Football
Associated Press 18y

Hornets' Paul misses game with bruised ribs

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Hornets point guard Chris Paul missed
Friday night's game against the New York Knicks because of bruised
ribs.

Point Guard
NO/Oklahoma City Hornets

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Paul, who leads all rookies in points (16.2), assists (7.7),
steals (2.2) and minutes (35.7), was injured when he collided with
Seattle's Nick Collison on a drive to the basket Wednesday.

"He's not playing tonight," Hornets coach Byron Scott said
before tipoff. "I just ran into him in the hallway and he said
he'll be ready at halftime. But that's just Chris being Chris."

Paul was expected to miss at least two weeks when he tore a
ligament in his right thumb in January. But after the Hornets lost
101-93 to Atlanta without him, he was back in the lineup only four
days after the injury.

Paul is also recovering from a bruised tailbone suffered Monday
at New Jersey, and he had a stiff neck following the fall against
Seattle. He still wears a protective sleeve on his thumb.

Scott said he also planned to rest Paul for Saturday's game at
Minnesota.

"We'll see how he feels Sunday. He'll come in and get treatment
and everything," Scott said. "And then Monday morning when he
comes up for shootaround, we'll see how he feels."

Paul, the No. 4 overall pick in last year's draft, has sparked
the Hornets' dramatic improvement this season. Entering Friday,
they were 25-23 and had the seventh-best record in the Western
Conference. At the same point last year, New Orleans was 8-40.

"I think it's a good thing for our team right now," Scott
said. "If we can win games without Chris, I think it gives these
guys even more confidence. And it also shows when he comes back
that we'll even be better."

Speedy Claxton, recovered from a mild concussion he sustained
Wednesday, was expected to start in Paul's place against New York.
Scott said Paul's absence would force him to experiment, perhaps
using forward Rasual Butler at shooting guard.

"When you don't have one of your best players, sometimes that's
what you have to do. You've got to put guys in different positions
to see how they react, see how they play," Scott said. "Sometimes
you come up with a home run, sometimes you don't."

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