Marcus Thornton and the Kings are in New Orleans tonight for the Hornets first game post-NFL.

I know, I know… It’s a home game tonight and I didn’t even put up the 3-on-3 earlier! I also haven’t announced the winners of the T-Shirt contest, or sent out prizes for last week’s trivia. Apologies to all. It’s the day after the Superbowl, two days after Krew du Vieux, and I’ve had a lot on my plate.

Tomorrow I’ll put out a big post about everything. For now, read this 3-on-3, a few random bits of Hornets knowledge heading into tonight, and watch this sweet video of the Mardi Gras Baby attacking WWL’s Bradley Handwerger. I’ll have more from the arena soon.

 

• Hornets forward Carl Landry went down in the third quarter of last night’s game following a collision with Detroit’s Jason Maxiell and did not return. Landry suffered a 2nd degree MCL sprain in his left knee and will be out 3-4 weeks.
• Big man Jason Smith suffered a concussion in the fourth quarter of last night’s game in Detroit and is day-to-day, but will be out tonight.
• Guard Jarrett Jack, who has missed the last two games with a sore left knee, is listed as questionable, but will be out for tonight’s game.
• As a result of at least one of those injuries (I’m looking at Landry), the Hornets brought Lance Thomas back on a 10-day contract.
• The Hornets and Shell announced that they have partnered to provide Gulf South students with the Hornets Bookmobile.

1. Which matchup most favors the Kings?

Mason Ginsberg: Thornton over the black hole that is the Hornets’ shooting guard position. Being matched up against Marco/Summers, MT23 won’t have to worry much about the part of his game that caused Monty to get rid of him, and can direct most of his efforts towards scoring.

James Grayson: At the Guard positions. With Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton both available expect them to run riot over the Hornets guard rotation which features some borderline NBA players.

Joe Gerrity: The backcourt is where the biggest advantage is, but it isn’t the only one.

2. Which matchup most favors the Hornets?

Mason: The Ariza vs. Salmons matchup looks the best on paper, but I’m not overly excited about it. Salmons has struggled mightily on offense so far this season (especially recently) but both he and Trevor are solid defenders, so I don’t expect to see much offensively from either.

James: Emeka Okafor really needs to step up tonight and while it’s not a matchup that favors the Hornets, it’s one to keep your eye on.

Joe: Okafor and Kaman can really do damage to in the front court offensively. If they get DMC into foul trouble, the Hornets should thoroughly dominate this matchup.

3. Care to make some predictions about the game?

Mason: Jack, Gordon, Landry, Smith all out. This is gonna be interesting. My predictions? Ayon gets his first start as a Hornet and finishes with a double-double. Unfortunately, Thornton and Tyreke combine for 45 points and the Kings win 103-97.

James: Marcus Thornton will score over 30 points and Ayon will score in double digits as he gets his first start of his NBA career. Kings win this one by 7 points, 89-82.

Joe: Thornton’s going to go off, but it’s not going to matter. The Hornets will go right at Cousins early and often, causing foul trouble. Kaman, Okafor and Ayon will do serious damage, scoring roughly 45 points combined. The Hornets will bring home the W.