Hornets center Hilton Armstrong has been playing with the team's first unit due to Emeka Okafor's health issues.

While a strained thigh could keep Armstrong from the court this week, New Orleans coach Byron Scott has been very impressed with the fourth-year player.

"Two things," Scott told the Times-Picayune. "No. 1, his conditioning is fantastic. No. 2, he's just much more aggressive than he has been in the past. And No. 3 is probably his confidence level. Those three things have been pretty evident when you watch him out here playing.

"He's really getting up and down the floor, really sealing people in the post. And when he gets the ball in the post,  he's going up strong. That's something we hope he'll do the rest of the season."

Armstrong averaged 4.8 points and 2.8 rebounds for the Hornets last season.

"It's been a lot better than the last few years," Armstrong said of his training camp work. "I'm a lot more energetic. I'm in better condition and able to run for longer periods of time. I feel I'm all over the place. I did a lot more running (over the summer) and a lot of leg work so I could keep running.

"Every chance I'm on the floor is an opportunity. This is nothing different. This is my last year under contract, but I've just got to keep pushing through it and working hard every time I'm on the court. If I don't play, it would definitely bother me because I'd like to get on the court with other people. If I don't, I know it's just a preseason game. I won't stress over it too much."