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Another Sketchy Lou -> Hornets Report
From a site called "Hoopsnotes." Yeah. They link to the same Newsday story that seemingly nobody can read properly. But they also include: "A source close to the situation confirmed to Hoopsnotes.com the New-Orleans Hornets are going to sign Louis Amundson for one-year and the veteran minimum."
So, um, yeah. Hoopsnotes has said it.
Another Look at Point Guards. Sigh.
by Rohan on Sep 8, 2010 2:09 AM CDT
18 comments
In some ways, I almost feel bad writing this post. I have no idea what the front office is doing right now. Entirely no idea. A trade for Deron Williams to fill the backup PG role could be in the works. But for now, the timeline appears as stale as ever.
A quick recap:
July 20th: Hornets hire Dell Demps
August 11th: Hornets trade Collison, acquire Ariza
August 25th: Hornets sign M. Shakur to a non-guaranteed contract
Assuming Shakur's headed for that third string role, the Hornets have gone almost an entire month now without a backup point guard. On August 19th, we speculated in this thread as to the remaining FA options. After the jump, the (mostly) comprehensive list compiled on that date:
Lets get us some royalty
From the FanShots. Article also says: "The New Orleans Hornets appear to be the front-runner [for Lou Amundson]"
We still need another backup C, PF and PG. I still expect the Hornets to sign Amundson. With Earl Barron (awesome name) as well our frontline wouldnt look too bad.
This Isn't New, But It's News
by Rohan on Sep 7, 2010 12:47 PM CDT
17 comments
A couple little bits of news via ESPN Insider (aka via the Times Picayune).
Marcus Thornton had a terrific rookie season last year for the Hornets. He should be the starting shooting guard this upcoming season, but head coach Monty Williams may go with newcomer Marco Belinelli.
"To me, it's about fit," Williams tells The Times-Picayune. "What guy fits best with that starting unit. Do we need more shooting or more slashers and athleticism? The challenge for Marcus is not to rest on what he did last year but learn to become a consistent professional.
Trevor Ariza could start at shooting guard if Williams chooses to start Peja Stojakovic at small forward. Stojakovic has a bad back and it may be best to start him while his back is warmed up.
And re: the rest of the summer:
"My gut feeling is that we are not done yet," Williams told The Times-Picayune. "Dell and I share information on both sides. I talk to him about players and he talks to me about things we can do. Maybe that's one of the reasons why we work so well together.
Demps could trade Peja Stojakovic ($14.25 million) or Darius Songaila ($4.81 million), as they both have expiring contracts.
I'm still not convinced that viable trade partners are out there, or that we should put too much stock in this quote. Either way, it's nice to see the words "Hornets" in an ESPN story. Been a while.
Luther Head Again
by Rohan on Sep 6, 2010 2:00 AM CDT
in Analysis
13 comments
A relatively sensational headline from Ziller at Fanhouse yesterday: Report: Hornets Lied About Luther Head's Ankle. I slap the "sensational" tag on it due to the lack of any new information on the situation. The story that has been circulating on Twitter (and that MrWayneKeller FanShotted here) is just a reference to the original A-Woj story/destruction of the front office.
A quick refresher on the timeline; in bold, the person in charge of front office decisions at the time (from my critique of the team's decision from July 15th).
Sat., July 10th: Hornets, Head agree deal [Jeff Bower]
Tue., July 13th: Jeff Bower leaves team [Hugh Weber]
Wed., July 14th: Hornets withdraw offer [Hugh Weber]
Wed., July 14th: Head's agent/Woj slam Hornets [Hugh Weber]
Tue., July 20th: Hornets hire Dell Demps [Dell Demps]
Let's start with this: we still don't know if Head did or did not fail a physical. We have the word of the Hornets against the word of Mark Bartelstein. Yes, A-Woj is a respected reporter that has broken a staggeringly large percentage of NBA stories in the past two years. But let's remember that A-Woj's original report was simply the result of a phone conversation he had with Bartelstein. Sure, other sources "have told" Woj that the failed physical affected Head's chances. But as far as the physical itself? It was Bartelstein's word, as held up by Woj for all to see.
In Woj's latest Y! story, one can find an updated sourcing: "Several sources insisted that there was nothing wrong with the ankle." But again, I'm not convinced. Were these sources all present during the physical? Are these sources that are close to Head, but that weren't present at the physical and don't know specifically what the Hornets contended? Are these Hornet sources that leaked the information out? Keeping in mind the confidentiality associated with medicals, it's unlikely that very many people outside of Weber/Williams/medical staff were on hand for the physical.
Second, the decision to withdraw the offer was Weber's. Woj explicitly calls out Weber in his scathing TweetackTM. As dubious as the situation still feels to me, the current front office- Demps, Williams, etc.- is almost entirely unattached.
And finally, I don't buy the "failed physical doomed Head's future chances" argument nearly as much as I did two months ago. Let's say a team wants a bench shooter. They draw up a list of options. They see Head as the best fit. At that point, it seems absolutely ridiculous to dismiss him from consideration because of a heavily contested failed physical, administered by a so-called sleazy team. Likewise, if a team is going to bring him to camp but is afraid of guaranteeing a contract due to the Hornet physical.... why not give him a physical themselves? Do NBA physicals cost in the thousands? Do teams not want to pay for plane tickets?
The conclusion is the same as it was two months ago. If the Hornets lied, that's messed up. If the Hornets didn't lie, then... yeah. For now, all we can definitively say is this isn't nearly as black and white as people are making it out to be.
Sunday Discussion: FIBA World Championships
by Brian Ball on Sep 5, 2010 2:55 AM CDT
16 comments
There's been precious little basketball news recently and even less about the Hornets. But the FIBA World Championships are in full swing in Turkey. Kevin Durant is being widely toasted for his outstanding play, and deservedly so. Tommy Craggs, though, has a fantastic article on Slate that points out that the massive media love-fest for Durant is due to sports pundits comparing Durant favorably to LeBron James.
Since FIBA is the only real basketball actually going on, let's talk about it today. What players have stood out to you? Are you still weirded out by the trapezoidal key? And why does the US sports media love to rag on the American team?
The 2010 @tH Approval Ratings: Aaron Gray
by Rohan on Sep 3, 2010 2:00 AM CDT
17 comments
Positives: An impressive 18.4 PER over 24 games IN HIS FIRST YEAR, high defensive, offensive, total rebounding rates, 121 offensive rating in 24 games (career - 105), effective defensively, 18 for 21 on free throws (career 59% from line) DURING HIS INAUGURAL SEASON
Negatives: Fouled a lot (6.1 pf/36 minutes) FOR A NEW NBA PLAYER, high turnover rate (19.5%), only averaged 10.9 minutes per game AS OPPOSED TO LAST YEAR IN COLLEGE
My Grade: 4
The 2010 @tH Approval Ratings: Darius Songaila
by Rohan on Sep 2, 2010 6:00 AM CDT
11 comments
Positives: Took on more offensive responsibility than many assumed he would (19.5% usage rate, 12.5 FGA/36 minutes), versatile in defensive and offensive position play, posted a career high in steal rate (2.3 per 100 defensive possessions), showed good range in shooting the ball, usage rate of 25.9% behind only Tyreke Evans and Brandon Jennings among rookies,
Negatives: Very inefficient offensively (99 ORtg led to a total 0.0 offensive win shares for the season), second worst rebound rate of career, worst PER of career, second lowest true shooting percentage of career
My Grade: 3
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