NEW ORLEANS (AP) A new city. A new stadium with all the modern amenities. And still plenty of tickets available for the New Orleans Hornets _ as many as several thousand for a typical game.

The NBA needed some convincing before allowing the Hornets to relocate for the 2002-03 season from Charlotte to New Orleans, now one of the smallest markets in the league.

After finishing 19th out of 29 teams in average home attendance in their first season in town, the Hornets have dropped to 28th _ ahead of only Atlanta _ despite being a shoo-in for the playoffs.

``It was surprisingly empty. We could have gone and sat anywhere,'' said fan Jeff Shyman of a recent game he attended.

Shyman went to 10 games a year ago. He has seen only two this season, yet struggles to explain the drop-off.

Could the novelty be wearing off?

``When I went to the first few games and it was really crowded, I had a lot of fun and I'm surprised it didn't take off because it seemed like everyone had a great time,'' he recalls. ``Maybe I'm just lazy. It's easy to watch it on TV.''

Hornets chief operating officer Jack Capella said team officials are ``happy, but not satisfied'' with ticket sales this year. He said the Hornets, who have had four sellouts, will turn a profit.

``You can't judge success or failure by attendance figures,'' he said.

The Hornets have some advantages other teams do not because of the pitch the state of Louisiana made to bring them here. They received a favorable lease _ including control of most concession and parking revenues _ on an arena that has a pair of club lounges, 56 private suites and a 140-seat ``super suite.''

The team also got a tax break, worth as much as $3.65 million a year, that had been designed for companies bringing in high-paying jobs. And they have several major corporate sponsors like Anheuser-Busch and PepsiCo.

The Hornets also have a cable TV deal reaching homes across the state and well into Mississippi, and will benefit from a share of the expansion fees being paid by Charlotte's new team, which begins play next season.

But in terms of ticket sales, New Orleans is far behind league-leading Detroit, which averaged 21,128 fans through its first 34 games.

Although the Hornets can do little better than their arena's 17,200 listed capacity, they averaged only 14,243 in paid attendance _ about 1,400 per game below last season _ through their first 38 home games. That figure trailed even Orlando (14,286), which has one of the worst records in the league and no chance of making the playoffs.

``New Orleans is an event town and you kind of have to work your way into the fabric of that _ and we're not quite there yet,'' Capella says. ``We have to become a part of the city and the fans will continue to come.''

The league is not concerned, said Bernie Mullin, NBA senior vice president of marketing and team business operations.

``New Orleans is a great city with a strong basketball fan base and we are confident the NBA and Hornets will have a long-lasting and successful presence there,'' he said.

New Orleans has already lost one NBA team, the Jazz, which had seven losing seasons here before moving to Utah in 1979. Attendance was not a problem with that team, which in 1977 set a then-single-game attendance record of 35,000 in the Louisiana Superdome. The Jazz's departure had more to do with then-owner Sam Battistone's dislike of New Orleans and his inability to schedule home games in the dome during Mardi Gras and high convention season.

Capella says it's far too early for Hornets fans to worry about losing another team.

``We're just starting out again, redeveloping basketball connections that were lost when the Jazz left,'' Capella says. ``This is an area that has a basketball history and we need to reconnect.''

Earlier this season, the team's top marketing executive, Alex Martins, left. Capella said that was a blow, but the team is moving ahead with new pricing plans for next season, lowering the cost of a number of tickets and working on a variety of multi-game packages that allow fans who can't afford full season tickets to become partial season ticket holders.

Shyman, who has season tickets for the NFL's Saints, said New Orleans fans' loyalty and support of pro sports has been evident with the football team. The Saints have sold out nearly every game for four seasons running, despite not making the playoffs three of those years.

``New Orleans doesn't care about winning as much as it cares about community and the Hornets are not really part of our community yet,'' he says. ``There's nothing they can do about that except stick around.''

