Sloppy Start to New York Basketball

Atlantic	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	ROAD	L10	STRK
Celtics	12	14	.462	0.0	9-7	2-2	7-6	5-8	6-4	W2
Raptors	9	13	.409	1.0	6-7	3-1	4-7	5-6	4-6	W2
Nets	9	15	.375	2.0	5-8	3-1	5-6	4-9	5-5	W1
Knicks	7	17	.292	4.0	7-10	1-2	4-9	3-8	4-6	L1
76ers	7	19	.269	5.0	6-10	0-3	6-8	1-11	1-9	L7

The 2013-2014 season has been all but good for New York Basketball. The New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets both have a winning percentage of less than .500 (less than .400 in fact). Some would say it might be too say that they won't perform well, but at 20+ games already played, there are some problems that need to be addressed for both teams.

The Brooklyn Nets have a much different team from last year. In the offseason, they received a lot of different players. They get Kevin Garnett, Jason Terry, and Paul Pierce from the Celtics. They hired Jason Kidd as their new head coach. So, there was now a whole new game plan for this new team. Adding these good veterans to All-star, Deron Williams, veteran, Joe Johnson, and young Brook Lopez, made many people think these Nets would be 1st in their division. At the moment, they stand at 3rd with a 9-15 record. After 24 games, this team has not even won 10 of them...

The Knicks did not have as major an offseason as their New York counterpart, but they did make some moves. They traded veterans, Steve Novak and Marcus Camby, to the Toronto Raptors for 7-Foot, first overall pick, Andrea Bargnani. The Knicks were also supposed to be successful, but look where they are now. 2nd to last place at 7-17 the Knicks aren't looking good in the worst division in the NBA.

Both teams are in the awful Atlantic Division in the horrendous Eastern conference. These 5 teams have very bad records and the first place team, the Boston Celtics, don't even have a .500 win percentage. 

Filip Bondy from New York Daily News states, "Jason Kidd isn't helping the Nets as their coach or the Knicks as a retired piece of last season's rotation."

 

Injuries have not helped these teams either...

 

For the Knicks, they lost their starting center, Tyson Chandler early in the season. Though, he should be coming back soon. Being one of the Knicks' key players, he could have an affect on the team once he returns.

 

 

 

For the Nets, Deron Williams got hurt and missed a few games. Paul Pierce and Brook Lopez have both been on and off the court this year because of injuries.

 

These teams have obviously not met their expectations this year. In a division with tanking teams, you'd expect these two to be on top. Unfortunately, that is false.

 

Once these teams are fully healthy, though, they might turn it around. Until then, it seems like the Boston Celtics will remain in first place in this awful Atlantic Division in the awful Eastern Conference.

Norton High's Journey to the Patriots Hall of Fame

On Tuesday, December 3rd 2013, the Norton high School Sports Reading and Writing class traveled to Foxboro MA to participate in Pats Chat on Totally Patriots. This Field Trip was fully funded by Norton High School.

There, our class was able to walk around the Patriots Hall of Fame. There was a lot of exciting things to see and do there.

 

First, we got a tour of the second floor. There was a duck boat, short films, Super Bowl rings, and other activities. There was a short film for each of the three Super Bowls that the Patriots won. After the film was over, red, white, and blue confetti was shot all over the place. It was really cool.

As for the activities available, there were three cool "games" of some sort. The first one was a scale that displayed Vince Wilfork's weight. You would see how many people it took to weigh as much as he did. The second was a vertical challenge. You would stand straight and hold your hand over your head. Then you would jump as high as you could and touch the wall. There would be a measurement to see your vertical. Devin McCourty was the voice for this activity. The last one was a reaction time challenge with Teddy Bruschi. You would get into a line position and then when he says "Hike!" you would see how long it takes to get your hands on the markings.

 

 

There was a huddle circle that simulated what being in a real huddle was like. Also, there was real uniforms in real lockers that visitors could wear.

