In The Lane: April 3, 2008

LICHT’S FAVE FIVE

Honestly, I could create a Fave Fifty for this Hornets team. It’s not just a talented, winning squad; it’s a likeable, hard-working, community-conscious group. Byron Scott’s assemblage has won so many exciting, down-to-the-wire games I want to call them the Heart Stopping Hornets. But for the sake of time and space, two things I often lose sight of in this column, I have resisted the temptation to include a thick folder full of games and instead come up with my Hornets Fave Five of the most important and exciting victories of this record-breaking season.

November 6, 2007 @ LA Lakers (118-104)
Was it the 10 made three pointers by Peja Stojakovic during his season-high 36 point effort? Was it Chris Paul’s franchise-record 21 assists? Was it the statement the Hornets made during the very first week of the NBA season with the 118-104 thrashing of Kobe’s Klub? This win capped the 4-0 start that began the maturing process of a young team.

December 1, 2007 vs. Dallas Mavericks (112-108, OT)
When you haven’t defeated a franchise since the Clinton administration…when you haven’t beaten a Mark Cuban-owned team…when your losing streak has reached 21-straight against one franchise…and when it is the longest losing streak in all of professional sports with a chance at eclipsing the all-time record…then a dramatic Peja Stojakovic three-pointer that forces overtime and leads to a Hornets victory makes the list. The play…David West’s inbounds pass into the near corner to Peja for one of the great shots of the NBA season…in many ways defines this year’s team. Great communication. Great teamwork. Great execution. Winning 112-108 in overtime was inevitable for a team that has broken the league record with 13-straight extra period victories over the past three seasons.

December 29, 2007 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (86-76)
During the Hornets first sellout of the season, with MVP candidate LeBron James in town, and with the defending Eastern Conference champs strutting their stuff the Hornets played eastern conference tough defense, held the league’s leading scorer to just 21 points, and won 86-76. It was the fourth time the Bees had held the opposition under 80 points and improved their record to 10 games above .500 (20-10). David West posted a double double (27 points/15 rebounds) in an early season sign of his all-star caliber play. It was a warning flare very few teams heeded (or were able to do anything about).

February 6, 2008 @ Phoenix Suns (132-130, 2OT)
There is no Hornets regular season game in my 12 years with the franchise that gave me more joy than this double overtime thriller in the desert. I lost count of all of the big shots. Chris Paul forced a national buzz about his MVP chances as a result of his total domination of Steve Nash, posting a 42 point/9 assist game on the Suns’ two-time MVP point guard. Yes, Peja hit the game-winner (I’m sensing a trend here), was mobbed by his teammates on the floor, and helped trigger a five-game winning streak around the all star break. What kind of impact did that spectacular, fun-filled, dramatic NBA game have on the New Orleans market? It was replayed three days later prior to the Hornets home game against Memphis on CST…and was a part of a special three-game package of games carried on a Northshore cable company for the first time all season.

January 26, 2008 @ San Antonio Spurs (102-78)
I’m not sure what got my fire going more. The Spurs largest margin of defeat at home during the Tim Duncan era (24 points)…David West’s unstoppable performance (32 points) that many believe triggered talk among coaches to include him in the all star conversation…or just the fact that the Hornets were now 19 games above .500 and totally dismantled the defending champs on their own floor. The confidence gained from this road win is hard to calculate, but my feeling is the Hornets knew they belonged after this win.