Byron Scott is the head coach of the New Orleans Hornets. For at least the beginning of the 2009-10 season, he will remain the head coach of the Hornets.

After a disappointing postseason showing against the Denver Nuggets, Scott’s job status came into question. However, the team has now stated that his job is safe.

During the 2007-08 season, Scott won the NBA Coach of the Year award. In the playoffs, he led the Hornets to the second round before losing to the San Antonio Spurs in seven games.

A lot of the Hornets’ problems in this past season can be attributed to injury. Starting center Tyson Chandler was rarely healthy. Starting small forward Peja Stojakovic also missed time due to injury.

Under Scott’s guidance, starting point guard Chris Paul has become a superstar. He led the NBA in assists and steals while also entering the MVP conversation.

With only one year left on his contract, Scott will likely have to produce playoff success next year to continue as the Hornets’ head coach.

Hornets fans are looking for a bounce back next season (Image: Flickr)

We are almost a third of the way through the NBA season, so let’s take a look at the early favorites in the MVP odds and favorites.

LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers - ODDS: 2-to-1
Everything seems to be falling into place this season for LeBron James. He’s playing great basketball, his team is winning and every time you turn on ESPN they are talking about him signing with the New York Knicks. Those three aspects combined should give him enough attention to win the 2008 NBA MVP award.

Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers - ODDS: 3-to-1
Last year’s Most Valuable Player has the Lakers winning at a scary clip. While his stats are down, MVP voters aren’t exactly the sharpest tools in the shed. Bryant has a chance due to his name recognition and the fact that the Lakers could end up with a ridiculous amount of wins.

Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets - ODDS: 10-to-1
Chris Paul is once again having a great season. He’s the heart, soul and the will of the Hornets. His stats indicate how fantastic he is and if the Hornets can have another quality season, Paul should be in the discussion. But he needs the above two players to slow down so he can catch up.

Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic - ODDS: 25-to-1
One day, Dwight Howard will win the NBA MVP award. However, it doesn’t look like it’ll be this year. He has the stats to have a case but he needs a tad bit more name recognition and he has to lead the Magic to a good showing in the playoffs. Look for Howard to be a serious candidate over the next few years.

Photo credit: Newscom

This weekend, the wildly anticipated NBA playoffs began. And while there were some great games, for me, the lasting image is half-Kobe-half-Shaq lecturing me on fear. Though the commercials have been around for a while now, they’ve received heavy rotation during the playoffs. I actually thought the commercials were pretty neat, if a bit unsettling. I was especially impressed how they managed to sync up the speech from each player to create an odd stereo effect. I was noting this when my friend brought their eyes to my attention. They blink at the same time! Ahhhhhh! Don’t believe me, check for yourself.

Now, some unanswered questions. Firstly, why didn’t you believe me? And were these blinks choreographed? Was there some sort of blinking coach on set, yelling “Blink,” at designated intervals? If these blinks weren’t scripted, then is there some sort of natural blink response during pauses?

The rest of the ads in the series feature more creepy synchronized blinking. Also, be on the look out for the amalgamated word “Bordan” in the LeBron/KG commercial.