New Orleans Hornets Bench in Quest for Chemistry After Preseason Loss To Memphis

The much anticipated first game of the Hornets preseason against the Memphis Grizzlies is now in the books. 

Unfortunately for the young Hornets, whose starters came out stinging on all cylinders by taking the first quarter 31-19, the end result was a 97-90 loss against the Griz. 

New faces and starters Trevor Ariza and Marco Belinelli were clicking well enough to say that the chemistry of all five starters is excellent.

That's the good news, as the starters were fluid in their execution in their strong efforts in providing the 12-point first quarter lead.  They displayed effective defense as center Emeka Okafor and power forward David West helped to limit the Grizzlies penetration to the rim, forcing them to miss a high percentage of shots.   Chris Paul was also his effective self for the limited time he was on the floor.

Ariza was the top scorer with 17 points, a good indication that this first-year Hornet is already comfortable in his new home.  Belinelli was also effective enough, going 3-for-4 from three-point range to ensure that he will continue to start over Marcus Thornton at the shooting guard spot.   

It would not be farfetched to presume that the Hornets would have run away with an easy victory over the Grizzlies had the starters remained on the floor for longer periods of time.  It is important however to get the bench comfortable in their supporting roles, and that can only happen by playing them more now when the games don’t count.

The bad news is that the bench allowed the Grizzlies to come back in the second.  Without getting into the stats,  it should suffice to say that the bench was extremely inadequate in their execution.  Their poor play was on both offense and defense that as a result was enough to cost the Hornets the game.  According to coach Monty Williams, “Our bench let us down not so much in intensity but in execution.’’  

While it was just a preseason game, it was far from a meaningless venture for the Hornets, who are in the very important process of building their team’s chemistry. 

Considering the tremendous roster overhaul the Hornets have undertaken during the offseason, the preseason games will be a great asset to this franchise.  They must make the most of each and every one of these games in their quest for overall team chemistry.

The Hornets take on the Orlando Magic tonight at the Amway Center.  It will be interesting to see how the bench will respond to their lack of execution against the Grizzlies last night.  It will also be interesting to see if the starters can remain dominant against Dwight Howard’s defense.

New Orleans Hornets' fans have reason to be optimistic.