 

Also in the Hall was a Field Goal simulation that was simulating you being Adam Vinatieri during the Snow Game. You would kick the football and the simulator would take it form there. That, too was really cool.

 

Finally, there was Etched Glass that was the Patriots Hall of Famers.

 

 

Now, before the taping of Pats Chat, the class viewed the short movie on the Patriots history. It showed their problems they overcame to become the dominant team they are today. There were real fans that shared their stories about going to games even when the team was not good. A woman who worked there said that "Some people just come to the Hall of Fame to watch this movie."

 

After the movie, we went in for the taping of Pats Chat on Totally Patriots.

 

 

 

So, there was a current Patriots player that was there that we could ask questions to. The MC of the show was Romeo from Kiss 108.

 

The player was Linebacker, Steve Beauharnais. We were able to ask him a few questions on the show.

 

We asked him some things like, "What music pumps you up before games?" and "Who was your favorite player growing up?" Steve Beauharnais was a really cool guy, too.

 

 

 

Norton High School's adventure to the Patriots Hall of Fame was exciting. If you are considering going to the Hall or watching Totally Patriots, you should. Both were really great experiences.

Patriots Losses on Final Calls

Monday Night Football games are great. They are even better when your favorite team is playing. This Monday, the New England Patriots played the Carolina Panthers. The final score of that game, 24-20 with Carolina coming out on top.

After that loss, the Patriots are 7-3. They have lost to the Cincinnati Bengals, the New York Jets and, now, the Carolina Panthers.

Two of those three losses, however, could potentially be blamed on last-second calls to end the games.

The losses on controversial calls were against the Jets and the Panthers. Both cost the Patriots the game.

For the Jets game, the Patriots and Jets went into overtime. They were tied at 27. The Patriots' drive resulted in no points. So, the Jets only needed a field goal in order to win. So, the Patriots were able to stop the Jets and get them to 4th down. So, the Jets attempted a long, 56-yard field goal. And, Nick Folk, their kicker, missed.

Sounds like good news. But, there was a flag thrown. Patriots' Defensive Tackle, Chris Jones, got a unsportsmanlike conduct call. He "pushed" a teammate in an attempt to block the field goal. This call resulted in a 15 yard gain for the Jets, and Nick Folk then kicked a field goal to end the game.

"I was confused at first, didn’t know what was going on," Jones said. "Then I figured out what it was and I was like, 'oh, it was my fault.' Still had more football to play after that so I just had to get rid of it really quick."

"According to Fox Sports officiating expert Mike Pereira, it was the first time this season the rule had been enforced."

This rule was added to the NFL at the beginning of this year. Not a lot of people knew about it which made the call look even crazier. That one call cost the New England Patriots the game against the New York Jets.

So, as if one controversial call wasn't enough, another happened Monday night.

The Patriots got the ball with less than a minute left, and they were down by 4. Like always, since he is Tom Brady, the game wasn't over. The Patriots brought the ball up field and had time for one more play.

 

So, with 3 seconds left, Tom Brady passed to Rob Gronkowski.

 

Here is where the controversy comes in. There was a flag thrown which looked like it was going to be Defensive Pass Interference. Rob Gronkowski was basically being "hugged" by Luke Kuechly, Carolina's Linebacker.

 

 

 

But, the Referees called Tom Brady's pass, "uncatchable", and they picked up the flag. From replays and slow-motion, it clearly looked like pass interference.

 

"It was determined at that point in time that when the primary contact occurred on the tight end that the ball, in essence, was coming in underthrown and, in essence, it was immediate at that point intercepted at the front end of the end zone," referee, Clete Blakeman told us.
"So there was a determination that, in essence, uncatchability, that the ball was intercepted at or about the same time the primary contact against the receiver occurred."

 

 

There are many ways to look at this one, however. Many people say Brady's pass was very underthrown. Others say Gronkowski could have caught it.

Asked whether he said anything to the refs following the play, Gronkowski said: "When they threw the flag, that's what I thought it was going to be. And it was waved off, so I can't do anything about it."

