The New Orleans Hornets will likely be without 23-year old shooting guard Eric Gordon for at least six more weeks as doctors have recommended rest for his injured knee.  Gordon has played in 2 games (both starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 39.0 minutes, 21.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocked shots per game.  The Hornets need 25-year old Marco Belinelli to step up with Gordon out of action but he has yet to do that.  Belinelli has played in 18 games (17 starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 31.5 minutes, 9.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.  His shooting has also been off as he is only shooting 38.3% from the floor and 30.7% from the three point line, and that is not going to get the job done.

The Hornets will be without 23-year old starting shooting guard Eric Gordon for the next 2-3 weeks due to a knee injury.  Gordon has played in 2 games (both starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 39.0 minutes, 21.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocked shots per game.  The Hornets will move 25-year old Marco Belinelli into the starting lineup at shooting guard  until Eric Gordon is ready to return to action.  Belinelli has played in 6 games (5 starts) so far this year for the Hornets and he is averaging 32.3 minutes, 8.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Belinelli will likely do a decent job, but the Hornets will suffer a dropoff at shooting guard until Gordon is ready to return to action.

Starting power forward David West tore his ACL last Thursday Night and he will miss the rest of the year.  West played in 70 games (all starts) for the Hornets this year and he averaged 35.0 minutes, 18.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Carl Landry will replace West in the starting lineup and they need him to step up.  Landry has played in 14 games (1 start) for the Hornets since coming to them in a deal with the Kings and he is averaging 22.5 minutes, 10.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  Landry will likely be able to replace West’s points but not his defense and rebounding.  This is a big blow to the Hornets.

The New Orleans Hornets will be without starting small forward Trevor Ariza for the next couple of weeks due to a severe ankle sprain.  Ariza has played in 50 games (all starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 34.7 minutes, 11.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game.  The will miss Ariza’s defense but they won’t miss his awful shooting as he has hit only 39.4% of his shots from the floor and 29.4% from three point range so far this year.  22-year old rookie Quincy Pondexter will likely get the first shot to start in Ariza’s spot while he is out of action.  Pondexter has played in 42 games (1 start) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 10.4 minutes, 2.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.  Pondexter is hitting 42.9% of his shots from three point range so far this year so he might be an asset with more P.T.

The Hornets will be without starting center Emeka Okafor for the next 1-3 weeks due to a left oblique strain.  Okafor has played in 49 games (all starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 32.4 minutes, 11.1 points, 10.1 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game.  The Hornets will likely be able to replace Okafor’s points but not his defense and rebounding so they hope he heals up soon.  Jason Smith will likely be the starting center until Okafor is ready to return to action.  Smith has played in 49 games (1 start) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 15.4 minutes, 4.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.  David Andersen & D.J. Mbenga are also in line for a bump in P.T.  Andersen has played in 15 games (0 starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 6.4 minutes, 1.8 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.  He’s a better player than he has shown for the Hornets so far.  Mbenga has played in 31 games (0 starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 8.1 minutes, 1.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.  Losing Okafor is really going to hurt the Hornets.

The Hornets have lost 34-year old power forward Sean Marks for the rest of the year due to shoulder surgery. Marks played in 14 games (0 starts) for the Hornets this season and he averaged 5.4 minutes, 0.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. Losing Marks won’t hurt the Hornets at all the rest of the way as he didn’t do much for them this year.

The Hornets have lost starting small forward Peja Stojakovic for the next 2-4 weeks due to a abdominal strain. Stojakovic has played in 62 games (55 starts) this season for the Hornets and he is averaging 31.4 minutes, 12.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. The Hornets will likely get Julian Wright out of mothballs and put him into the starting lineup. Wright has played in 53 games (8 starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 11.4 minutes, 3.3 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. The Hornets will also likely use rookie Marcus Thornton some at shooting guard the rest of the year to help cushion the loss of Stojakovic.

The Hornets will be without all-world point guard Chris Paul for the next 4-8 weeks as he will have surgery soon to repair torn cartilaga in his left knee. Paul has played in 38 games (all starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 38.7 minutes, 20.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 11.2 assists and 2.3 steals per game. He is also shooting well from everywhere on the floor hitting 50.4% from the floor, 40.2% from three point range and 86.2% from the free throw line. The Hornets are 26-21 on the season and they are tied for the 8th spot in the conference right now with the Thunder. It will be up to rookie Darren Collison to keep the Hornets in the playoff race.

SG/SF James Posey is out indefinately with a Achilles problem. This will hurt the Hornets some as the bench is pretty thin now due to the recent trades of Devin Brown, Bobby Brown and Hilton Armstrong. Posey has played in 45 games (2 starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 22.4 minutes, 5.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. His shooting has been way off this season as he is only hitting 37.7% of his shots from the floor and 34% from three point range. Look for the starters to play more minutes for the Hornets until Posey returns to action because Julian Wright still appears to be in the Dog House.

The Hornets will be without back-up center Sean Marks indefinitely with a strained muscle in his lower leg. Marks has played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 7.6 minutes, 1.0 point, 4.0 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. The Hornets won’t miss Marks too much as he is the #3 center on the team.