25-year old power forward Jason Smith needs to step up.  The Hornets have recently moved Smith into the starting lineup and they are 1-9 in those games so far.  Smith is averaging 23.4 minutes, 8.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game in his 10 starts so far this year.  He is shooting 53.2% from the floor in his starts, so maybe the Hornets should get him more shots going forward.  Smith has now played in 19 games (10 starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 20.5 minutes, 8.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 1.1 blocked shots.  The Hornets need more out of Smith if they are going to keep him in the starting lineup much longer.

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.

25-year old point guard Chris Paul has been awful in his last three games but he maintains that he is healthy.  In his last three games, Paul is averaging 38.0 minutes, 5.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 9.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game.  Paul is also only shooting 24.1% (7 of 29) from the floor in his last three games.   The Hornets aren’t too worried about Paul as they think he will be able to break out of his slump soon.  Paul has played in 63 games (all starts) overall so far this year and he is averaging 35.9 minutes, 15.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 9.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game.  If Paul doesn’t snap out of it soon, Jarrett Jack could get a bump in P.T.

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.

With Marcus Thornton in the Dog House and Marco Belinelli being a so-so player, the Hornets should get 27-year old Jarrett Jack on the floor more as he can handle both guard spots.  Jack has played in 10 games so far this January and he is averaging 19.4 minutes, 9.0 points 1.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.   Jack has now played in 31 games (0 starts) for the Hornets this season and he is averaging 17.1 minutes, 6.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.  His shooting has been off for the Hornets (37.5% from the floor and 30.3% from three point range) and a big reason for that could be P.T. as he is used to playing 30+ minutes a night.

25-year old small forward Trevor Ariza is a good defensive player and he’s a great finisher on the fast break but he’s awful as a shooter.  In his last five games, Ariza is averaging 37.4 minutes, 9.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game.  But, he is only shooting 28.1% from the floor and he is 2 for 20 (10%) from three point range.  Ariza has now played in 31 games (all starts) for the Hornets so far this year and he is averaging 33.9 minutes, 10.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game.  He is only shooting 36.8% from the floor, 25.4% from three point range and 70.8% from the free throw line so far this year.  Ariza is a much better player when he lets the other guys on the team shoot the ball.

23-year old SG/SF Marcus Thornton is in head coach Monty Williams’ Dog House because he doesn’t play defense.  To many that’s kind of funny because he’s behind Marco Belinelli on the depth chart and he’s a matador on D.  Thornton has only played in 12 games (0 starts) so far this year and he is averaging 13.8 minutes, 5.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Any Hornets fan knows that Thornton is a better player than Belinelli.  Thornton played in 73 games (17 starts) as  a rookie for the Hornets last season and he averaged 25.6 minutes, 14.5 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  The Hornets would be smart to get Thornton back involved in the game as he’s too good to keep nailed to the bench.