Heading into Tuesday evening’s showdown with the New Orleans Hornets, we got in touch with Hornets.com’s Jim Eichenhofer, who follows every dribble, jumper and rebound for Chris Paul and Co. Eichenhofer took some time to fill us in on the Hornets’ recent hot streak, CP3’s hyper-competitiveness and more:

MT: As the Hornets have won 8-of-10 and four in a row, the Lakers recently lost back-to-back games for the first time this season – albeit at the buzzer – and lost their backup point guard. Is New Orleans licking their chops for revenge from the 93-86 early-season win in N.O.?
Eichenhofer: I’m sure the Hornets are motivated by several factors entering this game, with one of them being the loss you mentioned. New Orleans has won six straight at home and is 7-1 here since that night. The fact that the Lakers are now within range in the West standings is another reason why this feels like an important game.

But I don’t think anyone should be “licking their chops” to play the Lakers, despite their recent losses. A two-game losing streak might be considered a mini-crisis in L.A., but the Lakers are still 21-5, still have the best record in the West and still have Kobe Bryant. I think Hornets fans and players have the utmost respect for Kobe for several reasons: He’s consistently had big games against this team, including a 50-point outing in NOLA two seasons ago; he was obviously the reason Chris Paul did not win the MVP award last season; and he has a knack for draining huge baskets, including that killer three-pointer he made in the Nov. 12 matchup with about a minute remaining.

MT: Why don’t people realize how chippy and feisty Chris Paul is? Does being one of the darlings of the NBA help him get away with some sneakiness?
Eichenhofer: I think the best way to answer this is to quote Chris, who says, “I am two totally different people. I’m one person on the court, and (another person) off the court. On the court, I am very competitive in everything I do. You can’t be buddy-buddy or friends with the (opposing team) on the court… After the buzzer sounds and they say that we won, then I will smile. But for those 48 minutes… no.”

Sometimes people think that because Chris has such a sterling reputation off the court, that means he should act that way on the floor as well. That doesn’t make sense. When he’s playing the game, he is probably as competitive as anyone in the NBA.

Is he chippy and feisty? Of course. But you WANT your best player to set the example of being deathly serious about winning every night during the long 82-game schedule, don’t you? As Byron Scott says about Chris, “He’s got a little nastiness in him, kind of like what Isiah Thomas had when he played.”

Is this a bad thing? No way. This is just old-school basketball. Personally, I love it. Being chippy is not a bad thing. Playing soft is a bad thing.

MT: Fairly stated. Moving on, how much better a team are the Hornets with the addition of Antonio Daniels?
Eichenhofer: He hasn’t played a ton of minutes yet, but you can already see a better flow to the second-unit’s offense with Daniels running it. It’s going to make New Orleans better short-term because now they have a legitimate backup point guard with 12 years of NBA experience, including a championship ring in San Antonio. Over the course of the season, it’s going to pay off because Paul should be able to play fewer minutes and not have so many 40-plus-minute nights. Prior to the Daniels trade, the reserves were often failing to preserve leads. Now Byron Scott will be able to take Paul out of games to rest, without worrying that it’s going to potentially cost the Hornets a victory.

MT: Has James Posey earned his money this season? We’ve certainly seen him knock down some big shots…
Eichenhofer: He’s earned it and then some. As you note, he’s already made a handful of clutch three-pointers in the final minutes of close games. He’s given the second unit a proven player who can be relied on to provide the same contributions virtually every night. Scott has said since Day 1 that Posey is a better offensive player than most realize. Everyone knew that he would improve the defense and provide leadership, which he has, but his offense has been valuable as well. He’s in the midst of a very productive stretch, averaging 15.5 points over the last four games, including canning six three-pointers at Toronto.

MT: What’s the worst Western Conference matchup for the Hornets in a seven game series?
Eichenhofer: Based on past results, probably Utah. The Jazz have displayed a knack for putting the clamps on the Hornets’ offense, slowing them to a crawl and preventing them from getting any easy baskets. New Orleans scored only 71 and 66 points in two of its three defeats to Utah last season, the Hornets’ two worst offensive games. The Jazz are a rarity in that they have a point guard (Deron Williams) who plays well against Chris Paul. Utah’s frontcourt depth also makes the Jazz a difficult matchup.

MT: Who’s the best interview on the Hornets?
Eichenhofer: This team is filled with players who are funny and entertaining to interview, which is the main reason why we decided to start four new player blogs this season (Melvin Ely, James Posey, Ryan Bowen, Julian Wright each have one) that appear on Hornets.com or in our game program. If I had to pick the best interviewees, I’d probably go with Ely and Tyson Chandler.

