Warriors vs. Blazers @ Oakland, Jan. 28, 7:30PM FSN

I think he's actually faster than the three you listed and has quicker hops. Too bad he didn't get much PT earlier this season, he could challenge Nate Robinson in the dunk contest haha

 

Why is it that I am surprised when I just turn the game on and they give up 2 offensive rebounds on two straight possessions?

 

Uh oh... the game can slip away...

 

There's no doubt about it, the Warriors have to work on their fundamentals especially in the big man department and team defense. Also, like Barnett mentioned you can get more out of the first step before the live dribble than you can just by overdribbling the ball back and forth like Stevie Francis.

The open floor game looks good whenever Zarko and Baron Davis are involved. Zarko behind his back to Pietrus, Baron Davis to Monta Ellis lay-in.

 

Zarko wow'ed me with that behind the back pass. Right on the money. Also Ellis is in double digits.

 

Warriors are moving very well off the ball. I like that staggered screen and fake screen/backdoor play. Very helpful to have young guys that are humble and can play. Off the ball movement is very good if you have guys that can read defenses and move very, very quickly.

 

They are going to be well short of my 184 point prediction but at least they are going to win. Glad to see Monta playing well too...

 

finally we get number 20

 

Monta Ellis has 14 pts, 7of10 shooting, 5 reb, 2 stl

 

^ lol he also got 1 nice block he is now my favorite player next to bdiddy.

I LOVE MONTA ELLIS

 

what a monster game for baron davis 29 pts 16 assts!!!!!!! plus 8 boards, almost a triple double!! oh and 2 stls to go with those

 

Zarko should get some SF minutes. Monta can be a big lift in the second half of games when other teams are getting tired and his speed and quiks can be a big edge.

 

Monty just stumbled upon a few good things lately. One is that Monta is not too error prone to be plaing...and is a much better defender than anyone guessed. Whatever new plan for Murphy's role is,it works. Last 4 games about 17 boards avg! Not only that,his D is better than I've seen.

Monty now needs to dig out the tape of that Piston game when Ike went off. Trying to turn Ike into a mini-Dampier is an idea that only makes sense if I'm really drunk....but I have not been that loaded in years,so it's hard to figure.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting REREM:</div><div class="quote_post">Monty just stumbled upon a few good things lately. One is that Monta is not too error prone to be plaing...and is a much better defender than anyone guessed.
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Maybe Montgomery stumbled upon Monta Ellis the last two games. But when Russell Turner, a Warriors' assistant, was interviewed during half time, he said that he wasn't surprised at all about Monta's abilities on the courts. Barnett's question then was, "Why didn't he play more before?"

I really don't think anybody could be too surprised about what we have been seeing out of these players, such as Zarko, Biedrins, Pietrus, and maybe in some cases if you saw the summer league games Monta Ellis. These players have shown to be productive many times during the last two or three years.

Also is it coinsidence or not? but the Warriors with the banged up lineup, have not been going small lately, and the rebounding has been a lot better. This game against the Blazers, they dominated the Blazers on the boards, and got a great 18 offensive rebounds. And it's not as if the Blazers are a small team. Randolph, Ratliff, Pryzbilla(or however his name is spelled), are pretty legit big men.

As for Murphy. He has been playing great basketball the three games I have seen. His defense against Dirk was great and last night against Zach was great as well. His rebounding is astonishing, and he's just playing a complete game. Very good to see.

Oh yeah, and what is there to say about this team's defense? It has been very good the last two games. This squad has the players focused on playing basketball and doing all the things to win games. Maybe I wonder if with Jason and Dunleavy, they try too much to be stars rather than play the basketball that is being played now.

I remember a time in the game where Bob Fitzgerald said he sensed a momentum change against the Warriors. The Warriors came down the court, weren't finding something very quickly. But, probably unlike previous times in similar situations where maybe one of the big 4 would had taken the early shot, the team just kept passing the ball around and then finally I think found a cutter near the basket for the easy two. The Blazers were playing good defense this possession, but it was good to see the Warriors raise their offensive cohesiveness to battle back as a team, rather than one person on the perimeter putting up a quick wild attempt. The team on the court last night was smart.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Clif25:</div><div class="quote_post">

I remember a time in the game where Bob Fitzgerald said he sensed a momentum change against the Warriors. The Warriors came down the court, weren't finding something very quickly. But, probably unlike previous times in similar situations where maybe one of the big 4 would had taken the early shot, the team just kept passing the ball around and then finally I think found a cutter near the basket for the easy two. The Blazers were playing good defense this possession, but it was good to see the Warriors raise their offensive cohesiveness to battle back as a team, rather than one person on the perimeter putting up a quick wild attempt. The team on the court last night was smart.</div>

A big difference was that the rookies were active and not just waiting on Baron to do everything. They continued the ball movement until they saw an opportunity, and attacked. With the usual starting 5 I see stagnant offense, where Foyle stands in the paint, and everyone except Baron is at the 3pt line just standing there waiting for Baron to drive and dish to them so they can launch a 3 thats going to clank. They need people moving around the court constantly and passing the ball to get past their defenders.

 

Also, Don't forget that the last two teams we played weren't exactly the top defensive teams in the league.

 

All true, fellas (last couple of posts). I like the fact since Monta Ellis didn't go to a college program, he's being very humble about what to do in the team game. He's the kind of dude that will address everyone else as "sir" since he hasn't earned his stripes. Anyway, the part I admire about the guy was he bought into the system on that backdoor play that involved Baron/Ike/Ellis. It first started with Ike Diogu setting a fake screen on the wing. Monta Ellis made like he was going to Diogu's side away from the basket to receive the ball on the other side of the screen. The defender goes underneath the screen to follow, but instead Monta cuts back toward the hoop at the last minute. Defender was completely fooled and Baron fed the pass through the high post for an easy lay-up uncontested. If we can play smart like this, points will flow. It's about execution, moving the ball, and moving off of it, and luckily the kid can do it fast in terms of processing it mentally and moving physically.