Casey graduated from the University of Southern California in 2005. He is currently a writer at BuyAthletes.com, Pac10Pros.com, TheHoopDoctors.com, and contributes to several travel sites. He is a huge fan of the NBA, College & International basketball, and Gary Payton.
I understand that the New Orleans Hornets have only played one game this season, but I was suffering from some mild déjà vu last night watching them. Are we in for No Bench Scoring 2.0?
Even though the Hornets won 49 games last year, they were blown out in the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets in 5 games. To make matter worse, they lost by an average of 30+ in each of their 4 losses, including a 58-point drubbing in Game 4…at home. That tied them for the worst playoff loss in NBA History. When was the last time it happened, you ask? In 1958!
Sorry, but I was getting sidetracked. The point of the article is not to rehash their poor post-season finish or possibly explain why Head Coach Byron Scott should have been asked nicely to vacate his office before last season. We are here to discuss their bench…or glaring lack thereof.
The 2008-09 Hornets reserves finished last in points per game (22.9) and tied for last in assists (4.1). How do they open up the 2009-10 season? They put up 19 points and 4 assists. Those numbers look pretty similar to last season, huh? Yes, they were playing the revamped & recharged San Antonio Spurs at home, but they lost by 17 and it wasn’t really even that close.
Let’s revisit their playoff experience again really quickly against the Nuggets, who had the third best scoring bench (33.9) and top bench in assists (8.0) in the regular season. In that 5-game series, the Hornets reserves averaged 23.4 & 3.0 versus the Nuggets’ averages of 34.6 & 6.8. That is not going to get it done.
Last night, the Hornets looked uninspired and that is not a good sign on opening night. If they want to make the playoffs again, they must step it up. I hope they do, at least for the sake of Chris Paul. If not, they can wave goodbye to the best point guard in the NBA.
