The Best and the Worst of the Week
The New Orleans Hornetsmatched their 2004-2005 season win total last week when they defeated the Charlotte Bobcats 107-92 — their 18th win of the season. The Hornets, playing their home games in Oklahoma City while repairs are being made to the New Orleans Arena, have surprised the rest of the NBA with young talent such as guards Chris Paul and J.R. Smith and forward David West.
Mickey Loomis,
New Orleans Saints' general manager, signed up Dallas Cowboys assistant head coach and passing-game coordinator Sean Payton to a multi-year deal after a thorough search for a new coach. In Payton the Saints found an offense-minded coach who stresses work ethic, attention to detail and discipline — something ex-Coach Jim Haslett was often criticized for lacking.
The Katrina Krewe,
a grassroots group started by friends Becky Zaheri and Danielle Heuer, began picking up debris in friends' neighborhoods and has since burgeoned into a cleanup crew that attracts as many as 120 volunteers to its twice-a-week outings to pick up rubble around the city as well as donations of supplies and cash from around the country .
Columbia Sussex Corp.,
owner of the Belle of Orleans gambling boat, failed to pay the Orleans Levee Board nearly $1.3 million in delinquent lease payments, moving the board to obtain a court order seizing the storm-damaged boat while it's being repaired in Mobile, Ala. Columbia Sussex has until Jan. 27 to pay the debt or the boat will be put up for auction.
