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Tuesday, October 31, 2000
Hornets: Best in the East? Could be
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Team page/schedule | Stats: Preseason / 1999 | Roster
Last year: 49-33, second in Central, fourth in conference
Coach/VP: Paul Silas/Bob Bass
Arena, first game: Charlotte Coliseum; Nov. 4, 1988
All-time franchise record/NBA titles: 452-500/0
Notable: Jones was second Hornet to start All-Star game
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THE TOP EIGHT
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Pos
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Player
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Key Stat
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Skinny
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PG
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Baron Davis
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3.8 apg
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They invested top pick in him, he starts
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SG
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David Wesley
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5.6 apg
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More two than one, great preseason
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SF
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Jamal Mashburn
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17.5 ppg
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More three than two, should score a lot
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PF
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P.J. Brown
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7.5 rpg
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Everyone seems to love this team guy
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C
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Elden Campbell
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12.7 ppg
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Is leading returning East center for points
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6th
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Derrick Coleman
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16.7 ppg
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Resurrected career with great numbers
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7th
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Eddie Robinson
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7.0 ppg
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Natural scorer really still developing
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8th
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Otis Thorpe
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.514 FG
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He's a pro, but way past his prime
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The Hornets have to make sure everybody gets healthy. They need Derrick Coleman. Then, they must
get production from their bench. The starting team is solid -- Jamal
Mashburn, P.J. Brown, Elden Campbell or Coleman form a good front line, and
David Wesley and Baron Davis are solid in the backcourt. The Hornets must improve their defense and make up for the loss of Eddie Jones, who was a 20-point scorer.
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By Jeffrey Denberg
Special to ESPN.com
The Good
They may not like their owner, and who cares if they like the guy who's in charge of moving them in and out of town. The point is these Hornets love playing for Paul Silas. They are tough and veteran and the mutual respect that flows between Silas and his players makes Charlotte a very formidable team. Say this for Bob Bass, the guy who does the bidding of George Shinn: he manages to bring in some pretty decent replacements. Jamal Mashburn will fit nicely at small forward and P.J. Brown is the one guy who doesn't sulk when he can't get his shots. The Hornets can get up and down the floor and they have the height and athleticism to protect the basket. Derrick Coleman has been absent while he adjusts to new medication for an irregular heartbeat and opportunity has created an interesting wrinkle with second-year point Baron Davis teaming alongside David Wesley with a front line of Elden Campbell, Brown and Mashburn, who showed last season he can score in clusters as he did while averaging 23.4 ppg in Dallas in 1995-96 and a nice 17.5 ppg in Miami's slowdown game last season. So far, so good.
The Bad
Silas has coached 117 regular-season games over 1½ seasons with 25 players. And that's not counting a 17-player training camp roster that included 10 newcomers. This, of course, feeds the franchise's image as one that will not pay what it takes to keep its talent. And after co-owner Ray Wooldridge promised to pay Eddie Jones -- only to lose him -- the Hornets were damaged again. The disgrace of controlling owner Shinn, the alarming drop in attendance, the constant squabbling with city government over a new arena, the uncertainty of Coleman -- and his fitness when he is able to participate -- all hang over what was once a model franchise. Then there is the question of what to do with Coleman when he does come back. A player whose conditioning is often deficient, he made an effort last season and the result was a 16.7-point, 8.5-rebound season that did great with even optimistic projections.
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THE BIG QUESTION |
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In the background there is an arena fight that could result with the Hornets leaving town. There is Coleman's availability. There is seemingly always another embarrassing George Shinn story waiting to happen. Will these very real distractions knock out the Hornets again? You know, it's always something.
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Whose team is this?
This team is so fractured by trades, brushes with the law and tragedy that it is impossible for a leader to emerge on the court. Instead, it is Silas who emerges as a pillar of strength, the focus of everything good about the way the Hornets play. From his power forward's body to his sunny disposition to his quietly demanding style, Silas has proven that he should have been handed the reins of NBA team long, long ago instead of being punished for Don Sterling's Clipper follies from 1980-83. Since the players respect Silas they tend to produce on the court, no matter how things go awry off it.
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| Mashburn |
How they'll play
If Silas plays his big lineup -- Coleman, Campbell and Brown -- the Hornets can pound you. If he uses the lineup that has worked so well in camp they can run with you. So long as their key players are healthy this is a team that likes to run. They can get after you at the other end as well. Expect Charlotte to score and score a lot. Davis is going to run the offense and Wesley's going to get him out of trouble. When Davis is good he has speed to burn. That's good for the makeup of this team and it's good for the fans. After deserting the Hornets in ever-increasing numbers they may now decide it's time to come back to the arena.
Projection
This is a team that can make it to the Eastern finals, the place many thought they could be last season before the auto accident that claimed Bobby Phills. The psyche of this team has been repaired and, barring any more off-court contretemps the focus will be basketball. They're good at that and a 55-victory season is not out of the question. East finals? Why not.
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