(Sports Network) - A new era kicks off in the Big Easy tonight as new coach Jeff Bower and the New Orleans Hornets welcome the streaking Portland Trail Blazers to town.

Hornets management used an off day on Thursday to fire Byron Scott in the wake of the team's 3-6 start. Bower, the team's general manager, has been part of the Hornets' organization since 1995 but has never been a head coach on the NBA level.

"As we look at our long-term coaching plans, it's not about who the head coach is, it's about the role of the head coach to get the team to perform to their capabilities and reaching our potential this season," said Bower.

Scott was in his sixth season with the club and was in the final year of a two-year extension he signed in May of 2008. The extension came after the Hornets won the Southwest Division crown with a franchise-best record of 56-26 in 2007-08.

The Hornets had the second-best record in the Western Conference that season, earning Scott the league's coach of the year honors. New Orleans went on to lose to San Antonio in the conference semifinals during the spring of 2008.

Last year, the Hornets made the playoffs with a mark of 49-33 and were eliminated in the first round by Denver.

"I want to thank Byron for the hard work he has put in during his time with the Hornets," said Hornets owner George Shinn. "I've hired Jeff Bower to take over the coaching reign. He knows this team better than anyone, has the respect of the players and in basketball circles, is regarded as one of the best basketball minds in the business. This is our best opportunity to reach our goals this season."

Wary of a lack of experience on the bench Bower added former head coach Tim Floyd as his top assistant. Floyd served as head coach of the Hornets the season before Scott's arrival, with Bower as an assistant, and led the team to a record of 41-41. He was most-recently the head coach at Southern California from 2005-09.

On the floor the Hornets finished a three-game road trip in losing fashion on Wednesday when Amare Stoudemire had 21 points and was one of eight Phoenix players in double figures, as the Suns blasted New Orleans 124-104.

Chris Paul notched 25 points, six assists and four steals for New Orleans, which dropped two of three on the trek. In fact, the Hornets have just one road win in six tries this season.

The Blazers, meanwhile, are resuming a five-game road trip tonight.

Portland won its fourth straight game since inserting veteran point guard Andre Miller in the starting lineup and improved to 2-0 on its trek Wednesday when Greg Oden had his strongest showing of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds, leading the Blazers to a 107-84 rout of the hapless Timberwolves, beating Minnesota for a 10th straight time.

Martell Webster and Rudy Fernandez sparkled off the bench with 16 and 15 points, respectively, for the Trail Blazers. Brandon Roy had 14 points, while LaMarcus Aldridge chipped in 11 for Portland, which will finish its trip with visits to Charlotte and Atlanta.

"We definitely wanted to start off this road trip really good," said Oden. "Winning the first two is going to help us out. We need to carry that over to the next one."

These two teams split a four-game season series last season with each team winning once on the other's home floor.



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