The Hornets almost completed a trade that would have sent J.R. Smith to the Spurs. This summer, Smith expects the Hornets to actually execute one.

"I don't think I'll have to ask for a trade; it's going to be automatic," Smith said. "I would like to go anywhere; it doesn't matter if it's a losing team. I just want to be out there to help on the court."

According to The Times-Picayune, Hornet free agent Speedy Claxton has instructed his agent Bill Duffy to start negotiations with the Hornets before exploring other offers.

"We've got some great guys, and I've made a bunch of friendships here," Claxton said. "Hopefully, I can come back and continue it."

Claxton could demand a three-year deal, worth between $3.6 million to $6 million per season.

The Hornets were one of the surprise teams of the 2005-2006 season and head coach Byron Scott is very pleased with the performance of his team, even though he is disappointed that their season

``To me that's the ultimate compliment or success, to come from 18 wins to totally change the expectations of everybody watching the team, to get to a point where playoffs are expected, almost. It's a hard, hard journey that rarely gets accomplished in one year.''

The Jazz selected Deron Williams with the third pick of the 2005 Draft and while Chris Paul is on his way to Rookie of the Year honors, Jerry Sloan isn't ready to say that a wrong decision was made.

"Chris Paul is a terrific player. You don't realize what a difficult decision we had to make," Sloan said after Friday's win. "I mean, it was not like we didn't like Chris Paul. But we like Deron, and we had to make a decision on somebody.
     
"We like both of them. And they're both going to be very, very good players in this league. The test of time will be four or five years."

The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets announced today that the team will wear ?Oklahoma City? jerseys at its last regular-season home game on Friday, April 14th. The Hornets will host the Utah Jazz in the Ford Center for this season?s ?Fantastic Fanale.?

The Hornets will wear the jerseys as a thank you to the fans of Oklahoma City for their tremendous support of the team throughout the season. The white jerseys will feature ?Oklahoma? in the customary teal, gold and purple lettering above the number, and ?City? underneath it with a NOLA patch replacing the OKC patch worn throughout the season.

The Hornets trail Sacramento by two games for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference and got a big boost on Wednesday by beating the Sonics by a final score of 104-99. The teams meet Sunday in Sacramento. The Kings' magic number is two.

"Every game from here on out is a must-win," Paul said. "One loss could really be big for us."

Hornets' leading scorer had to sit yet again on Wednesday night against the Sonics after re-injuring his right ankle.

"It doesn't hurt us defensively. We're probably a little better defensively but it definitely hurts us offensively," Hornets coach Byron Scott said. "He's one of the guys that we can spread the defense out a little bit with his shooting ability."

Hornets guard Speedy Claxton is set to open up contract talks on a long-term deal this week.

Claxton is a 6th man of the year candidate and will meet with Hornets brass over dinner on Wednesday with his agent Bill Duffy.

The Hornets have made clear that they hope to keep the point guard who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

David West, leading scorer of the Hornets, is day-to-day after re-aggravating a sprained left ankle.

West did not practice with the Hornets on Tuesday after leaving in the fourth quarter of a 103-101 loss to Cleveland a night earlier.

"I was off of it today. We'll just see how I feel tomorrow," West said after practice. "It is what it is."

The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets announced today that
they have signed Marcus Fizer for the remainder of the 2005-06 season. Fizer originally signed a 10-day contract with the Hornets on March 31. He has yet to appear in a game for the Hornets.

Fizer was named the NBA Development League's Most Valuable Player for the 2005-06 season on March 31 after averaging 22.7 points and 7.8 rebounds in 35 games with the Toros.