NO STOPPING HIM: Chris Paul drives past Kobe Bryant (right) during the Hornets’ shocking 109-100 victory over the defending champion Lakers yesterday in Game 1 of their best-of-seven series. EPA

LOS ANGELES — Chris Paul and a few teammates sneaked across the street from their hotel to Staples Center the night before the Hornets began the postseason, eagerly hoisting up a few shots in the shadows of the Lakers’ imposing championship banners.

With their tumultuous regular season finally a memory, Paul said the Hornets were almost unbearably eager for the playoffs to start.

Maybe that’s why New Orleans got the drop on the defending champs in a stunning series opener.

Paul had 33 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds, flawlessly leading the Hornets down the stretch of a 109-100 victory yesterday.

Carl Landry scored 17 points and Jarrett Jack added 15 for the seventh-seeded Hornets, who overcame Los Angeles’ major size advantage with cagey defense and a disciplined offensive approach that led to just three turnovers, tying an NBA playoff record.

New Orleans also got a phenomenal game from Paul, who scored 17 points in the fourth quarter and led a decisive 8-0 run after the Lakers trimmed the lead to four points. Repeatedly shredding Los Angeles’ defense on pick-and-roll plays, the four-time All-Star was at his playmaking apex.

“I’ve struggled all season long, trying to figure out where to pick my spots,” said Paul, who inscribed his sneakers with the No. 30 of injured teammate David West, New Orleans’ leading scorer. “It’s the playoffs. It’s a whole other energy.”

Game 2 is Wednesday at Staples Center.

A few hours after eighth-seeded Memphis produced a series-opening surprise in San Antonio, Paul and his Hornets put another intriguing wrinkle in the NBA postseason.

Kobe Bryant scored 34 points for the Lakers, who opened the postseason with the same halfhearted effort that comprised much of their regular season after three straight exhausting trips to the NBA finals.

Los Angeles’ 7-foot starters, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum, were widely expected to be an awful matchup for smallish New Orleans, but New Orleans rookie coach Monty Williams concocted an impressive game plan to minimize the big men’s impact.

“Our defense, I thought, was late,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “I think we were late on everything.”