Well, it was great to hear Nellie say he was going to play the young guys, and try out a new line-up. It was awesome to see Monta/Randolph/Beans all together. Man that's what I'm talking about. However, I cannot ignore the fact that Jack still played 45 minutes, and Crawford played 46 minutes. Mostly, though, I cannot ignore the fact that Maggette played 31 minutes while Randolph only got 17 minutes. What's the point of starting Randolph if you're going to pull him for Mags for most of the game? I'd much rather give MAgs the start and give Randolph the 31 minutes, lol! That's annoying to me. Especially when Maggette didn't pass the ball once successfully (he passed it 3 times but that was for 3 turnovers... maybe that's why he doesn't pass?) Yes Maggette went 16-20 from the line, that's because every time he touched the ball he went Moran Norris straight through the A-Gap. The problem is, that strategy isn't always the best thing for your team. He doesn't even consider his other options. HE has no other options. HE has no other game. It's either "I love me some me" or it's "I love me some me." Morrow was WIDE open for a three and Mags just and-one's it, looks away, and forces garbage. Even Barnett commented on it. But it's been happening all year, so you're late on that Jim. Anyway, it was still a good win. But instead of saying he's going to start AR over Mags, he should say he's going to play AR over Mags.
It was a fun win, nice comeback. Monta looked good, especially his jumper, he's definitely a game changer. SJax played a nice all around game (but I am really disgusted at how he quits on the play when he does not get a call and the other team gets an easy 2) and Maggette was getting free points. Biedrins played big, as did Turiaf. Even though Crawford hit some shots in the 4th, he's so weak. Pound pound pound, pull up J. That's him. Like Randolph and Morrow played nicely in limited time. Worst thing is seeing SJax wait to bring the ball up when Monta and Crawford are in the game. Crawford should get the outlet off the rebound and look for Monta on the wing, just like Baron used to do. Instead we get grandpa SJax shuffling it up. Oh yeah, and how stupid are some of the Warriors' TOs? An over and back to SJax before he crosses midcourt? Dreadful.
Yeah, I remember that play, there was no one within at least 8 feet of Morrow and Maggette definitely saw him and decided to take it himself when he had no good look, ridiculous. I don't know if I'd call it a good win though. The Warriors were very, very lucky to win that game, they did everything they could to give it away in the last couple minutes. And yeah, for all Nellie's talk it is still the same old thing, he will play rookies a few token minutes and show a big lineup briefly, but then pulls the same old crap for most of the game: 4 guards and a center, with Jax and Craw playing huge minutes for no good reason. I'm sorry but I'm not going to stop beating the Crawford horse, I just think his game is absolute garbage. I'm not going to get sucked into the hype of when he goes on a brief scoring binge where he can't miss, where 80% of the time he can't hit jack and lets the man he is "defending" score at will. The Warriors will never be consistent winners with him playing 40+ minutes a game. Anyway, on the positive side I thought Monta looked pretty good and showed me some of that explosiveness and will to get to the rim that's been missing since he came back, and his jumper was looking smooth for once. Whether we're going to keep him or trade him, he needs to show he's back to the player he was, and this game was a good sign for me. Still made some ugly turnovers, but had some nice passes too. I don't think Monta will ever be a point guard, but I would like to see more of the "combo" for him to be a combo guard.
I guess I'm the only guy here who thinks Craw is a good guy and is a decent SG/PG, but if Jax is going to be in the back court, then *he's* the problem. It seems like good old fashioned scapegoat-ism to me. And why do we have Crawford and Mags if we didn't need them and why did we give Mags such a huge long-term contract?
Well, I think Crawford is a good guy, I don't think anyone is arguing that. All else being equal that's a nice thing to have, and I like to see it, but being a good guy doesn't win you NBA titles. Jax and Craw are both problems, as is Maggette. I mean you can find faults with all three of them, both in their play (which they have some responsibility for), and in their contracts (which they do not). There's too many pieces jumbled up to make a coherent team out of. Whether the logjam is at SG or SF or whatever, I think pieces need to move to make it work. I don't think just subtracting or adding a single piece can work, it's like that whole part of the lineup needs to be gutted and started over. Biedrins, Ellis, and Randolph are the only three players that really matter to the future IMO. Wright, Morrow, Belinelli, and Azubuike may have a role but they are replaceable.