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On the NET:

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) The New Orleans Hornets likely will play an entire five-game West Coast trip without top scorers Baron Davis and Jamal Mashburn, coach Tim Floyd said Friday night.

The losses couldn't come at a worse time for the Hornets, who are battling to hold on to the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Davis, sidelined with a sprained left ankle, was not with the team for Friday night's home game against Phoenix.

Floyd said Davis went to Los Angeles to be with his sick grandmother and would rejoin the team next week. But the point guard is in a lot of pain and could be sidelined as long as two weeks, Floyd said.

Mashburn, out since aggravating a right knee injury on March 7, has new swelling in his knee, Floyd said.

``I don't know that there's any return date that's probable right now,'' Floyd said.

Davis leads the team in scoring (23 ppg), assists (7.6) and steals (2.4).

Mashburn is averaging 20.8 points per game. He has played in only 19 games because of the knee injury.

The Hornets will play the Los Angeles Lakers, Utah, Sacramento, Portland and Seattle on their upcoming road trip.

New Orleans entered Friday night with a 1{ game lead over Milwaukee for the fourth seed in the East.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Guard Maurice Carter signed a 10-day contract with the New Orleans Hornets on Thursday after a brief stint with the Los Angeles Lakers this season.

The 6-foot-5 Carter, a former LSU standout, averaged 5.5 points in four games with the Lakers after signing successive 10-day contracts with them on Jan. 30 and Feb. 9.

After leaving Los Angeles, Carter led the Dakota Wizards to the CBA championship. He was named Most Valuable Player of the playoffs after averaging 24.8 points in five playoff games, including 36 in the title game. Carter averaged 19.0 points in the CBA regular season.

Carter played for LSU from 1996-99. He has spent most of his professional career in the CBA and other American minor leagues, as well as one season in Greece.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Hornets point guard Baron Davis will miss Thursday's game at the Atlanta Hawks with a sprained left ankle.

Davis, whose averages of 23 points and 7.6 assists lead New Orleans, was hurt diving for a loose ball in the third quarter of an 82-81 victory over visiting Detroit on Tuesday night.

Davis sprained the same ankle Jan. 19 at Minnesota and missed six of the Hornets' next 11 games. He had played in every game since returning to the lineup Feb. 11.

The All-Star is listed as day-to-day. It wasn't immediately known whether Davis will play against Phoenix on Friday night, team spokesman Harold Kaufman said.

The Hornets (37-34) are third in the Central Division.

NEW YORK (AP) Memphis guard Bonzi Wells and New Orleans center Jamaal Magloire were fined $5,000 a piece by the NBA on Thursday for throwing a basketball into the stands.

The fines were announced by Stu Jackson, the league's senior vice president of basketball operations.

Wells tossed the ball into the stands during the third quarter of the Grizzlies' 82-79 win over Philadelphia in Memphis on Tuesday. That night, Magloire did the same thing in the third period of Miami's 96-83 home win over the Hornets.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Jamal Mashburn was placed on the injured list Tuesday by the New Orleans Hornets, who also said P.J. Brown will miss two games with a sprained left ankle.

Mashburn has been out most of the season with right knee problems. He missed the first 44 games after injuring the knee at training camp. He came back just before the All Star break _ playing in 19 games, averaging 20.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game _ before swelling in the knee sidelined him March 8.

Brown sprained his ankle in the first quarter of Saturday's against Golden State. He will miss Tuesday night's game at Miami and Wednesday's home game against Philadelphia.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Hornets co-owner George Shinn dropped by practice Tuesday to give a motivational speech, an out-of-the ordinary occurrence unlike anything P.J. Brown had seen in his 11 seasons.

``It was kind of surprising,'' Brown said after Tuesday's practice, which included a team meeting and lasted about two hours longer than usual.

When the season began, the Hornets were widely considered contenders for the Eastern Conference title. But with a record of 33-30 _ half the losses coming against teams with losing records _ New Orleans could finish below the top four and would have to open the playoffs on the road.

