HORNETS PLAY LIKE HURRICANE.

Byline: JOE STEVENS

The natives and tourists call it a ``hurricane.''

It mixes together light rum, dark rum, grenadine and passion fruit and is sold up and down Bourbon Street. No doubt, the cocktail packs a punch, and as odd as it might sound, it's giving the Hornets an unfair advantage in their new home, New Orleans.

Perhaps the most exciting stop for NBA teams this season is New Orleans, where many players come to explore the city for the first time and then promptly get beaten by the Hornets. The Hornets have won 11 of 12 games at home and have shown they're among the elite teams in the Eastern Conference.

But come on, is the hurricane or the city's party atmosphere really a factor among basketball professionals?

``Definitely,'' Hornets guard and former UCLA star Baron Davis said. ``New Orleans is a party town. It's definitely going to have its advantages to it.''

Sucking down a few of those hurricanes can be just as dangerous as playing the Hornets.

And here's why the team is dangerous: Amid the emotion and turmoil of their proposed move last season, the Hornets learned to win on the road. This season, they are continuing to play well on the road, while practically being untouchable at home.

Last season, the Hornets were the only NBA team to win more games on the road than at home. They won 23 on the road and 21 in Charlotte. That was good enough for second place in the Central Division.

Now, the Hornets are in the midst of a seven-game trip, and they won the first two games of the trip by handing the Utah Jazz its second home loss Thursday and by beating the Lakers by 13 points Friday.

Ultimately, New Orleans should have the chutzpah to challenge for an Eastern Conference title. At least, their star, Los Angeles' own Davis, has the chutzpah to think that only the New Jersey Nets, Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers will threaten his Hornets.

``Those are the three teams,'' he said. ``I don't see any other teams matching up with us well.''

What New Orleans has going for it is the previously mentioned homecourt advantage and road strength as well as a healthy Jamal Mashburn. He is the Hornets' leading scorer, averaging 21.3 points per game, but he missed all but one playoff game last season because of a viral infection. He also missed the first 42 games of last season with a different injury, a lower abdominal strain.

When he's healthy, Mashburn is a consistent scorer. With Davis, they have an All-Star and have solid players at the other positions. Players like shooting guard David Wesley and a center combination of Jamal Magloire and Elden Campbell might not be the best in the league at their positions, but they're good complements to Mashburn and Davis.

On the flip-side, what's going against the Hornets is a lack of experience and Davis' back spasms. They lost 4-1 to the Nets in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season. Although that was a relatively good finish, a closer series with the Nets might have given them more experience in high-pressure games.

Regardless, Davis - the former UCLA standout - signed a six-year, $84 million contract extension this summer, but now he's constantly in pain with a herniated disc. The wear and tear of not missing a single game in his first three seasons finally is affecting him in his fourth season.

``The doctor didn't recommend surgery,'' Davis said. ``He suggested I take cortisone and do a lot of stretching, so that's the program I'm on now. If it gets worse throughout the course of the season, then I'm going to be forced to have surgery and sit out.''

Davis said the pain is so bad he expects to be considered ``day to day'' for every game this season.

That diagnosis in December could doom the Hornets in April. But until then, expect Davis, his teammates and the hurricanes to keep subduing their opponents.

--Dynasty talk: Finally, the nickname that always appeared appropriate for Yao Ming has been bestowed on him by Steve Francis. This week, Francis - nicknamed Franchise - dubbed Yao, ``The Dynasty.''

Yao continues to impress, leading the league with a .586 field goal percentage and averaging 11.7 points and 7.3 rebounds in 23.3 minutes a game. One statistic showing how well Yao is playing is the efficiency rating.

That stat adds five offensive statistics, subtracts misses and turnovers and divides it based on 48 minutes of action. Yao is fifth in the league, while Kevin Garnett and Tracy McGrady are first and second.

--Thank you, SPL: The NBA released a list of 50 reasons to be thankful, and Long Beach was represented smack dab with the No. 1 reason: Twenty-something rookies Mike Batiste (25), Pat Burke (28) and Juaquin Hawkins (29), for showing that it's never too late to start a career.

Batiste is in the rotation for the Memphis Grizzlies, and Hawkins is in the rotation with the Houston Rockets. The two defied the odds to make it to the league, after years of playing overseas. This summer, both played in the Summer Pro League at Long Beach State, and that was instrumental to their success.

With 50 thankful reasons, the NBA's list got cheeky, listing Ben Wallace's hair and Moochie Norris' name.

--Explain, please: It's certainly not like the flip-of-a-coin NFL, but the P-word - parity - has to come up to help explain the Memphis Grizzlies' winning streak this week of four games and the Lakers' 9-15 start.

Maybe their new coach, 69-year-old Hubie Brown is on his way to leading the Grizzlies to a complete turnaround. He is 6-10 with the 6-18 Grizzlies, and through 24 games last season, they were just 5-19.

As the Lakers keep losing, questions about them turning it around keep getting more serious. Through 24 games last season, the Lakers were 20-4.

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