Hornets Sold To NFL Saints Owner Tom Benson

The New Orleans Hornets new owner is Tom Benson. The tentative agreement reached for the NBA to sell the team 100% to Benson is worth over $338 million. Jimmy Smith of The-Times Picayune first reported this.

So the days of the NBA owning a team are drawing to a close. General Manager Dell Demps and Head Coach Monty Williams have done a wonderful job with the Hornets with everything given this season beginning with the Chris Paul trade, both of them.

The Hornets roster this season has seen upwards of 23 different starting lineup, 10-day contracts left and right, D-League call ups, anything to fill the roster when injuries hit hard. Omeka Okafor, Eric Gordon, Carl Landry, Chris Kaman, Jarrett Jack, Trevor Ariza and Jason Smith have all missed time this season with injuries. That is a pretty good group to be missing. The result has been close losses all season with a few big wins yet the Hornets have never quit and Monty Williams just keep the focus on playing with what he has.

Benson has been seen courtside at Hornets games this season. Now with him as the full owner committed to the city, arena upgrades coming, a lease that's pretty tough to break and a pretty good GM and Head Coach the Hornets are here to stay, but will they keep the name Hornets? Results of an online poll in the Times-Picayune show 90% feel Benson should change the Hornets name. Either way the Big Easy will have NBA basketball for quite a while.