Hornets.com postgame: Hornets 100, Heat 80
Thursday, October 23, 2008
By: Jim Eichenhofer, Hornets.com
The Hornets became the first NBA team since 2002 to go undefeated during preseason, finishing 7-0 after a convincing win in Mobile, Ala., over Miami.
New Orleans starters played a bit less than in Tuesday's home game vs. Indiana, logging between 23 and 30 minutes. Despite the relatively limited PT, David West still managed to score 22 points, while Chris Paul piled up 13 assists.
The Hornets will practice at the Alario Center prior to departing for Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday. The team's regular season opener is Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. against the Warriors.
Mike James interviewed by Mike James
One of the most fun aspects of dealing with Hornets players on a regular basis is that so many of them enjoy joking around and dont seem to take themselves overly seriously. Reporters from other cities have even commented that the players always seem to be having a blast with each other at practices and during games.
Of course, the players are serious and focused on the upcoming season as their undefeated preseason record would indicate but they definitely find time to laugh, play pranks on each other, and just have a good time in general.
Among the team's many interesting personalities, Mike James stands out as one of the funniest Hornets in the locker room. So it was not that much of a surprise that when I approached him yesterday to do an interview, he came up with his own creative idea. Instead of the usual reporter-player give-and-take, Mike decided to conduct a self-interview. The result is a Hornets Insider chat (length 9:09) between Mike James and Mike James (I also jumped in briefly, but was understandably scolded by Mike for interrupting the proceedings. I apologized).
I also want to extend a special thank you to David West, who provided some background vocals at the beginning of the Mike James-Mike James interview. If you listen closely, you can hear David admit that hes not a very talented singer.