New Orleans Hornets finished the year with a record of 56-26 which set a franchise record. They went on to the Western Conference semi-finals, eventually losing to San Antonio 4-3 in a close series.

This franchise was forced to move to Oklahoma temporarily after the Hurricane Katrina catastrophe in 2005 and at one point their future was in doubt. With some help from the league and their loyal fans things the team returned to New Orleans in 2007.
　
This year the Hornets have had a terrible start to the season with a record of 13-15 for the year. Head coach Byran Scott was fired in November after only nine games and left with a record of 3-6.In my opinion his exit was way too premature as he was not given a chance to turn things around in this long NBA season.

Jeff Bower was appointed head coach to replace Scott but he has not managed to stop the rot.

The Hornets are not lacking in talent and are led by Chris Paul, who is one of the best point guards in basketball. He consistently delivers good numbers for this team and averages just over 20 points per game.

Devin Brown and James Posey add experience to this team and are reliable players on a nightly basis.

The biggest problem for the Hornets this year is their abysmal road record. They have a record of 2-12 for the year which is the worst in the Western Conference.

This statistic is incredible for a team of the Hornets’ calibre but they go to pieces when they fall behind on the road. The main problem is their outside shooting which has been desperate in the last month. When you have Chris Paul delivering the ball to you on time then you have to knock it down. It really is as simple as that.

New Orleans have to play four road games in the space of a week starting on Monday and they will most likely struggle to win any of them.

The Hornets will have to travel to Utah, Oklahoma City, Washington and Philadelphia. The strongest chance of the Hornets suffering a defeat comes on Monday against Utah, who are a very difficult team to beat at home. The Jazz are firmly in the play-off picture and have only lost four games at home all season long.

It’s difficult to know when or if the Hornets are going to recapture their form from a couple of years ago. They are still in with a chance of making the play-offs but they need to put a run together soon.

Reproduced with permission from betting.betfair.com. © The Sporting Exchange Limited

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