Hornets coach Byron Scott showed off the three championship rings he won as a player during his pregame speech.
The message? This is what the San Antonio Spurs have, and you want.
He certainly got through to All-Stars David West and Chris Paul.
West scored a career playoff-high 30 points to lead New Orleans to a 101-82 victory over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Saturday night.
Paul added 17 points, 13 assists and four steals for New Orleans, which trailed by as much as 11 in the first half but stormed into the lead for good in the third quarter.
“It sort of gives you goose bumps,” Paul said of seeing Scott’s rings, won in the 1980s with the Los Angeles Lakers. “We understand right now we’re on that same journey and we feel like we can get there.”