By now most NBA fans are familiar with Tyson’s blog on NBA.com. I’m sure one of the reasons NBA.com brought him back for a second season of blogging is that he always has interesting things to say on many subjects. Tyson is extremely accommodating toward the media and fans, which is part of why he’s become very popular in New Orleans. Melvin may actually be a more talented story-teller than Tyson. I’m not sure where to begin in explaining Melvin’s personality and stories; you’re probably better off just checking out his blog.

MT: What’s something that would surprise us about the team?
Eichenhofer: With a big assist from the players, who are a very likeable group of guys, the Hornets are committed to being a fan-friendly organization. We host a pregame party before every home game, called Buzz Fest, that features live music, free interactive games for kids and $1 beers. We also publish two full-page articles on season-ticket holders in all 41 game programs, which are distributed to all fans for free. The Hornets are also big believers in some of the new social-networking platforms, hosting our own social network on Hornets.com, as well as updating two Facebook pages (if you have a Facebook account, visit the page run by enthusiastic team supporter “Hornet Henry.” The page now has over 1,500 friends).

MT: Finally, your outlook on Tuesday’s game…
Eichenhofer: The Hornets have been tough to beat at home since the middle of last season, meaning it would be a rare and impressive feat if the Lakers could beat them twice in New Orleans over a span of about six weeks. I guess this game comes down to whether the recent trends for both teams continue: the Lakers charged out of the gate but have not played well lately, while the Hornets were labeled a “disappointment” early on, but are now rolling. I don’t like to make predictions, but I’m probably not going out on a limb to expect that New Orleans will get off to a better start this time. The Hornets fell behind 51-30 by intermission Nov. 12 against the Lakers, probably their worst half in the Hive this season.

The Lakers currently lead their season series with New Orleans 1-0 after splitting last season’s series with the Hornets 2-2, going 1-1 both at home and on the road versus New Orleans. The Lakers are 6-4 in their last 10 overall games against New Orleans and are 6-4 in their last 10 road games against the Hornets as well. The Lakers are 7-3 in their last 10 homes games against the Hornets and 9-3 all-time against the Hornets at STAPLES Center. Since the Hornets move to New Orleans from Charlotte prior to the 2002-03 season, the Lakers have gone 6-2 at New Orleans Arena while going 0-2 at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City during their temporary relocation from 2005-07. Under head coach Phil Jackson, the Lakers are 15-7 against the Hornets. In 2006, the Lakers and Hornets took part in the city of New Orleans first professional sports game following Hurricane Katrina when they met at the New Orleans Arena March 8, 2006. The Lakers won that contest 113-107 behind 40 points from Kobe Bryant. In 2006-07, Bryant scored a series record 50 points 3/23/07, becoming just the second player in NBA history to score 50-plus points in four consecutive games. In their first meeting of last season 11/6/07, Peja Stojakovic made a Lakers opponent record 10 three-point field goals while Chris Paul became only the seventh Lakers opponent to record at least 21 assists in a game and the first since John Stockton did so in April of 1990. Additionally, Hornets head coach Byron Scott played 11 seasons for the Lakers including his final NBA campaign in 1996- 97 with then rookie Kobe Bryant. Lakers assistant coach Jim Cleamons spent the 2004- 05 and 2005-06 seasons as an assistant coach on Scott’s staff in New Orleans. Hornets center Tyson Chandler attended Dominguez High School in Compton, CA, leading the Dons to three consecutive CIF Division II State Championships and a USA Today High School National Championship as a junior.

The Hornets are not running as much as they were when we saw them in early November. They are doing a better job of flowing into their secondary or early offense options and creating scoring opportunities as a result. In their recent victory over the San Antonio Spurs, they did a great job in executing their “DOUBLE DRAG”. In this action Chris Paul brings the ball up the court not in an all out sprint as in a fast break situation but with some thrust. Both bigs – Tyson Chandler and David West - set a double screen for him. Chandler rolls hard to the basket (where he is the frequent recipient of a lob pass) and West pops (where he is an excellent perimeter shooter). So as Paul probes the defense looking for a seam to penetrate, his bigs are finding their money spots. Meanwhile, there are two excellent shooters (i.e. Peja Stojakovic, James Posey, or Mo Peterson etc.) spotted up and waiting for the drive and dish.
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40-POINT GAMES
In the Lakers 103-106 loss at Orlando December 21, Kobe Bryant scored 41 points, marking the 93rd time in his career that he has scored 40-plus points in a game. Last season, Bryant’s 46 points February 1 at Toronto moved him past Elgin Baylor (88 40-plus games) for third all-time. In the history of the NBA, only two players have more career 40-point games: Wilt Chamberlain (271) and Michael Jordan (173). The Lakers are 63-30 in games that Bryant has scored 40-plus points. This season, the Lakers are 0-1 when Bryant scores 40-plus while in the last three seasons the Lakers have gone 4-3 (2007-08), 13-5 (2006-07) and 18-9 (2005-06).

