--G Rasual Butler was traded, along with cash, from the Hornets to the Clippers for a conditional second-round pick in 2016. The deal saves the Hornets nearly $8 million, as Butler's $3.9 million salary would have forced the team to pay an additional $3.9 in salary-cap taxes.
--The Hornets hired former NBA guard Robert Pack as an assistant coach, completing Byron Scott's staff. Pack, a 40-year-old native of New Orleans, spent last season as an assistant coach with the Rio Grande Valley team in the NBA Development League. The Vipers were 21-29 last season. Pack played 13 seasons in the NBA, spending part of the 2002-03 season with the Hornets. He also played for the Nuggets, the Trail Blazers, the Nets, the Wizards, the Mavericks, and the Timberwolves. --The Hornets have a home-friendly finishing stretch to their 2009-10 regular-season schedule. Eight of their final 12 games will be played at the New Orleans Arena. They start the season by playing seven of their first 11 games on the road. They are scheduled to be on national TV nine times, including the season opener Oct. 28 at the defending Southwest Division champion Spurs.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "At first I didn't even notice which team it was. Then I realized I'd be playing with Chris Paul and David West and Peja (Stojakovic) and James Posey. I thought to myself, 'I can swing that.'" -- C Emeka Okafor, on his initial reaction to being traded to the Hornets.
