Early in the 2003-04 NBA season, the New Orleans Hornets trailed the Indiana Pacers by one point with one second remaining on the clock.

At the time, it was a battle of the two leading clubs in the NBA’s Central Division and perhaps the most important game of the young season for both teams. Hornets head coach Tim Floyd drew up a play for rookie forward David West, which worked to near perfection.

The result was that West had a wide open shot at the basket. But he rushed the shot and missed.

Six months later, with the Hornets trailing two games to one in their playoff series with the Miami Heat, West converted on two key plays in the 96-85 win in Game 4.

He first broke free underneath the basket and converted a dunk, assisted by Baron Davis, to put the Hornets ahead by seven. Then, with 53 seconds left, he iced the win with a lay-up in traffic, which gave New Orleans a six-point lead.

He scored 10 points in all, got key rebounds, and after making clutch plays on the big stage, can finally put that Indiana miss out of his mind.

That’s called growing up NBA playoffs style.

And for the efforts of the rookie and his Hornets teammates, New Orleans fans now have hope that they’ll see one of their professional teams advance in the playoffs for the first time since “Hakim dropped the ball” against the Saints back in 2000.

It’s a new series that starts with tonight’s Game 5 in Miami. The Hornets host Game 6 May 2.

West showed promise throughout the season but was relegated to playing the inconsistent minutes of a rookie drafted by a contender. Now, he’s playing important minutes in a playoff series.

You can tell much about an NBA player’s ability by whether he is on the floor in crunch time. In the past two wins, West has played when it has counted.

Floyd trusts him to deliver despite his rookie status. In fact, he’s played well enough to supplant Hornets All-Star center Jamaal Magloire for the entire fourth quarter in Game 4 and in most of Game 3, both Hornets wins.

His stats don’t jump out at you, but he’s made key plays at key times. The Hornets need his energy to move on.

The series now turns into a best of three, with the first and third games in Miami. The Heat is a typical young, talented NBA team, and they play well at home but often face difficulties on the road, where veteran teams usually prevail.

The Hornets have made this a series by limiting the Heat’s fast break opportunities and forcing its athletic slashers like Lamar Odom, Eddie Jones and Caron Butler to shoot jump shots, which they do not often convert into points.

But for the Hornets to advance, they need point guard Baron Davis to be healthy. Davis’ injured ankle must stay healthy enough for him to be as effective as he has been in the Hornets two wins.

He lacks his usual explosiveness but has played smart basketball to compensate, picking his spots to drive and finding the open man.

Like West.