So, the two most recent losses for the Patriots have been controversial. From a new rule call to a picked up flag, it seems that the referees are not on the Patriots' side this year.

Boston Red Sox: Worst to First Under Farrell

 

The Boston Red Sox have come very far since their 2012 season. After Terry Francona left as manager, Bobby Valentine stepped in for the 2012 season. The Red Sox finished the 2012 season in last place in the AL East.

American League East	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
New York Yankees	95	67	0.586	-	51-30	44-37
Baltimore Orioles	93	69	0.574	2	47-34	46-35
Tampa Bay Rays	90	72	0.556	5	46-35	44-37
Toronto Blue Jays	73	89	0.451	22	41-40	32-49
Boston Red Sox	69	93	0.426	26	34-47	35-46

The Red Sox did not even have a winning season that year. So, following that season, Bobby Valentine was "asked to leave" and the Red Sox hired John Farrell, the Red Sox's Pitching Coach from 2007-2010.

In the offseason between the 2012 and 2013 seasons, the Red Sox were very active in free agency. They signed Shane Victorino, Jonny Gomes, Koji Uehara, Mike Napoli, Ryan Dempster, David Ross, and Stephen Drew. Without all of them, the Red Sox probably wouldn't have ended up as successful as they did in the 2013 season.

As most people know, the Red Sox won the World Series this season. But without all of those additions, including John Farrell, they would not be.

“Most importantly, because I have been here before, there will be no taking for granted that relationships exist. I will work my butt off to earn their trust, earn their respect and create an environment in the clubhouse that is just that — it’s a trusting one, it will be a learning one and yes, it will be a competitive one and hopefully a very successful one at the same time,’’ Farrell told Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald. “So, if that’s being described as a players’ manager, then maybe that’s what I am. That’s still forming, I’m still learning.’’ John Farrell was ready to take on being the manager of the Red Sox. He said that he was familiar with the Fenway Park and the Boston atmosphere. So, he was a very good choice for the position.

Even though the Red Sox won the World Series after finishing in last place, Red Sox manager, John Farrell, did not win American League Manager of the Year. Ironically, Terry Francona won the award.

I thought John Farrell should have won, anyway. Not just because I am a Red Sox fan, but as a baseball fan.

It takes a lot of skill and determination to take a team from "Worst to First". In fact, John Farrell was the projected winner, not Francona, manager of the Cleveland Indians, one of the AL Wild Card winners. Along with Francona and Farrell was Bob Melvin, Oakland Athletics manager, also 2012 AL Manager of the Year Winner.

"The Red Sox’ John Farrell was as surely the American League Manager of the Year as the sky is blue." said Nick Cafardo, Boston Globe writer.

So, congratulations to Terry Francona, I guess. In my opinion, Farrell should have won, but that was not my choice.

Though, it would be important to say that the votes for Manager of the Year had to be in before playoffs start. So, no one voting knew that the Red Sox would win the World Series.
But, they did finish with the best record in the MLB. So, obviously, they performed well under John Farrell anyway. It will be interesting to see the Red Sox's performance in the 2014 season.

Are the Celtics Tanking this Season?

After the Celtics' worst start in over 40 years, 0-4, many fans thought that they were going to be tanking this season. Tanking a season means that the team will lose on purpose in order to end up with a very good draft pick. Because who knows? Maybe that pick will end up being the next LeBron James... Doubt it, but it could happen.

I thought that the Celtics could have probably made the playoffs in the East as the Western Conference is stronger and harder to make the playoffs. But, an anonymous General Manger said, "We obviously traded away some of our veteran guys who gave us a better chance of winning right now for future draft picks and young players. ... In a different season, it might not make sense, but this draft certainly makes it more appealing." After reading that, I believed it was Danny Ainge, Celtics GM.

As many people know, the Celtics traded away Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry to the Brooklyn Nets. The Celtics received some young players and draft picks in return. But, they also forfeited a higher chance at the playoffs this year.

