New Orleans Hornets Tickets

New Orleans Hornets 2011-12 Season Preview The New Orleans Hornets are looking to bounce back from a disappointing season, but it seems highly unlikely given the offseason attrition.

All of the offseason attention focused on star point guard Chris Paul and where he might be headed next, along with the NBA's attempt to get the best deal possible for the Hornets. That caused a lot of distraction and controversy, with other owners and the media calling out the league for its involvement in nixing potential trades.

The Hornets finally decided to deal Paul, sending him to the Los Angeles Clippers for point guard Eric Gordon, a first round draft pick and a host of young players. Losing Paul will hurt, but Gordon is at least a nice piece to build around in the future.

What's left of the roster at this point is a total joke, and it's no wonder Paul saw the writing on the wall and wanted to get out of town. The team is never going to contend so long as the NBA is running the show and the league can't find a permanent owner who is serious about winning to take over control.

David West also departed New Orleans, meaning they lost their two best players in one offseason. Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza are solid players, but they can't be your stars if you want to be a good basketball team.

The Hornets have the deck stacked against them in many ways. They are still playing in a terrible arena, the area is still trying to recover from Katrina, and it's still unclear how much the community really cares about the NBA or wants to support the team. Until these things change, can the Hornets be anything but an afterthought?