<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"><font size="2">Mickael Pietrus has started five straight games, scoring 14 or more points in all but one game and providing his usual hustle on defense. </font> <font size="2">Pietrus' play appears to have earned him the starting small-forward spot for the moment, though Warriors coach Mike Montgomery refused to name his starting lineup for tonight's game against Denver. </font> <font size="2">What makes Pietrus' performance more valuable are two dates that loom for the Warriors: Golden State has a $5.287 million trade exception -- the largest in the league -- that expires Feb. 14. The trade deadline is Feb. 23. </font> <font size="2">Vice president Chris Mullin has maintained that it would take time to evaluate his roster. And the better his supporting cast plays, the higher its worth grows, the more expendable other players become. </font> <font size="2">Pietrus will be looking for a contract extension in the summer and the Warriors will have a tough time fitting him under the luxury tax, alongside their long-term commitments to Mike Dunleavy, Derek Fisher, Adonal Foyle, Troy Murphy and Jason Richardson. </font> <font size="2">Herb Rudoy, Pietrus' agent, said he wasn't concerned about his client's future in Oakland after Dunleavy received his pricey extension, and, so far, Pietrus is echoing the feeling. </font> <font size="2">After Saturday's game, he said he would prefer to be a starter "like everybody" and wouldn't give up the spot without a fight. He also said the Warriors' success was his primary focus.</font></div> http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c...SPG9QH3BOT1.DTL
IMO that was a weak move to sign Dunleavy to such a huge extension knowing the Pietrus situation was looming. If Pietrus goes to another team he's going to end up being awesome.
Another reason why it was weak was because Dunleavy was a RESTRICTED FA. Smart move Mullin! We could have kept Dunleavy for half the price and resign Pietrus!
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting AlleyOop:</div><div class="quote_post">IMO that was a weak move to sign Dunleavy to such a huge extension knowing the Pietrus situation was looming. If Pietrus goes to another team he's going to end up being awesome.</div> I think so too. Pietrus is one impressive dude when it comes to quickness. Nobody can defend that just like how nobody can defend Earl Boykins when he attacks the lane. He's so quick, it can't be simulated in practice when you don't have a guy like that. He's just faster than most people (even our other shooting guard Jrich), but not quite as skilled or fundamentally sound. He could get to that level very soon if he develops a midrange game and some finesse around the hoop and also listens to the coaching that he needs to slow the game down. I hope we keep Pietrus. Mullin doesn't know what talent is if he chose Dunleavy over this guy without waiting for the market to set the price on Dunleavy's abilities and his Dun nothing impact. At least with a 2nd shooting guard capable of putting 20 points per game you have more of a bargaining chip than a polished 6'10 mismatch that doesn't give you much impact from game to game and makes you wonder why the guy can't play better even with some really good looks at the basket. Yeah Dunleavy is a nice player, maybe he should take more shots to get it going, but Pietrus does make a pretty good case to play an undersized small forward because he can also rebound, he plays more aggressive, and he defends better and scores in shorter or odd minutes than a guy who gets consistent minutes and starts. Dunleavy and Pietrus are both inconsistent, but we would really love to have the guy that is going to play aggressive all the time. It's why Brian Cardinal made a good case to take a starting spot and it's why Pietrus is making a good case to take that starting spot even if Dunleavy is a smart basketball player. We like Dunleavy's potential at point forward, but Pietrus has some good potential as well. What more could you want from a small forward when the point guard pretty much dominates the ball anyway and Jrich needs help on some guard assignments? If Baron was more off the ball and we're guarding other 6'9-6'10 players then Dunleavy seems to make the most sense, but the guy can't match production some nights. He just cannot score right off the bat every game because it's always something and defensively he's not too great against those 6'7-6'8 guys that are much quicker and can stay in front of him. We need to acknowledge that our team game needs work to make things easier on the offense, but what about our pure individual talent? Sometimes, I think too many excuses are being made for Dunleavy Jr. It's either floorspacing, not taking enough shots to get into rhythm, not being able to penetrate to the hoop, not playing "smart" as a team... It could be valid and legit reasons why he won't do certain things, but sometimes, you just want that player to thrive in any circumstances regardless if we play smart organized team ball or not. Sometimes we need the extra movement or the high risk style of play to get results. Pietrus is a high risk player right now and maybe he tries to do too many things, but he gets results on his own just by attacking and playing aggressive and staying close in front of his man on defense. There's just no excuses anymore when it comes to individual play coming from the forward position and the ability to handle these matchups and set the tone. Right now we need our starters aggressive. If you look at other successful teams like the Mavericks, Pistons