Sacramento vs Golden State Preview Mar 20th 2005

Bottom Line, The Warriors have The Kings number this year. Congrats to the GSW!

 

Clif, I think there was a good article here I posted a while back
http://www.justbball.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32134 that really talks about Pietrus' game and his upbringing. I mean he's a star in the French league, but he's 23 years old and has to break a lot of bad habits. Whereas you got guys like Dunleavy and Jrich who have won NCAA tournaments and have had more polished games coming into the NBA. (Of course Jrich took the longest to refine his game into a shooting guard because he started playing power forward in high school and left Michigan early because he was a lock for the lotto pick in 2001.)

I think Pietrus is kind of on a short leash because his teammates/coaches doesn't know what he's going to do when the ball is in his hands. He's like a wild stallion, fast as hell, but nobody can tame his game. He's was great on defense in the past, but I don't know if it's injuries or what coaches said about him picking up cheap fouls that's made him second guess himself and play lost and passive at times. He could be losing confidence because he is still learning the game and wants to break out, his shots haven't gone down, he's playing out of postion at forward at 6'6 and only 215 lbs, and his game is so raw that he is best used as an open court player or a slasher because he is stuck in between being shooting guard size and playing more like a wing forward without the passing and post game. I think a lot of how he plays now was due to the fact he didn't quite have the coaching at an early age to act instinctively in the half court set and make good decisions with the ball in his hands. He is an amazing player in the open court though and with the two man game and that's where you need to employ him if the Warriors can beat the other team in transition almost every other play.

If you recall that Fisher-Piet play in tonight's game where Pietrus handled the ball over to the right side of the key and called his own play to Fisher, handed it off to Fisher and just took off and got the ball to get a layup and the foul. So Pietrus can be valuable when the plays are simple and his mentality to do whatever it takes to help the team win is there. His potential is amazing, but he was drafted as a project because few posess his physical skills. There's hardly any 2 guards his size that can move like him, especially moving laterally. The cool thing is, if we are winning now and they develop really solid games that contribute to the team and they all fit, This could be possibly one of the most deepest franchises in basketball and we can definitely make the playoffs through teamwork, talent and depth. We just need a big man that can D up and post up and then all of our rookies need to get stronger. Zarko and Pietrus need to bulk up.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting sactomofo:</div><div class="quote_post">Bottom Line, The Warriors have The Kings number this year. Congrats to the GSW!</div>
Thanks, Sacto. BTW why you giving up on our fantasy league? You are still in the playoffs, man.

 

Pietrus is fine. He had a unique role for a while last year,in that lineup where MD was point g on offense,this year he's had a variety of situations without a real regular role,and yet as a young euro with plenty still to learn,he is about where we should expect. He flashes some star quality at times but also makes mistakes. Damp was a plus last year and yet his game was very post-up,and this unit moves,mixes it up more. With not a lot of big,classic C types we could even WISH about,the W's may find Shika is a fairly low $$ 7ft guy they could re-sign. I'd hope to add a solid college F in the draft,round 1,and in rd 2,depending on who is left,maybe we pick up a point g. A point G in round 1 would be very unlikely considering the contracts of Davis + Fisher

 

The one standout problem with Pietrus I think is his passing, and that may be because it seems like it takes him a little bit longer than top players to make up his mind what to do once the balls in his hands. Once he really learns that the league is designed to reward aggressiveness and athleticism he's going to be a keeper...because he has great athleticism and is physically very strong for his size, so he will be a foul magnet when he starts driving on a consistent basis. The bad shots he sometimes takes will decrease as he does that.

If I'm not mistaken both times that Cabarkapa came in during the second half the Warriors increased their lead. Maybe it just seemed like that, but his diversity on offense is such a threat right now, especially because a lot of teams are still only getting their first (or second) look at him for any extended minutes. But I think that come next year, he will be best used as a sixth man that logs heavy minutes, and that can create some real matchup problems off the bench. I don't think he's really a starter though...because he has weaknesses defensively, and he's not strong. As a reserve he can come in and carry a lot of the offensive burden when some of the starters rest, and he is versatile enough that given the right matchup he can play the sf or center position - though I stress that it depends on the matchup, because he doesn't really fit a typical NBA position, like many Europeans. (Still find his one-man full-court presses fun to watch, lol.)

