The only bad thing about the New Orleans Hornets lately is that they haven't changed their name to the 'Pelicans' yet. Hopefully the Charlotte Bobcats will slide them some royalties later.

NOLA has been quietly racking up wins on your NBA League Pass, winning 7 of their last 11 games. That stretch also featured a 4-game winning streak, the longest in a year. The return of shooting guard Eric Gordon from his troubling knee injury has sparked this team. The scorer's return has also helped point guard Greivis Vasquez take his game to the next level.

The Hornets have had some impressive wins over the past couple of weeks. They beat the San Antonio Spurs 95-88 at home, leading from start to finish. In Eric Gordon's debut the guys played with a confidence beyond their years. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich saw something special in Gordon, who's averaged 18.3 points in his four games back. "He's really good," Pop said. "He's a hell of a player. That makes a difference."

New Orleans then went to Dallas and stole Mark Cuban's heart. Gordon made some huge plays down the stretch, including the bucket that sent it to overtime. That victory sparked Cuban to tweet the following: "Im sorry NBA fans. Ive tried for 13 yrs to fix the officiating in this league and I have failed miserably. Any Suggestions ? I need help." Yeah Mark? try doing what the Hornets did...clearing salary cap space and acquiring draft picks. That's how you re-build a team.

Think the Hornets were done? wrong. They continued their improvement this week, going to Boston and handing the Celtics their clovers (90-78) on Wednesday night. Doc Rivers, who balled back in the 80's, couldn't even get his team to score that many vs Monty Williams' crew.

I know.....the Hornets are still at the bottom of the Western Conference at 13-26. But it's not about making the 2013 Playoffs. This group is laying the foundation for the future. Anthony Davis is growing daily by virtue of not having to play center (thank you Robin Lopez). The well-paid Ryan Anderson has accepted his 6th Man role and is ballin' despite his comfortable paycheck. Even Austin Rivers is coming around with his decision-making.

Now this group just needs to find some consistency.