Boston Celtics - The Real Deal

The defending NBA champion Boston Celtics are off to another brilliant start this season, at 24-2. They are only two wins away from tying the 1969-70 New York Knicks and the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers for the best start in NBA history, at 26-2, according to ESPN.


What makes this team so good?

They are arguably the best defensive team in the league. They hold opponents to 41 percent field goal shooting, best in the NBA. They allow 90.3 points per game, second only to the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to ESPN.

They are one of the most efficient offensive teams in the league. The Celtics average over 100 points a game, 10th in the NBA, and also 4th in field goal percentage, at 47.5 percent.

Those statistics are impressive, but the thing that separates them from other teams in the league is their swagger. They intimidate teams. They have a swagger that other teams don’t, because they know they can back it up.

In a game earlier this season vs. the New York Knicks, members of the Knicks complained that Boston was "being classless with their trash-talking and taunting," according to the New York Post.

Last year, the Celtics acquired veteran all-stars Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett in the offseason. These two guys brought leadership and talent to a team that had gone only 24-58 the year before.

Besides the "Big Three," Allen, Garnett and Paul Pierce, the Celtics have nice up-and-coming talent such as point guard Rajon Rondo, who is quickly establishing himself as one of the league’s best young point guards.

They also have a solid bench, with players like Tony Allen, Eddie House, Leon Powe and Glen "Big Baby" Davis. They’re strong defensively and can put the ball in the basket. House is virtually instant offense off the bench, one of the game’s best pure shooters.

There is talk that they can challenge the 1996 Chicago Bulls’ record of most wins in a season. That year, the Bulls won 72 games. Can this Celtics team break the record?

Chances are very slim. Last season the Celtics started out 20-2, and won 66 games. To maintain their current pace for 82 games is a tall order. Injuries can happen, as can end-of-the-year slumps.

With that said, they do look poised to repeat as NBA champs.

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Theus out, Natt in

The Sacramento Kings fired former head coach Reggie Theus on Monday, promoting assistant coach Kenny Natt to interim head coach.

Theus, who compiled a 44-62 record in his tenure as Kings head coach, was fired after a disappointing 6-18 start. Many criticized his defensive scheme, as the Kings, as of Sunday, were giving up 106.1 points a game, 28th in the NBA. The Kings were also ranked 28th in opponents’ field goal percentage, at 48 percent, according to ESPN.

In his first season as head coach, many thought Theus overachieved, leading the Kings to a 38-44 record, a respectable record considering how tough the western conference was, with eight teams winning 50 or more games.

Before this season started, there was talk that Theus wanted to implement the triangle offense, which he felt would bring out the most in his young roster. However, the team struggled with the concept, as the team never found its identity on offense.

Theus took a lot of heat earlier this season as the Kings lost several close games. So far this year, the Kings have lost four games by two points or less.

Natt, who won his first game as head coach against Minnesota Monday night, had been a Kings’ assistant coach since Theus was hired. Prior to that, he spent three seasons as a Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach, and also nine seasons as assistant coach with the Utah Jazz, according to NBA.com.

It will be interesting to see how the team responds to Natt, and which direction Natt wants to take with this team. Conventional wisdom suggests he will play the young guys (Jason Thompson, Spencer Hawes, Donte Greene, Bobby Brown), to develop for the future, and in turn take minutes away from veterans such as Mikki Moore and Brad Miller.

This team is a couple years away from being a playoff contender, but giving the young guns some burn wouldn’t hurt at this point.

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Randy Couture vs. Brock Lesner

On Saturday, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will have its most over hyped fight since Tito Ortiz took on Ken Shamrock for the third time. UFC heavyweight champion Randy “The Natural” Couture takes on (UFC’s version of Kimbo Slice) former World Wrestling Entertainment star Brock Lesner for the UFC heavyweight championship.

The UFC is calling this fight “the biggest fight in Mixed Martial Arts history!” This couldn’t be further from the truth. Lesner overall MMA record is 2-1, and his biggest win was against Heath Herring. Herring has fought top heavyweight fighters like Fedor Emelianenko, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria and Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic but lost to them all. Just because Lesner beat Herring doesn’t mean he deserves a title shot.

The title shot should go to Junior dos Santos who beat a true heavyweight contender in Fabricio Werdum last month.

To give Lesner a title shot is a slap in the face to a legitimate heavyweight contender. To call this fight the “biggest fight in Mixed Martial Arts history” is an insult to MMA fans and more importantly an insult to Randy Couture.

