The New Orleans Hornets fired Byron Scott only nine games into the season yesterday and replaced him with general manager Jeff Bower, hoping the man who put the current roster together can get more out of it on the court.

"I told Jeff, 'The genie's out of the bottle,'" Hornets chief operating officer Hugh Weber said. "Nobody can say he doesn't have the right players. ... Jeff has hand-selected this team, and we like the idea that now he'll be held accountable for the results.

"Our expectations are high. Our sense of urgency is high. Our patience is low, and we hope that translates into results quickly."

Scott, who only two seasons ago was the NBA coach of the year, was fired one day after a 124-104 loss at Phoenix dropped New Orleans to 3-6.

Bower, who will remain general manager while in his first head-coaching job, immediately moved to name Tim Floyd his top assistant and said other assistants will be retained as well. Floyd, a former Chicago Bulls and Hornets head coach, most recently coached at Southern California. He led USC to three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, then resigned in June amid allegations he paid to have O.J. Mayo play for the Trojans. An NCAA investigation of the matter is ongoing.

Bower was Floyd's assistant coach with the Hornets during the 2003-04 season, and the two are still friends.

"I have a high comfort level with Tim, who has proven himself to be a quality coach," Bower said.

The Hornets were 41-41 in Floyd's only season as head coach.

• Cavaliers 111, Heat 104: LeBron James had little to say about the prospect of playing with Dwyane Wade next season, and that was fine. Having them on the same court was enough of a treat for now. The two All-Stars put on a show in their first showdown of the season, and James scored 34 points to help visiting Cleveland defeat Miami. Wade scored 36 points but couldn't rally the Heat from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

• The father of former NBA star Jayson Williams died. Elijah Joshua "E.J." Williams died Tuesday in Bluffton, S.C., of complications from several strokes. He was 76.

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