Hornets' David West Gutting it Out

David West has his priorities all screwed up.

He must.

Why else would he continue to play on a sprained left ankle even as the Hornets are all but assured a playoff spot in the Western Conference?

OK, there's that issue of home-court advantage, but c'mon. What's the home-court going to do for you in the postseason if West, your two-time NBA All-Star, is hobbled? Right about now would seem like the perfect time for West to give the ankle time to heal, no?

Instead, he's pushing the ankle harder than he's ever pushed it. But that's David West for you.

"This is probably as bad as it's been, where I've still been able to play," West said during Friday's shoot-around before playing Golden State. "If we were in a different situation then maybe I'd have taken a few games off. But the situation that we're in, we can't afford to have any more guys out. Knowing how important each game is for us down the stretch, I just can't afford to sit out."

The Hornets are tied with Portland for the fifth spot in the West. But they have their sights on the division-leading Spurs and second-place Houston, a game and half-game up, respectively.

"He understands our need to win as many games as we can until the season's over," Hornets coach Byron Scott said. "He's just a Warrior. He wants to win; he wants to play. Unless in his mind it's broken, he's going to go out there and give it everything he's got.

"And just half of David is better than none of David West. He's been able to do some remarkable things in the last couple of games."

Yes he has.

West injured the ankle during the second quarter of Tuesday's game against Sacramento, then played the second half limping noticeably. West not only gutted it out, he finished with a career-high 40 points in the one-point win.

With a game the following night against the Clippers, it's no wonder Scott told the media: "For tomorrow (vs. the L.A. Clippers), it does not look good."

But with Peja Stojakovic, Tyson Chandler and James Posey already on the shelf for the Clippers, West decided to lace 'em up again. He had to settle for 19 points in 43 minutes as the Hornets won 104-98.

"I just know we've got Tyson out, we've got Peja out and we've got Posey out," West said. "Those are three guys we count on for a lot and, especially with this road trip, we talked about trying to go 3-0. To give us the best possible shot to do that, I know I have to be out there on the court."

Here's hoping West is still out there come the playoffs.