or the Spurs, their perimeter guys are all aggressive. Every one of them. With Pietrus you got that and more. How do you tell who is really the best baller? Well, in academics, if a person is good at math, it doesn't matter how you test the guy whether it be multiple choice, word problems, or whatnot, they'll find a way to show how good they are. It doesn't matter. With Dunleavy, dammit if he can just play consistent enough to know what you're getting from him, in any style of game, show that level of impact he had in college, we could win almost every single game. He tips the scales that much when he plays well. But since he doesn't bring that impact consistently, we're contemplating how feasible an slightly less inconsistent, 6'6" 220 lb raw Carribean shooting guard would work at small forward. Sometimes Dunleavy shrinks so much I think we'd be better off with playing Fred Jones at the 3. We need our starters to set the tone every single game and I think with guys like Foyle and Dunleavy, they don't. We wanted Foyle to be 10/10, often times he is not. We wanted Dunleavy to be 16/6 or some number with a number of assists and he's not. We have to rely on guys like Fisher, Pietrus, and Ellis some nights to produce points, assists and those guys are inconsistent as well since they mainly settle for three point shots. We need consistency, we need guys who can get off uncontested shots, and hopefully with Pietrus physical talents and aggressive style of play we can find something that he can give every single night in terms of production and impact regardless if we're not quite there yet at the team game. If Pietrus can get open all by himself off the ball or with the ball and Dunleavy can't even use that first step to get around defenders or shoot over these smaller defenders and hit baskets, Pietrus deserves to be promoted.
Well said custodian. I think if Dunleavy did not get the extension so soon, Pietrus would have been promoted much sooner. But management gave Dunleavy a huge contract, and right off the bat Dunleavy played very poor. Because of the contract I believe management wanted to keep him as a starter because they knew they made a mistake but did not want to admit it. Why else would a struggling player keep starting for so long? Makes no sense unless it was to cover someones arse. When playing 30+ mins Pietrus has been very consistent. For the season he's averaging 10.5 pts in 22 mins on 43%FG, Dunleavy is averaging 10.6 pts in 31 mins on 41%FG.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I think if Dunleavy did not get the extension so soon, Pietrus would have been promoted much sooner. But management gave Dunleavy a huge contract, and right off the bat Dunleavy played very poor. Because of the contract I believe management wanted to keep him as a starter because they knew they made a mistake but did not want to admit it.</div> All true, unless Pietrus is starting so that he can be showcased at the 3.
Lets hope they aren't doing it to showcase him. If they trade Pietrus, shame on the Warriors management.
It didn't help that Pietrus got injured early in the season. I think he would have started sooner than now. But I definitely agree that he is a good fit in the starting lineup compared to Dunleavy. I'm still bummed that they resigned Dunleavy to that contract. That is unless Cohan surprises everyone and resigns Pietrus and go over the cap.
I think if there is a lineup change, it's because the dynamic of this roster needs to change not because of showcasing talent. We've got chemistry and identity issues. For now, Pietrus simply is a better fit in a small lineup that needs more weapons and more aggressive play. Sometimes we don't always get that from our starters, especially Dunleavy whose biggest faults is he doesn't play aggressive, and he doesn't get huge results. There should be no excuses why he can't play better, he just isn't living up to the modest of expectations. If he doesn't play well, we most likely lose and that's how bad we need dependability from our starters. A good nba player can play in any style and let the game come to them and simply produce. Pietrus can get some pretty easy points because of his athleticism, tenacity, and quickness, it's the decision making and shot selection that will get him. With Dunleavy he always know where to be off the ball, or how to run a fastbreak so the game comes easy to him in the transition game, but teammates don't always know where to find him or don't trust him when the Warriors can't push the ball. Dunleavy has some good looks at some open shots, but he can't nail them.... which is frustrating to a guy labeled a pure shooter. All I know is the team has to figure out what style they want to play and what will work in terms of wins. Do they want to win on pure physical mismatches and isos or do they want to win based on solid execution by all 5 players combined with physical mismatches. Dunleavy is very tall and he can play when he's aggressive, but it's really been an issue of how to get this team to play smart, so it can be confident and everyone can play comfortable with one another and the game becomes easier. One can get frustrated with the team and one's self if a guy isn't doing what he's supposed to be doing or isn't playing ball the ideal way. But at this stage of the game, WWM (whatever works, man). Think long term and hope the player investments were the right ones. I don't think Dunleavy was a good one based on his history, but there's still hope. I think Pietrus is a lot better investment and there's definitely more teams probably asking about him than Dun Dun.
