I bet we lose. The warriors beat the teams they are supposed to lose to, and lose to the teams that aren't that good.
al harrington's gonna scorch us for 38, 16 and 7...crawford's gonna have 22 points on 7-of-33 from the field. watch...
Harrington looks like he's in for a high-scoring, no passing night. Why has Ellis missed 3 layups in a row?
We could be playing my former high school's girls team and the Warriors would lose and still get out rebounded by 10...
Layups have also been Sjax's problem it seems...and any warrior in the 4th quarter. Harrington was definitely known for quite a few things in warrior town: standing around and shooting 3's, taking charges, not passing the ball, going for the complicated play rather than the simple, headband with bald-headed ridges, looking like a cross between Beavis (from Beavis and Butthead) and a ninja turtle, dropping passes, getting the most offensive rebounds off his own misses, and getting his shots blocked a lot. As a small forward he might have been more effective, but his unusual size automatically makes him a power forward or center in Nelly's lineup.
Jackson is just playing amazing ball right now, making up for how awful he was early in the year. 35 points on 9-20 shooting, 13-13 from the line, 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and NO turnovers. The no turnovers really jumped out at me because I couldn't recall him ever not having at least one if not half a dozen of them in any game this year. So I checked, and sure enough, it hadn't happened before tonight. Plus eight players in double figures, wow, I can't remember ever seeing that before.
Pretty pathetic win. Jackson played zero defense for most of the game. Yes he is putting up amazing numbers. But I'll be damned if this isn't some of the ugliest basketball I've ever watched. I'd much rather watch less talented players who play responsibly as if they respect the game. Right now, watching Jackson wave a hand at Harrington as he goes right around for the dunk... well that's just boring. Who cares? You don't even belong on the court. I've loved Jackson's time on GS. His big brother attitude toward Monta. His playoff heroics. His willingness to guard opposing big men and shut them down. So I guess that's why I'm so disappointed with him now. Because he used to be a great defender. He used to play the game as if he would die for his teammates. Now? He just leaves them out to dry. It's like "F*** you, Biedrins, you guard my man. I don't wanna. I wanna stand here and shoot threes all day. So here comes my man into the lane, and I want you to guard him, and then go get me the ball, and then give it to me so I can shoot my threes. Okay?" What ever happened to the "ideal teammate" label that followed Jackson around his career? Now a days, he's probably the last person I'd ever want to play with. Standing around bitching at the ref, lolly gagging on defense, stubbornly forcing his way into triple-team turnovers, and shooting threes all night even though he's one of the poorer 3pt shooters in the league, ranked 108 out of 129 qualified players, at .33%. Where did you go, Stephen Jackson?
And, uh, is Don Nelson just a basket case or what? 20 point lead with 6 minutes left in the 4th, and you ride Crawford and Jackson into the ground, playing 42 and 47 minutes respectively. WTF is that dude? Meanwhile, Randolph gives you 10 points and 7 boards in 12 minutes, and you pull him after 1 foul in the 4th quarter. Will someone please tell Russell Turner to shut up already? Every time Randolph goes anywhere near the bench, he gets a sit down lecture from the "big man guru" Russell Turner. I mean, this guy never even played in the league. He was never even a college head coach. He was a college assistant coach before joining the Warriors staff. I mean sh!t, I'm sure he's a nice guy, but give it a rest already. Nelson's an idiot for playing Randolph for 37 seconds and then sending him to Turner for a 7-minute lecture about boxing out. It's old already. It's like teaching children. You can lecture about dividing decimals all day. At some point, you just need to give them an assignment and let them work the problems. You can tell a child how to pedal the pedals of a bicycle. You can stop them every 5 feet, make them get off the bike, make them put the bike down, and then lecture them about how to hold the handle bars and remind them how to pedal the pedals. Is that really the best way to learn? At some point, can't you just let the child go for a fukin bike ride already? I'm so sick of this franchise. What the fuk is with Anthony Morrow playing for 52 seconds tonight? Will somebody tell me? 20 point lead with 6 minutes, and you're feeding Craw and Jack 40+ minutes in garbage time. Morrow can't even get in the game? And what about Marcus Williams or Jermareo Davidson? Sh!t, I'll even take Rob Kurz there in garbage time. I mean, where is your head at Don Nelson? Pretty pathetic.