The Celtics lost their first 4 games of this season. They lost to the Toronto Raptors, the Milwaukee Bucks, the Detroit Pistons, and the Memphis Grizzlies. Luckily, last night, the Celtics beat the also 0-4 team at the time, the Utah Jazz. Wow... Amazing...

But, the Celtics are definitely in rebuilding mode. They are focusing on getting younger players. They also traded away Head Coach, Doc Rivers, to the Los Angeles Clippers. They hired the now 37-year old, Brad Stevens, former Butler University Coach. So, a young coach to grow with a group of young players is not a bad idea.

 

So it seems that after a 1-4 start to the Celtics season could be looked at in different ways. Though, they played well until the end of every game, some fans would say that the Celtics cannot finish the game well. Others will say that they blew a 22-point lead and that they did it on purpose.

 

Being a fan of a team that is tanking the season will not be fun. But, if you look on the bright side, maybe this draft pick that the Celtics are going to get will end up a Superstar player.

 

It will certainly be interesting to see how the Celtics' season plays out. For right now, I am going to say that sadly, The Boston Celtics are in fact tanking this season.

Remember the Curse of the Bambino?

Within the past 10 World Series, the Boston Red Sox have won 3 of them. Before their 2004 victory over the Cardinals, the Red Sox had not won in 86 years. The Red Sox continued after to win the World Series in 2007, and now, 2013.

The Curse of the Bambino was said to have begun after the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth, you've probably heard of him, sometimes called The Bambino, to the New York Yankees in the off-season of 1919-1920. Before that year, the Boston Red Sox had been one of the most successful professional baseball franchises, winning the first World Series in 1903 and amassing five World Series titles. After the sale, the once-lackluster Yankees became one of the most successful franchises in North American professional sports. The Yankees won 26 World Series after that to the Red Sox's zero.

"I remember my grandfather yelling at the TV to beat the curse of the Bambino," said one female Sox fan. "It hasn't happened yet."

Some people had lived and died a Red Sox fan, and they didn't see them win a World Series once.

"There's a curse, no question about it," fan Kris Schneider said. "The Sox always come up short."

The Curse of the Bambino, the movie from 2003, has a quote that says, "If the Red Sox win the World Series, first of all the death toll in New England will be catastrophic. There are so many old people who say "I can't die until they win the World Series!" They're all going to die. It's going to be worse than the black plague."

Nowadays, it is getting harder and harder to remember that curse. The Boston Red Sox have become a dominant team in the difficult AL East.  It certainly has been a pretty good decade for the Red Sox fans in Boston.
In 2004, the Red Sox finished second in the AL East and won the AL Wild Card. They finished 98-64 behind the 101-61 New York Yankees. They swept the Anaheim Angels to advance to the ALCS. In the ALCS, they faced the New York Yankees. The Red Sox came back from a 3 Games to none series to advance to the World Series to then sweep the Cardinals.
In 2007, the Boston Red Sox finished first at 96-66. Once again, in the ALDS, they swept the Angels. They then won against the Cleveland Indians in 7 games. Finally, they swept the Colorado Rockies to win the World Series again.
After coming back from an awful 2012 season under Bobby Valentine, the Red Sox hired a new manager, John Farrell finished with the best record in the MLB at 97-65 in 2013. They beat the Tampa Bay Rays in 4 games in the ALDS. They then defeated the Tigers in a well fought 6 game series in the ALCS. And, on October 30th, the Red Sox won the World Series, for the third time in the past decade, against the St. Louis Cardinals.

It is now safe to say that the Curse of the Bambino is broken. The Red Sox have won 3 out of the last 10 World Series. Also, they won in Boston for the first time in 95 years. It looks like Babe Ruth has finally forgiven the Red Sox for selling him to the Yankees.
Thanks for these 3 recent World Series, Babe! Or should I say, Bambino?