No one is saying craw is a bad guy at all. As a person, everything I know/heard about him is excellent. As a player, he drives me nuts. Dude's got J-Rich syndrome- tries to score with 90% jumpshots. With Craw though, his jump shot is much worse and his handle is much, much, much better and he just refuses to get to the rim. Maybe its more like Baron syndrome actually but in any case its infuriating to watch a guy with that much talent rely on his mediocre jumpshot to score. Hes not even a good scorer IMO. He just puts up big numbers because of how much he handles and shoots. I like Beli better as his replacement; both can play some PG but IMO Beli is better at distributing while having an adequate handle. Beli shoots better, drives more, plays significantly better defense, doesn't take many bad shots.
Crawford is a class act, but he's not the type of player to lead a team. He would be an excellent 6th man, I think. He's usually bombs away when there isn't a glimmer of hope left in the season.
Nicely said. But, while Wright, Morrow, Belinelli, and Buike may be replaceable, that doesn't mean they should be replaced. I don't think they're problem pieces right now. You're right, they do have a role, so we should continue to develop their roles, somehow. Belinelli! He's our Manu Ginobili, I'm telling you. In fact, they played together in the Italian league.
I think why Crawford doesn't drive as much as he should is because he's so rail thin. But he's not like Monta. They're both thin but Monta's got the young thoroughbred sinew. Crawford just looks fragile. He's had a pretty good history of not getting injured, I guess, but he rarely puts his body on the line. The problem with Crawford is that, not only does he avoid contact on the offensive end, he especially avoids contact on the defense end, and that's no bueno. In fact, the only time Crawford ever makes contact with anybody is when he kicks some one and then falls down on purpose shooting a three.
I don't think Jax, Craw, and Mags are the problems individually. There are problems even with the young players we have. But I agree there is some kind of chemistry and fit issues. There are the high priced contract issues, too. I'm a realist and think we got Jax as Captain for years to come. However, I think Craw and Mags could be traded, but one has got to get the right pieces back. Before trading Crawford, I rather know I have Monta or Marco set as our starting PG though, and don't want a repeat of what happened with AL.
Here's where I think Crawford and Mags stand in terms of starting warriors players of the last 5 years. SF: Sjax > Jrich > Jamison > Mags > Matt Barnes > Dunleavy > Mickael Pietrus G: Gilbert Arenas > Monta Ellis > Jrich > Belinelli > Morrow > jamaal crawford > derek f-ing fisher I know Mags is not much of a team player (hoopshype even points this out). Maggette sucks for teamplay whereas Crawford at least tries to pass, but what other warriors are willing to earn points getting bumped and bruised? Most other warriors would rather jack a three than take it inside and draw fouls. And the warriors that jack 3's don't rebound! Give me a 20/10 guy that can bull his way to the line halfcourt/opencourt and I'd feel safer dropping Mags' production. Mags is sort of like having Jamison again. He scores and scores like an all-star because of the all-around one-on-five scoring game and the fact he's in between a guard and a small forward (+ strength/size and speed/quickness combo). For Crawford, I like the fact he can dribble penetrate and shoot off the dribble. He won't come up short like Monta on threes, and he won't f it up like Fisher if he has to pick up the dribble and launch it. I tend to like Belinelli and Morrow more because they seem to try harder defensively whereas vets like Mags and Craw don't really seem interested full time. Belinelli and Morrow are so starved for minutes, they'll do anything to stay on the floor whereas Mags and Craw are pretty much guaranteed minutes (which might prove that Nelson is handling the rooks the right way...) Arenas when healthy is simply the man on offense. He's clutch and has more capability than other combo guards.