BRYANT PASSES CLYDE DREXLER FOR 21st ON NBA’S ALL-TIME SCORING LIST
With 28 points December 16 against New York, Kobe Bryant moved past Clyde Drexler (22,195) for 21st on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Earlier this season, with 29 points November 14 against Detroit, Bryant moved past both Larry Bird and Gary Payton on the all-time list. With 22,220 points, Bryant now trails Elgin Baylor (23,194) and Adrian Dantley (23,177) for 20th and 19th respectively on the scoring list. Bryant, currently in his 13th NBA season, passed Drexler in his 890th career game. Drexler reached 21,195 points in 1,086 career games over 15 seasons. Bryant passed Bird and Payton in his 874th career game. Bird reached 21,791 points in 897 career games over 13 seasons while Payton reached 21,813 points in 1,335 games over 17 NBA seasons. With 28 points December 2 at Indiana, Kobe Bryant became the 22nd player in NBA history to score 22,000 points and in doing so, became the second youngest player ever to 22,000 points (30 years, 101 days), one day older than Wilt Chamberlain (30 years, 100 days) who scored his 22,000th point on 11/26/66. The next youngest to 22,000 points were Oscar Robertson (31 years, 117 days) on 3/21/70 and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (31 years, 350 days) on 4/1/79. The youngest player in league history to accumulate 12,000 – 20,000 career points, Bryant became the 12th fastest to 22,000 points in terms of games, reaching the mark in 881 career games. Through his career, Bryant has been the 29th fastest to 15,000, the 22nd fastest to 16,000, the 20th fastest to 17,000, the 16th fastest to 18,000, the 15th fastest to 19,000, the 15th fastest to 20,000 and the 12th fastest to 21,000 points in terms of games. Last season, Bryant became the 25th player in NBA history to score 21,000 points and in doing so, became the second youngest player ever to 21,000 points (29 years, 194 days) and second ever under the age of 30 behind Wilt Chamberlain (29 years, 184 days). Michael Jordan was the third youngest to 21,000 (30 years, 40 days). Earlier in the season, Bryant, at 29 years, 122 days, became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 20,000 career points and the third player ever to reach 20,000 points under the age of 30, ranking ahead of Wilt Chamberlain (29 years, 134 days) and Michael Jordan (29 years, 326 days).

JACKSON MOVES PAST RED AUERBACH IN GAMES COACHED
The Lakers 116-114 victory over New York December 16 was Phil Jackson’s 1,418th game as a head coach, moving him ahead of Red Auerbach for the 12th most games coached in NBA history. Additionally, with the victory, Jackson moved within THREE wins of 1,000 for his career. Should Jackson reach the 1,000-win mark in the next 13 games, he would become the fastest coach to 1,000 career victories in NBA history, surpassing Pat Riley (1,434 career games). Already the fastest coach to 900 career victories, Jackson reached the mark in 1,264 games, 14 games fewer than Riley who held the old mark at 1,278 games. The only coach in NBA history to win better than 70 percent of his games (997-423, .702), Jackson ranks 6th all-time in terms of victories behind Larry Brown (currently 1,019 after starting the season 1,010). Earlier this season at Dallas (11/11/08), Jackson coached his 1,400th career game. Back on March 25, 2007, Jackson coached career game 1,300 to pass his mentor Red Holzman (1,299) on the all-time list. Additionally, on September 7, 2007, Jackson was inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, earning induction in his first year of consideration for election. Now in his 18th season as an NBA head coach, Jackson is 997-423 for a .702 win percentage, the best in league history.

JACKSON NAMED WESTERN CONFERENCE COACH OF THE MONTH
On December 1, Phil Jackson was named Western Conference Coach of the Month for October/November 2008. The award is Jackson’s fourth Western Conference Coach of the Month honor and second consecutive Western Conference Coach of the Month award as he won for games played in April 2008 as well. Jackson also won back-to-back awards for April 2003 and October/November 2003. This season, Jackson led the Lakers to an NBA-best 14-1 (.933) mark during October and November in which they were the lone one-loss team remaining in the league and boasted an 11-0 record in Western Conference play. Prior to these honors, Jackson was last named Coach of the Month in November of 2001 before the award was divided by conference.