Hornets vs. Kings Preview
SACRAMENTO, CA – The New Orleans Hornets made a trade Saturday designed to get under the NBA’s luxury tax while finding a solid backup point guard to lighten the load on Chris Paul.
The three-time All-Star hasn’t needed much of a breather lately against the Sacramento Kings.
The Hornets hope their new look doesn’t disrupt the best start in franchise history, which they’ll try to extend on the road Sunday by beating the Kings for a sixth straight time with Paul running the point.
Oddsmakers from online sports book BroburySports.com have made the Hornets -5.5 point spread favorites for Sunday’s game against the Kings. Current NBA Public Betting Information shows that 94% of more than 162 bets for this game have been placed on the Hornets -5.5.
Having a healthy Paul and first-year coach Monty Williams on the sidelines has seemed to make all the difference for New Orleans (10-1), which fired Byron Scott after a 3-6 start last season – less than 19 months after he was named Coach of the Year.
Scott is now running the show in Cleveland, and he saw a few of his old players make a difference in his first game coaching against the Hornets on Friday night. David West had 34 points, Paul added 15 points, 10 assists and six steals, and New Orleans held the Cavaliers to a season-low 34.9 percent shooting in a 108-101 win.
“That was huge for us,” Paul said. “We got aggressive on the defensive end and that got us into transition, and that’s when we’re at our best. We’ve won every game with defense this year. That’s what we are going to keep hanging our hats on.”
New Orleans is holding opponents to 42.8 percent from the field, best in the league heading into the weekend.
The Hornets improved to 7-0 at home before embarking on a four-game road trip, one they’ll begin with a new look. New Orleans announced a deal Saturday that sent Peja Stojakovic and Jerryd Bayless to Toronto for point guard Jarrett Jack, center David Andersen and guard Marcus Banks.
Stojakovic had fallen out of favor in Williams’ rotation, but a deal for the former All-Star was probably coming sooner or later. He’s making $14.25 million in the final year of a contract that will give the Raptors cap relief this summer, making Stojakovic an asset despite his diminished role.
Jack is owed $4.8 million this season and approximately $11 million over the next two, but the salary difference for 2010-11 between the players going and coming should keep New Orleans under the luxury tax.
It should also give the Hornets a solid third guard behind Paul and Marco Belinelli. Bayless struggled behind Paul after the team gave up a first-round pick for him in October, but Jack – a good friend of Paul’s from their college days in the ACC – has averaged 28.2 minutes in his career.
It’s unclear if Jack will join the team in time for Sunday’s game, but Paul may not need him. He’s averaged 24.4 points, 10.6 assists and 3.0 steals as the Hornets have beaten Sacramento (4-7) the last five times he’s been healthy.
The Kings will be looking to wrap up their four-game homestand with a split after snapping a six-game skid Friday. Tyreke Evans scored 20 points and Sacramento held New Jersey to 35 after halftime in an 86-81 win.
“We put together 44 good minutes of defense tonight,” coach Paul Westphal said. “We had a little lull there in the second quarter, but for the most part I thought we won the game with our defense.”
Sacramento’s next obstacle is solving its penchant for slow starts. The Kings have trailed at halftime in 11 straight games and allow an average of 56.0 first-half points. New Orleans gives up just 43.8 per game before the break.
West has averaged 29.5 points in his last four trips to Sacramento.
Want More From TheSpread.com? Follow us on Twitter and Facebook or Subscribe to Our News Feeds!