Stojakovic hopes to regain 2007-08 form
Thursday, June 11, 2009
By: Jim Eichenhofer, Hornets.com
It seems obvious when you think about it, but one of the biggest factors behind the Hornets decrease from 56 wins in 2007-08 to 49 victories went almost completely unreported.
During its run to the Southwest Division title two seasons ago, New Orleans shot 38.9 percent from three-point range, ranking the Hornets third out of 30 teams in the entire NBA (behind only Phoenix and Toronto).
During the 2008-09 season, however, New Orleans accuracy from beyond the arc dropped to 36.4 percent. That noticeable change pushed the Hornets all the way down to 17th in the league in that category. Given the high volume of treys that he attempts, individually, Peja Stojakovics stats greatly affected this department. After his initial season with the Hornets in 2006-07 was ruined by a back injury, hes now had one of the best - followed by one of the poorest - shooting seasons of his career, respectively.
Im hoping (he can return to his play of 2007-08), Hornets coach Byron Scott said recently when asked about the importance of Stojakovic to the team next season. I have to cut down his minutes. He played a lot of minutes this season. Same thing with (James) Posey. Chris (Paul) played way too many minutes, same as David (West).