Whether it was luck, or not, I think that Montgomery has to know he's seen the team's starting center for the rest of the year on the court to start the game. And I think Biedrins will learn to be wiser with his fouls when he realizes that he has to reserve his aggressiveness on defense and conserve fouls when he's playing heavy minutes, which he will do next year. It's not like coming in as a reserve, where you're looking to always be a game-changer on every play. It's about picking moments a lot of times as a starter. Never the less, he constantly attacks the basket now, which is awesome and he rebounds very well. He has to learn to curtail some of his tipping though, or at least refine it, as sometimes he actually lets the opponents get a better chance to come up with the board when he taps it instead of just going for it with both hands strongly. Still, it's nit-picking and I know that. Free throw shooting will be an adventure, but by all reports he's a hard worker and so I'm not worried about it long term.

I'm glad the broadcasters noted Fischer's passing tonight, because I was thrilled to see him setting up guys all night long. That is the kind of playmaking you want, and when players see that they will be rewarded for attacking the basket - and as passers see that players will attack the basket - they will continue to do it.

This team still chucks up too many threes, and in many cases I think it's just a TURNOVER by another name, as long rebounds lead to fast breaks, which leads to easy points. 10 of 34 is embarrassing.

One last comment...while some news outlets will talk about how what the Warriors are doing means little given that it's so late in the year and they are playing with no pressure on them....they need to remember that they're basically playing 3 players right now that weren't really part of their roster early in the season in Davis, Biedrins and Cabarkapa. That's probably 2 starters and the team's sixth man next year...so this isn't necessarily any late-season fluke that will only lead to unwarranted expectations next year. This team constructed as is, can compete with a lot of playoff teams night in and night out.

 

Well basicly Beans and Zarko Rocks!

 

This is starting to be real fun. I'm putting in for a 12 game package for next season barring any stupid moves.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting custodianrules2:</div><div class="quote_post">Thanks, Sacto. BTW why you giving up on our fantasy league? You are still in the playoffs, man.</div>

I made a mistake. I thought that there were only 4 teams that made the playoffs, plus I thought that this was the final week and I had no chance of catching up to 4th. Looks like I was wrong on all counts and as a bonus I get an easy schedule this week. Thinks are looking up for me. As for the Kings ...

 

After enduring the first 2/3rds of this year, how sweet is this? 8-6 in the last 14. 3 straight over playoff teams, 2 on the road. Zarko has really been a spark, it is Baron who is the ultimate spark. Seeing him penetrate at crunch time, draw a foul and hit 2 free throws when the W's could not hit a shot was huge, what a difference maker does in the NBA in the last 2 minutes.

IMO forget the talk about a true C who plays like Dampier, that is just going down the wrong road that the W's have been chasing the past 10 years. Look at what there is now, a young, athletic team with size and knows how to hit shots and pass the ball. Getting a traditional C will only stunt the growth of the team and I have every confidence that Mullin understands that. What would Damp do on this team? Demand touches on the blocks, make everyone stand around and wait for him to get up court, oh yeah and tie up around $14M in salary. No, no, no. Stick with what has made the W's successful, keep the young athletic Euros who can shoot, pass, and play the pick and roll game.

Let's not forget that Mullin and Monty are looking pretty good right about now. Thank you for giving a long suffering W fan hope.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting philsmith75:</div><div class="quote_post">After enduring the first 2/3rds of this year, how sweet is this? 8-6 in the last 14. 3 straight over playoff teams, 2 on the road. Zarko has really been a spark, it is Baron who is the ultimate spark. Seeing him penetrate at crunch time, draw a foul and hit 2 free throws when the W's could not hit a shot was huge, what a difference maker does in the NBA in the last 2 minutes.

IMO forget the talk about a true C who plays like Dampier, that is just going down the wrong road that the W's have been chasing the past 10 years. Look at what there is now, a young, athletic team with size and knows how to hit shots and pass the ball. Getting a traditional C will only stunt the growth of the team and I have every confidence that Mullin understands that. What would Damp do on this team? Demand touches on the blocks, make everyone stand around and wait for him to get up court, oh yeah and tie up around $14M in salary. No, no, no. Stick with what has made the W's successful, keep the young athletic Euros who can shoot, pass, and play the pick and roll game.

