The Hornets planned to let a deadline pass Wednesday on the team's option to play a third season at its temporary home in Oklahoma City.

Relocated from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, the Hornets have played the majority of their home games at Ford Center over the past two seasons. The team sought the option for a third year as a contingency plan in case it was unable to return to New Orleans next season as planned.

"Obviously we're extremely grateful for the people in this community, the way they've embraced us and have supported us," owner George Shinn said Wednesday. "It's been an incredible stay for us. But the whole situation is that New Orleans has had problems and they continue to have problems, and the right thing for us to do is to go back and give it our best shot and try to make it work.