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From this morning's New Orleans Times-Picayune:

Having been an NBA coach for a little more than three weeks, Jeff Bower admits he's still learning, and he's not afraid to admit his faults.

So when it was pointed out to Bower that Hornets center Emeka Okafor recently had been absent from the floor in the waning moments of several New Orleans games, and that Okafor's minute-per-game average was slightly fewer than 30 minutes, Bower realized he might have to reassess the way he is managing Okafor's presence.

"You know," Bower said, "honestly a lot of it is the need for me to get him back into the action. And not limit him. That's something I have to do a good job with. I feel there's a couple of games where I've kept him on the bench . . . which is my fault. Shame on me. I know what he can provide for our team."

The head coach admitting his mistakes. That's something I can't recall Byron Scott ever doing with the Hornets.

The biggest news this morning is that Chris Paul was caught off guard by the decision to fire Byron Scott. Apparently the first he heard of it was at practice yesterday morning. Paul's words in the Times-Picayune:

"I felt like, maybe somebody would have at least consulted with me and asked how I felt before it happened," Paul said by telephone Thursday night. "It’s not to get my approval, but we feel we should know about the decision before it takes place." 

The Hornets have struggled this season, getting off to a 3-6 start. Weber said the organization didn’t see enough improvement, which necessitated the move.

"You can’t put all this on Coach," Paul said...

"I think we all need to have an open mind, the system could change, but we still have to play the game," Paul said. "Regardless of what is going on, the game is still basketball. I’m going to play as hard as I can every night.

"I know D-West is going to do the same. I know the team is going to do the same."

John Reid, Times-Picayune:

“Anybody who knows me knows that Coach is my guy,” Paul said. “It’s not just because of basketball stuff. I understand that it’s a business and all that stuff, but I’m honestly not the player I am today without Coach. I don’t have the Olympic gold medal and All-Star Games without Coach.

“When I woke up this morning, I had no idea that this was even possible.”

Scott could not be reached for comment Thursday, but Weber said when told that the team was heading in another direction, Scott indicated that he understood and took it well. Scott’s business manager, Brian McInerney, said his client participated in a charity golf tournament in New Orleans on Thursday afternoon.

Telling quotes from David West in the Times-Picayune:

West on Thursday said the players are in for a "dramatic change, a dramatic difference" now that General Manager Jeff Bower, along with new lead assistant coach Tim Floyd, have taken over for fired Byron Scott.

"We're not going to be as predictable as we have been in the past. I know that, having played for Tim before," said West, a sixth-year veteran. "That's something I'm looking forward to, in terms of style of play."...

West said that the team's philosophy wasn't working, and Scott's pride might have been a factor.

"We've had some conversations over the past couple of weeks, just trying to figure out what we could do to get the ship righted, but ... pride is a crazy thing," he said. "I think pride is a dangerous, dangerous thing. I think there was a sense a few guys weren't trusting what we had in terms of our system and our ability to know what we were going to get every single night from our system."

West said the players should be receptive to Bower and Floyd because "what we had wasn't working."

More from West via John DeShazier in the T-P:

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If you missed all the news earlier today, check here.

And now for a few bullet points to gather my scattered thoughts:

• Last basketball season was very disappointing for New Orleans sports fans. At the beginning, the Hornets were talked about as championship contenders, then they struggled to a 49-33 record and got humiliated by the Nuggets in the Playoffs. But you couldn't blame Byron for the team's failings last season, not with all the injuries the Hornets had. This season, the Hornets have been close to full health, and Byron was working with a roster that Chris Paul called the best he's ever been a part of. A 3-6 start just wasn't god enough, especially with most of the losses being blowouts.
  
  
• I'm reminded of Byron's words when he won the Coach of the Year award after the Hornets' magical 2007-08 season. Scott was asked if the reward meant redemption after his fall from grace in New Jersey:
  
  "It's all so fickle, just such a fickle league. People can change on you in a second."
  
  Such is life.

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As confirmed by ESPN and NOLA.com. The Hornets will make a formal announcement at a press conference scheduled for 1 p.m. Central.

Updates will be posted here.

1:16 p.m. Update:

From ESPN's Marc Stein on Twitter:

Our own @ricbucher reports that the Hornets are adding head coach to GM Jeff Bower's duties and bringing in Tim Floyd to be top assistant

1:20 p.m. Update:

Bits and pieces from the Hornets press release:

NEW ORLEANS - The New Orleans Hornets announced today that they have relieved Byron Scott of head coaching duties. Scott will be replaced by General Manager Jeff Bower.

“I want to thank Byron for the hard work he has put in during his time with the Hornets,” said Hornets Owner George Shinn. “I’ve hired Jeff Bower to take over the coaching reign. He knows this team better than anyone, has the respect of the players and in basketball circles, is regarded as one of the best basketball minds in the business. This is our best opportunity to reach our goals this season.”

“Accountability was our theme this past summer,” said Hornets Vice President of Basketball Chad Shinn. “We talked about the fact that everyone on our staff is held to a certain standard of performance and we didn’t feel this was happening at the head coach level. We feel like we still have an opportunity with our nucleus to get to where we want and Jeff is the right guy, right now to move us in that direction from the bench.”

“As we look at our long-term coaching plans, it’s not about who the head coach is, it’s about the role of the head coach to get the team to perform to their capabilities and reaching our potential this season,” said Bower.

In a related move, Tim Floyd has been hired as the top assistant coach.

Will Okafor make the Hornets any better?

Back in February, Jeff Bower tried and failed to trade Tyson for a pair of expiring contracts (Joe Smith and Chris Wilcox). That trade got rescinded, Tyson was labeled as damaged goods, and there was no way the Hornets would be able to get good deal for him this summer.

Luckily, Jeff Bower didn't get that memo. Emeka Okafor is now a Hornet, and the general consensus is that New Orleans didn't take a step backwards with the move.

But did we take a step forward? I'm not convinced that Chandler-for-Okafor makes the team any better. It makes it different, sure, but better? The jury will take some time to decide that one.

Offensively, we should be fine. We won't be treated to the same emphatic alley-oops that Tyson was able to finish, but two points is two points and Okafor is efficient from short range. We'll also be able to feed him in the post and not see something resembling a three-legged deer on ice when he tries to unleash a move. The real mystery is on the defensive end. Okafor is a superior shot-blocker and rebounder, but he won't be able to defend the pick and roll quite like Tyson, and I fear David West will often be shown up without a quick-footed big to help eliminate his mistakes.

Underdogs or bust?

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