In a series of interviews with NOLA.com, New Orleans Hornets players Chris Paul and Jason Smith talked about how they had been preparing for a lockout, which the NBA instituted last week.

"We've all been trying to prepare for this for a few years," Paul said at a charity event on Friday. "Guys have been aware that this was a possibility. Guys should be fine."

Smith said he has been warned about the lockout possibility since he came into the league in 2007: “It’s kind of progressive,” he reiterated. “At first it was ‘be prepared for a lockout.’ Then ‘there is going to be a lockout.’ Then ‘it could be a long lockout.’ It’s basically just prepare for the worst, expect the best."