Our problems are linked to 1.) our defensive ability/effort, 2.) experience in reading teammates (first year this starting team has been together or in their current role assignments), 3.) and lack of big man depth. We basically get killed on the glass, we mishandle the ball, we don't execute to make the offense go smoother, we don't defend inside well enough, and we got too many players whose bodies can't handle 82 games. We get a real point guard to take the ball out of Jackson/Crawford's hands, we might solve some turnover issues and ability to coordinate as a team (it's like a good QB for a football team who is the extension of the head coach). Then we get more big men (suddenly our guards are better supported for screens/pick and rolls and putbacks). We also clean up the glass defensively and deter players from going inside when we have players like Turiaf swat shots and Biedrins gobbling up the other team's misses. We'd also have a big target inside which moves the defense in and allows wide open shooters. We also become better defensively when we match size with size, rather than having Mags or Jackson get eaten alive by David West or Carlos Boozer or LaMarcus Aldridge after they have gotten comfortable playing against smaller men. All the good teams have signature bigs and outside players. We have Monta (who was hurt most of the time), Biedrins (who has no power forward to take the pressure off him in the paint), and Jackson (who has to fill too many roles he is not designed for - he had to play both a point guard and a power forward...qualities he does not have to begin with because of his high turnover rate/shot volume and his inability to rebound like Jrich or Mags). Because he is also a taller man and likes to push the ball further ahead on the inititial drive, it makes him easier to pick off. If we get a really good power forward who is ready to play we solve a lot of problems right there. If we get a real point guard or Monta becomes an efficient point, that would help our ball movement and turnover problem. I just don't see Monta becoming good anytime soon because he must average like 1.1 asists per turnover it seems... The guy is no Paul or Calderon. He feels more like early Marbury. Lots of potential, not a point guard and not even the guy that brings good stuff defensively like Delonte West.
Oh and one more thing: leadership. Who is the voice in the lockeroom and out their in the huddle? My feeling its Sjax even though many feel this is Monta's team because he has more superstar potential. Where was Monta all this season? Crawford and Mags can't claim that this is their team and put the franchise on their shoulders. Biedrins still has to gain a lot more respect in his offensive game before he can claim this is his team. He feels like a really good role player like a healthy Tyson Chandler, but not a potential star like a Paul Gasol or a healthy Jermaine O'neil who you can go to against any big man match-up.
How good do you guys think Ellis and Biendrins can get? They were both pretty damn impressive for stretches.
Agree with you. Mags gets a lot of shit but hes been an awesome 6th man. Averaging 19.7 ppg and 5.7 rpg off the bench in only 32.5 mpg while putting up a career high in FG%. Hes done everything we brought him in for. Yeah, his TOs suck and he can be a black hole (which is why hes a good 6th man) but its unrealistic to expect any change at this point in his career. He is who he is. By all accounts it seems like Nellie really likes him too. Hes actually done pretty well as Nellie's pseudo PF IMO- the same role played by Barnes, Pietrus, Jack, and J-Rich at different times in the last couple years. His defense isn't too bad in the post and he doesn't get killed down there like you think he would. Hes very good at drawing offensive fouls in the post and at 6'6 with his muscle its impossible to move him around unless you're a 260+ lb center type player. Your typical 6'9-6'11 230-245 lb PF can't muscle him. IMO he's probably the best of that bunch in that pseudo PF role considering rebounding as well as playing both sides of the ball. Still don't like his salary but I do like his production. It'll be interesting to see how he does when Wright gets back (supposedly on Friday night). Nellie claims he wants to move Jack up to the 3 and with Craw out of the picture for next year coupled with Nellie's fondness for Mags it should be fascinating to see if Mags production stays up against other SFs full time. Again, I agree that I'd rather play Marco over Craw. Morrow isn't so clear cut because, like I said before, hes got MAJOR deficiencies as a SG. Athletically hes significantly inferior to a typical NBA SG. You see him sprinting up the court all the time while most of the other wing guys are going the same speed or faster and appear to be putting in a fraction of the effort. End to end speed, lateral quickness, explosiveness, etc. is bad. Hops aren't good from what I've seen but I've read he throws down vicious dunks in practice that rival Randolph's dunks. His handle is really bad for a SG. His passing is pretty bad. I like the effort on D but hes got a ways to go as far as technique in that regard (he ought to watch some belinelli tape for defensive footwork). Rebounding is nice, he crashes the boards and at least mixes it up and makes the defense work for the ball. I do like him but I'm not sold on him yet as a full time rotation player. Hes only a rookie so its expected that he'll improve on some of these things. His handle and defensive anticipation ought to get a lot better. Finishing ability is suspect but I like that hes got a decent floater that hes showed off a few times; he'll need it with his lack of explosiveness in the paint.