The End of an Era?: The New York Yankees moving forward

The New York Yankees have been a superior team for the past few years. In the past 20 years, they have won the World Series in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2009. In the past 100 years, they have had 51 playoff appearances and 40 pennant wins and a total of 27 World Series Titles. However, this trend could be coming to a close.

Throughout this 2013 year, the Yankees have seen nothing but trouble. Their 13 time All-star, Derek Jeter, missed most of the 2013 season due to an injury. Their 14 time All-Star 3rd Baseman, Alex Rodriguez missed most of this season due to injuries and steroid suspension.

Girardi said, "I think I'm tired of steroids. I'm tired of that. Just do things the right way, bottom line. Everyone should do things the right way, but that's not the world we live in. You get tired of talking about it. There's a lot of guys that are doing it the right way and I respect those guys."
"Jeter, 39, has only played in 17 games this season, batting just .190. The Yankees began noticing earlier this week that Jeter did not appear to be running right, but Jeter never said a word." said Andrew Marchand ESPN New York writer.

Trying to keep the faith, "I don't think you will ever get him to concede," said manager Joe Girardi, who lifted Jeter after watching him run awkwardly down to first base. "I believe that one of the things that have made him great for so long is his ability to fight through things and to find a way to get it done even when it has looked like he might be too nicked up."

"This [year] is probably his worst one ever for him -- to have to live through this," Girardi said. "You could probably go back to when he was 6 years old because he loves to be out there and he loves to compete. And this is the time where he probably likes being out there more than any, and it has been difficult."

Jeter finally returned just before the All-Star Break in July, but lasted just one game with a quad injury. He returned from that injury for a short period, only to go back on the DL with a calf strain.

"I know he is frustrated," Girardi said. "He wants to be out there. It is tearing him up inside. But as much as he doesn't like it and wants to be out there, I think he understands. We are trying to give it a couple of days to calm down."

That's not all that has happened to this club.

The Yankees finished 85-77 and 2nd to last in the AL East, a now difficult division. The AL East consists of the Boston Red Sox, the American League Champions in 2013, the Tampa Bay Rays, an AL Wild Card winner, and the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays, both good teams. The Yankees are falling behind.

Two top tier pitchers of the New York Yankees, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettite retires following the 2013 season. These are both big losses for the Yankees. Without them, their rotation and bullpen become  much weaker and much less intimidating. Mariano Rivera could be considered the best Closing Pitcher in MLB. He set the MLB record for saves. Andy Pettite is the Yankees' all time leader in strikeouts.

The Jeter-less and A-Rod-less Yankees are not an impressive team. This year is their worst season since 1995, Jeter and Rivera's rookie season, where they went 79-65.

Yankees Manager, Joe Girardi says, "I don't see any reason why he couldn't do it next year, I don't. He's made it pretty clear that he doesn't want to [return], but I always say, you know, January rolls around and sometimes you have a different feel about what you want to do." Girardi wants Rivera to return again because who wouldn't? "I'm sure I'll talk to him at some point in the offseason," Girardi said, "and ... I'll tell him when the season's over, 'Take a month. Take a month and a half, two months, and make sure this is really what you want to do. Because once you do go, it's hard to come back.'"

"I told you guys already. I don't know why we're talking about this. I've already made my decision [to retire at the end of the season]," Rivera said after earning his 40th save of the season by pitching a 1-2-3 ninth inning in the Yankees' dramatic 6-4 victory over the White Sox.

The other players that the Yankees have accumulated in the past few years are also getting older. Ichiro Suzuki, 40, is reaching the end of his career soon. C.C. Sabathia and Mark Texeira, two accumulations of the Yankees' dominant 2009 offseason, are both 33 and dealing with injuries. Curtis Granderson, 32, also dealt with an injury starting the 2013 season.

It might be safe to say that the Yankees are going to need some successful offseason soon. If they don't, I don't see them going anywhere but downhill. Their players are getting older. Their coaches are getting older. Their division is getting better and stronger. Hopefully the Yankees might be able to get some players to replace their old ones, but good luck to them.