Yeah AO, I am pretty upset that Morrow can't even get in this game for some minutes. Pretty much the whole 4th quarter was garbage time. I just really don't get because he was playing so well and all of a sudden he's in Nelson's doghouse for some reason. Or maybe he's not but he deserves better. How do you leave a weapon like that on the bench? Not only has he been great from outside, and great from the freethrow line, but he's developing a competent midrange game and learning to use his outside threat to drive past his defender inside, and is a very good rebounder. He's got a few holes defensively, but who on the Warriors doesn't? It's great that the Warriors gave him a chance, being undrafted, but on any other team he'd be getting 10 minutes a game at least, not a string of DNPs.
Guys, I think there is actually a rational reason why Nellie isn't giving garbage time to the youngsters. And you guys can flame on this one, but I'm playing devil's advocate here (as I was a little frustrated they didn't get in the game either). As this season has been a complete struggle with injuries and chemistry, Nellie is trying to build cohesiveness with the core guys: Jackson, Maggette, Crawford, and Ellis. We can exclude Biedrins from this discussion since he still produces without the help of his teammates. Unless the core guys can play well together and learn how to close out games, regardless of how big or small the lead is, we're never going to be able to help the younger guys play right. In order for the young guys to develop, the core guys need to learn to play together. Kind of like lead by example. With the roster that has been handed to Nellie, he needs to try to do that first. The players' contracts kind of dictate that need as well. Let's say we're stuck with this roster for the rest of the season, which it seems very likely. Wouldn't you want the players that have been labeled your top players, play at a top level? Like I said, injuries have thrown a big wrench into things. Also, we can't dismiss that this roster is utterly flawed so my explanation might not really make too much sense, but the roster is what it is. So in the case of last night's game and the game against the Jazz, I think Nellie just wanted the guys to keep playing at a high level. This is the first time this season we have seen this group of guys together and since they're playing well, we might as well keep them on the floor. Is this at the expense of the young players? Temporarily, but I think in the long run (i.e. the remainder of this season and going into next season barring no major roster changes), this is the right move.
How could I have guessed, oop was ticked off after a blowout. Honestly... The trade deadline is around the corner and the key players are showcasing their talent well. IMO, Nelly did exactly what he was supposed to do.
I know, right? Those are some very good points you make, DK. It may be that Nellie is just accepting that he's stuck with what he has, and knows he needs to almost force them to come together and have chemistry. Also, your point about Biedrins is good. I've been saying for a while that we need to find pieces to fit with him and Monta, but it may be that almost any piece will fit with Beans because he's so, well, he's like the ideal teammate. Still, though, he has to be one of the centerpieces of the vision of the future. Lastly, your point that needing the "vets" to play well in order for the younger guys to play right, I can see that. I mean, a winning team vibe definitely helps the young guys play right. However, back when the Warriors were winning with Baron, the young guys could never get in then, either. Also, it may be that our core group of "vets" just aren't capable of being a winner. But this talk of showcasing the players doesn't affect the discussion of Randolph, Morrow, or garbage time. Two things can be equally true. Nellie didn't have to bench Craxette the entire game and play Randolph/Morrow 48 minutes. Morrow can get his 10-15 minutes without affecting anyone. Three minutes from Watson, three minutes from Crawford, three minutes from Maggette, three minutes from Azibuike, three minutes from Jackson. There's 15 minutes right there. What, if Jackson plays 44 minutes instead of 47, he's no longer being "showcased?" When Malik Rose is getting his 5 minutes of garbage time in a meaningless blowout, and Morrow is getting 52 seconds, I don't know about the rest of you, but to me that is totally birdbrained.
I agree that Biedrins should be our centerpiece. I love that some Warrior fans think "he's not that good." Fact is, he brings so many intangibles to the table that most people will overlook it and criticize his flaws. But, the thing is, his flaws are never really exploited except when he's at the free throw line. He does the things he does well, very well. And he completely and utterly stays away from the things he can't do well, like shooting a jumper. Come to think of it, that's really the only thing he can't do. Imagine Biedrins with a Turiaf's jumper. Look, I'm all for Morrow to get meaningful PT. I don't know what the deal is, but the kid's a pro and he'll go with the flow. Nellie has vouched for the guy on several occasions, so I don't think he's in the dog house or anything like that. I am HOPING that Nellie's refusal to pull the starters is a combination of him being stubborn but moreso him wanting to build something good, hoping the rest of the players will follow suit.