Let's not forget that Mullin and Monty are looking pretty good right about now. Thank you for giving a long suffering W fan hope.</div>

Things look good now and I am starting to have a cautious optimism that our current team may be capable of making PO. However, if we ever want to take a next step, we do need a big man like Dampier. Currently, we are playing like Suns (minus Stoudmire)/Mavs, and while Mavs always looks good in regular season, they just couldn't go over the hump for years. Also, I may be spoiled from watching guys like Dampier or Robinson minimizing the damage agianst elite C or PF, but I would like to see us putting some resistance against players like K. Thomas, Howard, Harrington, Goog, Foster, McDyess, T. Thomas, Sweetney, R. Wallace and not to mention KG and Stoudmire. Those are players who had a field days against us in last 14 games, and we won 8 games out of it, not because, but despite those less than All-Stars shooting above 50% and drops 20 pts. This happens way too frequently, and at this point, we have nobody to stop somewhat skilled, strong and decently fast PF or center. If we ever plan to go next level, some sort of low defender is must, not an optional.

Also, we have no shot blocker at this point. Foyle has a great timing for block. However, despite his number of blocks, other players just don't get intimated by Foyle. Maybe Biedrins can fill this hole in the future, because he is very long and already changed few shots with his length. However, if he is not, we need to get one, unless we want to see other guards just dancing to our hoop.

Of course Dampier will demand a ball, like all offensive post up players will do. Actually, he really didn't demand that much touches last year, and he was highly effective when he did it. Anyway, are you suggesting that we should just forget about posting up, when Davis' occassional post up makes everybody better? And, when it opens up outside jumper for a team that heavily relies on 3 pts?

And, I don't see why centers like Dampier will slow the team down. It's not like we are waiting for Shaq to arrive, so that entire offense will revolve around center. Also, neither Foyle nor Biedrins are not exactly a roadrunner, but I don't see them slowing down the offense.

Also, last time I check, Dampier gets 10 mils per year, not 14, which is 2 mils more than Foyle. As well as Mullin did during the season, losing Dampier may come back and haunt him in long term...

 

The Warriors beat the Kings twice in arco arena? This team is exciting to watch and once again, I can't wait till next season to finally make the damn playoffs!

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rudeezy:</div><div class="quote_post">The Warriors beat the Kings twice in arco arena? This team is exciting to watch and once again, I can't wait till next season to finally make the damn playoffs!</div>

Next year is our year. Baron, J-Rich, Dunleavy, Biedrins, Murphy and a pick is a good core

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting J-Rich23:</div><div class="quote_post">Next year is our year. Baron, J-Rich, Dunleavy, Biedrins, Murphy and a pick is a good core</div>

You forgot Zarko. That dude is a keeper.

 

Well..Next year does look good. But the thing is that it's still a year away, and a lot of this team is very injury prone, such as Murphy, Baron, and JRich gets knicked up a little here and there. Also Foyle always seems to be missing games here and there as well.

Barring any(or many serious) injuries or dumb moves; this team should be pretty good next year. I am not sure if 14 games makes a team or not. But this team has shown some good potential. I am interested into seeing how they compete the rest of the year.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting philsmith75:</div><div class="quote_post">You forgot Zarko. That dude is a keeper.</div>

Not in Mullin's mind

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Clif25:</div><div class="quote_post">Well..Next year does look good. But the thing is that it's still a year away, and a lot of this team is very injury prone, such as Murphy, Baron, and JRich gets knicked up a little here and there. Also Foyle always seems to be missing games here and there as well.