I’m not saying Lesner doesn’t have a chance, it’s a fight he could get lucky, he does have a “puncher's chance,” and Couture is coming off of a year long layoff, but Lesner is not even close to Couture’s skill level.

Lesner does have size and youth on his side. Lesner is 31 years old and stands at a menacing 6’2 and weighs 265 pounds of pure muscle. However, all the muscles in the world won’t help him overcome the wealth of experience that Couture has.

Couture has been fighting for 11 years and has beaten big name opponents like Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell and Tim Sylvia to name a few. Ortiz, Liddell and Sylvia all had youth on their side, Sylvia also had size standing 6’8, but Couture dominated over Sylvia for five rounds.

On Saturday, get ready for Randy “The Natural” Couture to once again prove that youth and strength are no match for experience.

Photo courtesy MCT
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Fantasy Football Bloopers

As many of you know, most fantasy football leagues are approaching the postseason. This can be a very stressful time for many fantasy football owners. That is why we made this special episode. Watch Mike Mital host some of the funniest moments on the show. This episode is not only for people who enjoy fantasy sports, but for anybody in need of a good laugh. Mike Mital and I, Huseyin Aksu, would like to thank all of our viewers for tuning in to the State Hornet YouTube channel.

Make sure you click here and subscribe to the State Hornet YouTube channel

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Fantasy Fix Week 9 - Halloween Special

What do you get when you mix hot girls and fantasy football? The best show ever! Several special guests and predictions make this episode a must see. Find out who you should start and who you should bench in this special Halloween episode.

Make sure you subscribe to The State Hornet's YouTube channel to get your Fantasy Fix every Tuesday! Click here to go to The State Hornet's YouTube Channel.
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Doug Weight Knocks Out NHL Player

New York Islander center Doug Weight hit Carolina Hurricanes Brandon Sutter so hard that he knocked him unconscious and into the hospital. Many people are wondering if the hit was even legal since the National Hockey League is trying to cut down on hits to the head.

Hockey is all about checking the opponents and hitting other players as hard as they can. This is the main reason people watch this sport. Sutter was looking down at the puck the moment Weight made a clean hit without using his elbows or jumping into it. He would’ve hit Sutter’s shoulder if he wasn’t looking down besides it’s hard to go that fast and be in control of where he hits. I’ve seen the Sacramento State Hornets Hockey Club make clean hits and receive penalties because of it, but that just doesn’t happen very often in the NHL.

The NHL is trying to make “head-checking” illegal and if so will suspend Weight for an unintended injury. Weight was just playing hockey and going after the puck-carrier. If the NHL creates another rule on how the players shouldn’t hit, then many hits will be illegal since they look like a head-check. “High-sticking” could even be mistaken for “head –checking”. Minor calls will become major calls and the fighting in hockey will decrease along with the fans. How will the officials separate the clean hits with the dirty hits if they both hit the head? One may be unintentional and uncontrollable and vice versa. But, they both look the same to the officials because everything happens so fast that lines start to blur.

This is happening in the NFL already with the association creating more and more rules for the sake of keeping the player’s safe and making it a fair game. Football players can’t even organize celebration dances unless they want to pay a fine like the Dolphins and Terrell Owens of the Cowboys. Creating more rules makes the game duller because it’s putting more limitations on what the players can actually do.

Weight isn’t to blame for playing the game right, since Sutter chose to stare at the puck and focus on his advance instead of focusing on his surroundings, which included a charging Weight. Every hockey player knows to keep their head up at all times and always be aware of who is around you. If the NHL decides to make “head-checking” illegal, it will most likely come down to if the elbows are used, how long the player’s down and in the end, how much damage was done to the player.

Hockey is a great sport, but adding more rules will only be the downfall of yet another All-American sport. Continue Reading>>

Week 8 of Fantasy Fix

Here is week 8 of Mike Mital and Huseyin Aksu's Fantasy Fix. This episode is all about defense! If you haven't heard about the newly popular I.D.P. (Individual Defensive Player) leagues then you are missing out. Our special guest Cyrus Mulitalo, Hornets linebacker, has some advice for all you fantasy football heads.

Make sure you subscribe to The State Hornet's YouTube channel to get your Fantasy Fix every Tuesday! Click here to go to The State Hornet's YouTube Channel.

And don't forget to tune in October 28th for the special Halloween episode!

Here is a little sample from our Halloween photo shoot:
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