It was indistinguishable from what CP3 does

Let's face it In Chris Paul, we have the best one in the league.CP3 has been so dominant in his short career that as of now his only real equals statistically are historically great players such as Oscar Robinson and Magic Johnson.So why am I proposing that Darren Collison is something specialFirst off, as I said we here in New Orleans know point guards. When the Hornets play the Spurs, our eyes are on Tony Parker.The plays that Collison makes prove that he has ice running through his veins.Proof In his sixth NBA start, matching up against ROY frontrunner Brandon Jennings, Collison hit a game tying three pointer with 7.5 seconds left. Then he calmly matched up against Jennings and stripped the ball away before he could get a shot off.The place went nuts and rightfully so. It was indistinguishable from what CP3 does.And that got me thinking about the comparisons.Both undersized guards love to hit the runner over big men, are lightning quick and rarely turn it over. Paul seems to prefer the pick and roll a bit more, but Collison has shown he's capable of utilizing it in his arsenal as well.Let's check out some stats per 36 minutes (what Paul played his rookie year). Collison is playing about 22, enough to forecast his production fairly well.

Scoring:Paul: 16.1 points on 12.1 shots (1.33 PPS), at a 43 clip (28 from three).Collison: 17.8 points on 14.7 shots (1.21 PPS), at a 42 clip (38 from three).Paul gets the win here. Although he's scoring less, he was doing so at the rate of a marquee scorer in only his first year. For what it's worth, Collison's scoring rate is very impressive, better than Deron Williams' mark in his first (1.07) or second year (1.19). Passing:Paul: 7.8 assists to 2.3 turnovers (3.4:1)Collison: 6.8 assists to 3 turnovers (2.3:1)Paul gets another win here by a slightly larger margin. His court vision was elite in his first year, something very few players can say.

Rebounding: Paul: 5.1 reboundsCollison: 3.6 reboundsBoth are undersized, but Paul is among the best rebounding guards in the game whereas Collison is merely average. Defense: Paul: Paul was and continues to be a Steal Monster. He was significantly smaller then than he is now and was pushed around by larger, more physical players.At that point he was a below average one on one defender who often found himself caught off his man chasing steals.Collison: Right off the bat you could tell that Collison was going to be a good defensive player. His ability to move through screens just looked natural, even though he was doing it at the highest level.He doesn't get a lot of steal as a result of not gambling much, but that not necessarily a knock. Conclusion: While Collison isn't quite on Paul's level you can see talented he is.

It's not unreasonable that the Hornets could have two elite point guards relatively soon.. Yes I said fired and not retired.Anyone close or near the Florida State program is very aware of the fact that Bobby Bowden wanted to come back for his final season in 2010. He was extremely excited about next season so much that he never even hinted at hanging up his straw hat for good; rather, he made sure Defensive Coordinator Mickey Andrews was appreciated in his last game.Little did we or Bowden know Andrew's last home game would also be Bobby's. No farewell tour, no win one for the gipper speeches, and no more straw hats.No more "dadgummit" comments during halftime interviews, and no more post game honesty.What the FSU Athletic Department did to Bowden was not only cruel, it was also very sad to see. It's awful enough by itself to push him out the door he built but when you start criticizing the man who has made you who you are, it is simply going to far.Several former Seminoles players were on the radio this afternoon on ESPN760 in South Florida, including former National Champion and Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke. Weinke, along with many other former players, is very disappointed with how everything unfolded and he specifically remembers Bobby talking about being excited for the 2010 season with so many returning players. Not only did Bowden make a huge impact on Weinke's life in college, he still stays in touch with him now and always has something positive to say.Weinke told a great story on the radio this afternoon and it exemplifies the very man Bowden is...When Chris first went to FSU as a freshman, he was also very interested in playing baseball. His talent grew and the opportunity was there, Bowden's future star quarterback was leaving FSU immediately to go play minor league baseball. And not once, not even for a second, did Coach try to convince him not to go.