 All repair work on the New Orleans Arena was finished by March 2006 , and a new scoreboard and video displays were added during the process . In June 2006 , Shinn stated he was pleased with the ongoing recovery process in New Orleans and again reaffirmed his desire to permanently return for the 2007 – 08 season . However , the Hornets also announced that they were in the process of negotiating with Oklahoma City to play the 2007 – 08 season at the Ford Center as a contingency plan . The Hornets opened the 2006 – 07 season at New Orleans with a win over the Boston Celtics . They improved their final record from the previous season by one game , and again finished tenth in the Western Conference , three games out of the playoffs . Their attendance declined slightly compared to the previous season , and they finished 15th overall in attendance . The Hornets made their permanent return to New Orleans on October 31 , 2007 , when they defeated the Sacramento Kings 109 @-@ 90 to open the 2007 – 08 season . In the following two seasons , the Hornets averaged an attendance of 15 @,@ 574 . During the 2008 All @-@ Star Game , the NBA donated $ 5 million towards relief work , and staged an NBA Cares program throughout the city to help rebuilding efforts . 