``We've got ourselves in a situation where there's a sense of urgency _ no doubt about that,'' general manager Bob Bass said. ``I feel better off than those teams below us, but we haven't played well the last four or five games.''

New Orleans learned this week that Jamal Mashburn, who missed the first 44 games because of right knee surgery, will m be sidelined an additional 12 games or so after experiencing swelling in the knee last weekend.

Bass has declined to get into specifics about what he thinks has gone wrong, but he made it clear he had no interest in discussing whether coach Tim Floyd is having any difficulty relating to his players.

``I don't have any comment on a question like that,'' Bass said. ``You've got to be kidding me with a question like that.''

Brown said the team meeting appeared to help produce an upbeat practice.

``Guys were into it, so I think that kind of proved that we still believe in coach Floyd and the coaching staff and what they're trying give to us,'' he said.

The Hornets have been talking about winning the East for the past five seasons but have yet to get past the second round of the playoffs. Last season's first-round loss prompted Shinn and co-owner Ray Wooldridge to replace Paul Silas with Floyd, who bolted to a 17-7 start. Since then, New Orleans has gone 16-23.

Sometimes the Hornets have played well, twice beating Indiana _ the best team in the East _ by double-digit margins since the All-Star break.

But they also have lost three times to Silas' new team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, with the latest defeat among three to losing teams in the past nine days. The Hornets also lost at Washington, one of the five worst teams in the NBA, and to Toronto, which had lost nine of 10 games before the Hornets came to town.

All-Star Baron Davis was taken out of the starting lineup Sunday at Toronto for missing a morning meeting, then was kept on the bench for the final period after shooting 3-of-12.

``That's over with. Let's move on,'' Davis said. ``I need to step my game up, work a little harder in practice, and with Mash being out things are going to be even harder _ harder than at the beginning of the season because teams are playing playoff basketball now.''

Recently, Floyd has questioned the passion his players have shown, but he also has blamed the Hornets' inconsistency on injuries that have caused Mashburn and starting guard David Wesley to miss significant time, and Davis to miss six games.

``Our basketball team has had to make more adjustments than anybody in the Eastern Conference,'' Floyd said. ``Every time you lose a player, there's an adjustment. And every time you get a player back, there's a readjustment to that guy and the chemistry in this league.''

Davis said it is not too late for the Hornets to regain their early season form.

``You can turn a season around in a matter of three or four games,'' Davis said. ``That's the most important thing we addressed to today _ is that you have to play with passion and a sense of urgency.''

The New Orleans Hornets announced that forward Jamal Mashburn will miss a minimum of three weeks due to a patella femoral irritation of his right knee. The diagnosis was made today by team physician Gregor Hoffman.

Mashburn missed the Hornets? first 44 games this season after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to remove loose particles in his right knee on Nov. 3. He has averaged 20.8 points and 6.2 rebounds in the 19 games since his return.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) The New Orleans Hornets waived guard Bryce Drew on Tuesday, a day after putting him on injured reserve to make room for David Wesley.

Drew averaged less than a point and an assist in 15 games with the Hornets this season.

He is best known for a shot he made in college: a buzzer-beating, game-winning, off-balance 3-pointer in Valparaiso's 1998 NCAA tournament upset of Mississippi.

The Hornets signed Drew as a free agent before the 2001-02 season. In his first two seasons with team, he averaged 3.1 points and 1.5 assists.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Hornets guard David Wesley was activated Monday after missing 20 games because of a sprained toe.

New Orleans also placed guard Bryce Drew on the injured list with lower back spasms. He missed five games this season with the same injury.

Wesley was placed on the list Jan. 17 following the injury to his big left toe against Toronto two days earlier. He is averaging 15.5 points and 2.9 assists in 39 games.

The Hornets (32-27) were tied for third in the Central Division entering Wednesday night's game at Washington.