Just One of Those Nights

[Joe Gerrity]

Joe Gerrity, Hornets247.com

In the aftermath of the Hornets worst offensive output ever, it’s important to keep things in perspective.

First off, let’s get our anger out of the way. That was an atrocious performance against Philadelphia in front of a national TV audience. What was supposed to be something of a coming out party for the new look Hornets more resembled last week’s Walking Dead– an epic struggle for those we care about.

Yes, the Hornets set their all-time franchise low for points in a game (62), eclipsing even the game which must not be named. The Hornets shot a pitiful 23/69 from the floor, making only a third of their shots. Jason Smith was the only New Orleanian to shoot over 50%. In fact, the Hornets had nearly as many turnovers (20) as made shots (23).

This one stings, especially because it was on national TV.

But as Monty Williams said in the post game, “Maybe tomorrow is a better day. It’s gotta be better than today.”

He tried to look on the positive side, adding that “If you told me that we were going to hold them to 77 points tonight, I’m thinking we’re going to win. As bad as we felt we held another team under 80.”

That’s the truth. When you hold the opposition to under 80, it’s rare that you don’t win the game.

Monty went on, “The one thing I like about our group is even at the end, our guys are still together, still rallying each other… we still have that camaraderie, we still have that glue that holds us together even in a tough time.”

One other thing the Hornets have going for them, and this is becoming more and more clear with each passing day, is a head coach who knows what he’s doing. He isn’t out there trashing his team after a loss, even though they likely deserved it. He isn’t out there being idealistic about what he expects and demands from his team. He’s pragmatic and reasonable, fully acknowledging that as a young team “the averages say you’re going to have a few nights like this. It’s my job to make sure that we bounce back tomorrow”.

Tomorrow is one day closer to getting Austin Rivers back, who Monty said, “wanted to play”.*It’s a day closer to the return of Anthony Davis, a future superstar who has looked amazing in limited action. It’s even a day closer to a possible Eric Gordon return. It’s a day closer to the team on the court figuring each other out.

It’s also another day for both Monty and the team to mature, so that next time they’re in a better position to made adjustments and improvements that will ensure offensive outputs like this one are few and far between.

“It’s hard to be upset with our guys,” Monty said toward the end of the post game presser, “sometimes you’re disappointed but [with] this group I can always find something positive.

Surely you can, too.


More...

[Kibner]

That was a very :3 article.

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2

[jinishima]

Your post is like an elixir dude. Certainly lightens the mood. somewhat(lol). It sucks, but were goin to have nights like this. I still like the overall makeup of this team and theyll play harder. Not to mention were missing our two best players(davis, gordon) and a player who brings some stability at the point(rivers). Great piece Joe

[BallSoHard]

I didn't get to watch it. Probably for the best.

[RaisingTheBar]

I didn't get to watch it. Probably for the best.

I wish i didn't watch it.

[Miss_318]

Yeah I changed the channel like 3 min into the 3rd qtr. Brutal watching Roberts run the point....Rivers might not be an all world PG at this time but he has a much better feel for the NBA game than Roberts to me. Roberts just dribbles at the top of the key never sets up any offense...at least when Rivers dribbles he's trying to break his defender down to either drive and kick or drive to the hoop to make something happen...

It also seemed to hurt the depth with Rivers on the bench since he starts a the 2 with Grievis @ PG and takes over PG when Grievis takes a breather. That lets Miller take over at the 3 when Aminu is taking a breather...thus keeping Warrick and Thomas on the bench where they belong...

[IamQuailman]

In the aftermath of the Hornets worst offensive output ever, it’s important to keep things in perspective.
First off, let’s get our anger out of the way. That was an atrocious performance against Philadelphia in front of a national TV audience. What was supposed to be something of a coming out party for the new look Hornets more resembled last week’s Walking Dead– an epic struggle for those we care about.

SPOILER ALERT!!!


:P On a serious note, thanks again for the great writing, Joe. I really do enjoy your stuff!

[TealDevil]

Great piece Joe. Glad I missed the game - but good to see some perspective. Totally agree on Monty as a leader. Maybe someday you'll be able to keep the same calm and perspective on the golf course!

[AD23forMVP]

Our guard play is a big problem. Holiday and Turner made us look real bad.

[Unknown Poster]

I don't know why people are freaking out so much. It's the NBA: one game out of eighty-two. Not like the NFL where a lot rides on one individual day/night's performance. Poop happens.

