Hornets Fire Byron Scott

by Ryne Nelson

You and I knew it would happen. We probably didn’t even have to look at the Hornets’ 3-6 record to know Bryon Scott was on thin ice. It’s an unwritten physical law of the NBA: He who wins Coach of the Year shall be fired within two seasons. It happened to Hubie and D’Antoni and Avery and Mitchell, and now Mr. Scott. Mike Brown better start taking Brandon Jennings’ frugality to heart because, unless the Cavs get to the Finals (and win), his fate will be the same within 365 days.

New Orleans didn’t even make it a contest in each of their six loses, including a 111-117 forgetter against the Knicks. The uninspired play of David West and Peja Stojakovic began to cut through Chris Paul’s previously impermeable air of confidence. And now the team’s disappointing beginning has put Scott on the curb:

The New Orleans Hornets have fired Coach Byron Scott and will make the formal announcement at a 1 p.m. press conference.

General manager Jeff Bower will assume coaching duties, according to a league source. Bower is a one-time Hornets assistant, but has never been a head coach in the NBA.

Bower — no relation to the former Southern Miss football coach — takes the reigns of a squad already sliding away from the Playoff picture. Of course, it doesn’t matter who the Hornets put on the sidelines. New Orleans’ many troubles stem from having too few effective players.