Smartly, the Hornets braintrust offered up a player for the media horde at the press conference announcing the firing of Byron Scott and the ascension of Jeff Bower. It was David West, the All-Star power forward, who said generally negative things about recent times under Scott and who publicly placed some faith in Bower. Of course, the media (and fans) really only cared what superstar Chris Paul thought ... but Paul was otherwise tied up Thursday.Eventually, John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune found Paul and got his thoughts on the move. And you understand why the Hornets are glad Paul was unavailable, and he was not nearly as optimistic about the change as West.
Paul told Reid that the move caught him off-guard, and that he wishes Bower and team management would have consulted him before firing Scott. Paul claims he doesn't want hire/fire power, but just to be warned of pending change. That seems like a fair request, especially considering that given Paul's status as a top-five player he could be pressing for a lot more power.
All told, Paul seems diplomatic about it all. Even when players react to coaching changes with apoplexy, things tend to calm down quickly. Uncertainty breeds fear; by the time N.O. finishes its rough weekend back-to-back (home vs. Portland Friday, at Atlanta Saturday), the players will have another coach to be mad at, and all will be well.
