The Hornets will have two "experienced" rookies joining them this season--guards Darren Collison of UCLA and Marcus Thornton of LSU.
"They played four years of college basketball for winning programs and that gives them an edge because they had to develop and they had to grow," said Hornets general manager Jeff Bower.
The Hornets drafted Collison with the 21st selection in the first round of the NBA draft and then acquired Thornton after he was selected in the second round by Miami in a trade for second-round picks in 2010 and 2012.
They were drafted by a team that needs immediate help for a reserve unit that failed to reliably protect leads the starting five, led by Chris Paul and David West, routinely built.
Collison, a 6-foot point guard, was drafted to become Paul's backup. "When Chris comes out of the game, it's not just about me running end-to-end," said Collison. "It's about me stabilizing the offense, making sure everybody's getting the ball and making sure I'm doing the right things so they won't have much of a drop-off.."
After the Hornets drafted Collison, Thornton's dreams of playing in New Orleans vanished. Thornton is a 6-foot-4 scoring guard.
"I knew my chances of playing down the road were out the window," said the SEC Player of the Year from Baton Rouge. "I'll have to settle for out of town. When they got me, I wondered how it happened. I'm just happy they did what they did."
"Jeff was sitting there and he said, 'You know what, we might want to stick around this second round and see what happens." said Hornets coach Byron Scott. "So he started making calls, and when Marcus kept falling, he made a call to Miami, and they called us back and said, "Yeah, we'll do that.' It ended up working out perfectly for us. He was a steal."
Thornton said his family and friends know about the trade before him. "They saw it on TV and all of them ran up and jumped on me and said, "you're going to the Hornets.' I said, 'Y'all quit playing,' Then I saw it on ESPN. I was at a loss for words."
Collison said staying at UCLA for four years helped him. "Every game, every team wants to beat UCLA because we're UCLA," said Collison, who graduated with a history degree. "There's not one night I took off because if I did I would get embarrassed," said Collison.
Both of Collison's parents competed internationally for Guyana in track and field. His mother, June, ran in the 400 meters at the 1984 Olympics, and his father, Dennis, in the 200 meters at the Pam American Games.
Said Collison, "They knew how to eat the right things, get the proper rest, the mental approach. They were vital in my life. There were times when my dad had to wake me up very early in the morning to do some drills. I know what it takes to be a pro athlete."
Collison said he was looking forward to playing with Paul. "He is probably considered to be the best point guard in the NBA," said Collison. "I'm going to try to do whatever it takes to get some secrets. He may not give them up, but just competing against him every day is going to help me become a better player."
Thornton said he was excited about playing 30 minutes from home. Bower heard that and joked, "Maybe we should have done a more thorough background check on Marcus' driving record."
Baton Rouge is 90 miles form New Orleans.
SOME HITHER, OTHERS YON: LSU receiver Tim Molton suffered a knee injury in a non-contact workout and will miss the 2009 season.He hooked up with starting Tigers quarterback Jordan Jefferson at Destrehan High that went 15-0 and won the state championship. "It's a tough blow for a kid who was in a position to become a big impact player for LSU," said Destrehan coach Stephen Robicheaux." But senior Brandon LaFell is back after earning All-SEC honors last season. Terrance Toliver also returns. LaFell figures to be the first senior selected in next year's NFL draft. He enters his third year as starter with 63 catches and 8 touchdowns last season. Former Bastrop star Rueben Randle, the nation's top receiver prospect, could have a chance to emerge even faster than previously expected for LSU.. Tulane senior receiver Jeremy Williams could be the sixth wideout drafted. He's a fifth-year player who has caught 100+ passes for 12 touchdowns the past two years. He's a good athlete and looks a lot like Roydell Williams, who plays for the Redskins after having spent three seasons with the Titans...
From Jay Marotti in FanHouse.com: "Not much makes me cringe these days, but describing Ricky Rubio as the next Pistol Pete Maravich certainly is hard on the frown lines. So the Mane from Spain has flowing locks and a flair for the flashy, sexy pass. Does that make him remotely equipped to wage battle in a league loaded with elite point guards, from Chris Paul to Deron Williams to Jason Kidd to Derrick Rose to Rajon Rondo? Pistol Pete was a one-and-only, never to be replicated in any year, a prolific scorer and exquisite passer whose showmanship would have thrived in a time when entertainment and SportsCenter hits seem to trump winning championships. Rubio? He's 18. I have no idea how much he'll improve his shaky jumper and adapt to the raw physicality of NBA ball. He very easy could be a Eurobust who has brainwashed us with YouTube reels that conveniently ignore his turnovers and no-look flips with no-chance recipients."...
Trivia time: Who said, "Playing in the NFL is 10% mental and 90% Hollywood"?....Lakers coach Phil Jackson will pobably retire after this season and Kobe Bryant would select his successor, presumable Mike Kryzewski, his coach in the Olympics, or former teammate Byron Scott...Conan O'Brien, on the Clippers' drafting forward "The LA Clippers had the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft and they selected last year's college player of the year, Blake Griffin. Griffin said he's dreamed about playing pro basketball his entire life, but he's also fine playing with the Clippers."...Trivia answer: Terrell Owens...Greg Cote of the Miami Herald, on signs that auto industry cutbacks are putting a crimp in NASCAR: "Mark Martin won last week's race in Michigan driving a Hertz rental car."
Eli Manning is the main benefactor for the $2.8 million Children's Clinics, a new wing 15,600 square-foot wing of the Blair E. Batson Hospital in Jackson. Dad Archie was there for the dedication and said, "Touchdowns are great, but this is big stuff." "The state of Mississippi has been good to me and I wanted to give back," said Eli. Eli and chef Emeril Lagasse raised additional money for the clinic by cooking for a dinner that cost $250 a person. Eli follows in the his older brother brother's footsteps with the donation to the children's clinic. Peyton made a similar donation to a children's clinic in Indianapolis in 2007...
The Hornets will have two "experienced" rookies joining them this season--guards Darren Collison of UCLA and Marcus Thornton of LSU.