Barring any(or many serious) injuries or dumb moves; this team should be pretty good next year. I am not sure if 14 games makes a team or not. But this team has shown some good potential. I am interested into seeing how they compete the rest of the year.</div>

Murphy is going to be gone next year probably for a good SF to backup so we will draft Taft I think and we have

PG: Baron Davis/ Derek Fisher
SG: Jason Richardson/ Mickael Pietrus/ 2nd rounder
SF: Mike Dunleavy/ Bobby Simmons (sign and trade)
PF: Chris Taft/ Zarko Cabarkapa/ FA
C: Andris Biedrins/ Adonal Foyle/

That year we should have a pretty decent team already set for playoffs. The dumb moves I don't think will happen. If they do hopefully it has to do something with Murphy trade

 

Murphy is going to be gone next year probably for a good SF to backup so we will draft Taft I think and we have

PG: Baron Davis/ Derek Fisher
SG: Jason Richardson/ Mickael Pietrus/ 2nd rounder
SF: Mike Dunleavy/ Bobby Simmons (sign and trade)
PF: Chris Taft/ Zarko Cabarkapa/ FA
C: Andris Biedrins/ Adonal Foyle/

That year we should have a pretty decent team already set for playoffs. The dumb moves I don't think will happen. If they do hopefully it has to do something with Murphy trade


I don't understand that logic J-Rich23. The Warriors trade a starting PF for a back up SF? Why is that? The Warriors should then trade Mike Dunleavy for Francisco Garcia...it doesn't really make much sense to me. Is Murphy hated that much? Also who exactly would take Murphy with his contract? Unless if something else is packaged with Murphy, all that would do is bring back another overpaid player, and maybe make the Warriors get rid of another good player. I don't know about the need for trading Murphy at all.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Clif25:</div><div class="quote_post">I don't understand that logic J-Rich23. The Warriors trade a starting PF for a back up SF? Why is that? The Warriors should then trade Mike Dunleavy for Francisco Garcia...it doesn't really make much sense to me. Is Murphy hated that much? Also who exactly would take Murphy with his contract? Unless if something else is packaged with Murphy, all that would do is bring back another overpaid player, and maybe make the Warriors get rid of another good player. I don't know about the need for trading Murphy at all.</div>

Mullin is going to eventually have to decide between Murphy and Dunleavy. He's going to choose Dunleavy. If Murphy can develop a low post game, Mullin might change his name and keep Murphy and Dunleavy, but Murphy is making Dunleavy worse and Mullin wants Dunleavy really bad to do well. Look at it. He traded Dampier for Najera and picks because Dampier is good enough that he can slow down Dunleavy. Murphy was injury-plagued, so Mullin thought he could keep him. And if you are GM you really aren't going to get rid of Richardson, so Dampier left. We have this lineup for the beggining of the year:

PG: Fisher/ Speedy/ Flores
SG: Richardson/ Pietrus/ Cheany
SF: Dunleavy/ Pietrus
PF: Murphy/ Cliff/ Biedrins
C: Davis/ Foyle/ Cliff/ Foyle

That gives Dunleavy enough room for Dunl;eavy to do good and he and Richardson do good together. So Mullin will do some pretty crazy things to keep Dunleavy doing good. You might contradict me on this with the Baron trade, but Baron makes himself and players around him better, so Mullin jumped at the chance.

Don't get me wrong, I think trading Murphy is a bad idea, but who knows Mullin might just do this for Dunleavy

 

Unfortunately, by now what you see is what you get with Murphy. Someone who rebounds well and is a decent spot up shooter. I had hoped that he would get to the rack stronger, especially after seeing him posterize Dale Davis in Portland in 2003, but he still gets blocked way too many times. As for a post game, its not happening. If he's got no feel for it by now at 25, he's not going to all of a sudden start developing one. I like Murphy but with Zarko and Biedris on the horizon, he looks expendable. But, he's not that big a cap casualty, he's getting about 7-8M per year for the next 8 years right? Or is it 60M for 6 years?

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting philsmith75:</div><div class="quote_post">Or is it 60M for 6 years?</div> It's $60M, 6 years

http://www.justbball.com/forums/showthread...ighlight=murphy
The original thread with rumors regarding how much Mullin originally wanted to sign Murphy and Jrich for.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=1914283
one of the actual sources

I like Murphy as well, but if the team isn't tailored to his game, he'd probably be better off with the Jazz or something. Defense on the Warriors is the biggest issue. We need to prevent people from just floating down the lane uncontested. Plus Murphy dominates the ball too much. At least with Zarko and Dun you have guys that won't force it up and are okay catch and shooters. Plus they set up other people, which is nice to have and posess more dimensions to their game. I guess our roster does have a lot of tweeners and utility players because if you think about it, Dun plays more like a guard, Murphy plays more like a wing forward, and Zarko plays like a small forward/guard.