[The JNR]

I don't know why people are freaking out so much. It's the NBA: one game out of eighty-two. Not like the NFL where a lot rides on one individual day/night's performance. Poop happens.

Not to mention that everyone's expectations were supposed to be low. There weren't a lot of people who predicted better than 5-5 for the first 10 games. It's perfectly understandable that the youngest team in the league is going to struggle a bit. The Bulls game got people's hopes up, I guess?

[FlyGirl]

Poop happens. Yes, it does. But, as much as we know our young Hornets have a lot of learning to do, I think they are better than whatever that was they displayed last night. And while they usually play hard til the end, Monty can't just assume they'll be able to get out of the hole from the opposing team going on 10-0 runs.

[Unknown Poster]

Yeah I think the 'fast' start got people's hopes up a bit. I never expected them to compete this season. Maybe for an 8th seed but didn't count on it.

[BallSoHard]

Well, it was a game without our best 2 players (although only one plays ever) and another high minute guy (Rivers). So I didn't really expect to win.

[iNolaNightmare]

I was there. The worst game I've ever been too. And not because of the poor play, but because the energy was that of a funeral from the Intro video til the final tick.

[all2neat]

We were missing three guys that started for us. It's bound to not turn out well.

[FlyGirl]

It was a game without our 2 best players but yet they were able to beat Chicago, Utah and compete with SA and I don't think Philly is better than any of those teams. At least not in my opinion.

"I thought they did a good job with their pick-and-roll coverages. But we also didn't play with that force and urgency that I thought we had against San Antonio, Utah and Chicago. I thought something changed between Saturday and Monday's practice..."

http://www.nola.com/hornets/index.ss..._river_default

The first 3 games we at least saw SOME urgency. Can't really say that about last night but then again I turned it off in the 3rd so maybe they started playing better but Philly played even better than that. I don't know.

Ya'll think we win that game with Rivers playing?

[Eman5805]

I think Rivers adds a dimension. It's just that kind of sport. One player can make a world of difference. Even if he brings one skill to the table like ability to attack the basket or competently run a pick and roll.

[FlyGirl]

I think Rivers adds a dimension. It's just that kind of sport. One player can make a world of difference. Even if he brings one skill to the table like ability to attack the basket or competently run a pick and roll.

Do you think we win the game with Rivers?

[Joe Gerrity]

[QUOTE=IamQuailman;999120]SPOILER ALERT!!!

Aren't most weeks an epic struggle for the good guys on Walking Dead?

Maybe someday you'll be able to keep the same calm and perspective on the golf course!

Seems unlikely, but I did take 7th in the Mackel (Nola Amateur golf championship named after Fletcher's father) not too long ago!

-

I'm in the tiny minority not yet ready to pull the plug on Roberts. He's looked hesitant compared to how he played in Summer League and the preseason. MAybe that's jus regular season NBA being a mostly different game, maybe he's just admittedly struggling. I'll talk to him on Friday and see what the deal is. Keep in mind he's only played 30 NBA minutes in his career.

Is he going to be a starter? No, but I do believe he's capable of giving us a solid 10-15 minutes when injuries demand it.

-

Thanks for the kind words.

[Pelicans78]

Do you think we win the game with Rivers?

No. Unless he was defending Holiday. But I'm not sure what more he would have brought offensively since he's been struggling really bad all season at the end. Maybe if he was playing the point exclusively, he could have been a big upgrade over Greivis last night who was atrocious.

[jinishima]

No. Unless he was defending Holiday. But I'm not sure what more he would have brought offensively since he's been struggling really bad all season at the end. Maybe if he was playing the point exclusively, he could have been a big upgrade over Greivis last night who was atrocious.

Yeah, even tho i dont think we would have won with Rivers, I think with his ball handling skills and quicker footwork than Vasquez would have made a bigger difference in how competitive the game would have turned out.

[IamQuailman]

Aren't most weeks an epic struggle for the good guys on Walking Dead?

Haha, I know. I was just razzin' ya

[Eman5805]

Do you think we win the game with Rivers?

Game would've been closer. He's not scoring well. But he's passing well, getting steals, and gets to the line.

But my gut says we still drop the game.

[iNolaNightmare]

Rivers is the Reggie Bush of this team, just the explosiveness he provides is an outstanding decoy. God the future is bright.