The New Orleans Hornets’ star point guard Chris Paul has missed 12 straight games with a knee injury, but the Hornets have still  been getting great production from the point guard position.  That is because CP3’s rookie back-up, Darren Collison, is playing some great basketball for the Hornets.  Since Paul’s injury, Collison has stepped in as the starting point guard for the Hornets and in the 12 games without Paul he is averaging 20.5 points, 9.6 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and is shooting 48% from the field and 35% from three.  Those numbers are very close to the season averages Paul had before his injury:  20.4 points, 11.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds, 2.3 steals, 50% FG, and 42% from three.  The Hornets are 5-7 in Paul’s absence, but they should be happy with that record as most expected the Hornets to completely fall apart without their superstar.  Collison is proving he can be a great point guard in this league and Chris Paul doesn’t have to worry about rushing back from injury.  That being said, Paul still makes the Hornets a much better team and Collison may not be able to continue playing at such a high level, especially since he is just a rookie.

Power forward Darius Songaila has been solid backing up David West this season. He has played in 53 games (1 start) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 18.6 minutes, 7.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game. Songaila is shooting 50.3% from the floor this season as he is only taking shots when he is open. He has been a huge asset off the bench for the Hornets so far this season.

The Hornets have signed 31-year old point guard Jason Hart to a 10-day contract. Hart played in 1 game earlier this season for the T-Wolves in which he played 5 minutes, had 1 assist and 1 steal. Hart has now played in 337 games (56 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 15.6 minutes, 4.8 points, 1.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. This was a smart move by the Hornets to bring in a veteran hand to work behind Darren Collison until Chris Paul is ready to return to action.

With all of the injuries and trades recently the Hornets are short on depth. I wonder if that is enough for the Hornets to take him out of the Dog House? Wright has played in 36 games (7 starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 11.5 minutes, 3.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Wright is shooting 46% from the floor and he is a former first round pick so maybe he will get back into the rotation for the Hornets soon. It would probably be a smart move for them with the current make-up of the roster.

With Chris Paul out for the next 4-8 weeks it’s up to rookie Darren Collison to run the offense. He has played in 41 games (9 starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 17.4 minutes, 6.8 points, 1.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. The problem with Collison is that he is not as good as Paul at anything making this a tough job for him. He is shooting 41.4% from the floor and 29.4% from three point range so the Hornets will probably have him passing a lot more than he is used to. Collison’s play will determine if the Hornets still have a shot for the playoffs when Chris Paul returns.