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Warriors vs. Blazers, NBA Scores: Warriors Rout Blazers 110-86 to End Season on a High Note

2011-03-15T10:32:17Z

Well, it's that time again folks, the twilight of the NBA season is drawing closer everyday. The time of the year when teams buckle down and scrap it out for playoff positioning, while other teams fade off into the sunset. And with only 15 games left on their schedule the Golden State Warriors are inching closer to another season sans playoffs, despite all the promise the team has for the future.

Currently sitting 7.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the 8^th and final playoff spot in the Western Conference, this is undoubtedly the most important week of the Warriors season. Even though during the last week the Warriors got a win in Cleveland, an exhilarating win over the Orlando Magic in overtime where they set a new franchise record 21 three pointers, and ended Kevin Love's 53 game double-double streak in a beat down of the T'Wolves. But they gave away a game against the underachieving Nets in the 4^th quarter and got smacked around by the lowly Kings at Arco/Power Band Pavilion, two games that the Warriors desperately needed to make a run at the playoffs.

Now the Warriors stand on the verge of becoming completely eliminated from the postseason if they lose a few more games, and have a doozy of a stretch ahead of them. They start on Wednesday as they host the talented Dallas Mavericks at Oracle, then head out on a 4 game road trip around the Southwest against the Phoenix Suns on Friday, then in Dallas to face the Mavericks again on Sunday, then to San Antonio on Monday to face the top seeded Spurs, then finish it off the following Wednesday in Houston to play the Rockets. That's 3 of their next 5 games against two of the top teams in the West, with only one of those games at home. The Warriors are going to have to dig really deep to get those wins.

It's not looking good, but it's never over until it's over. Stranger things have happened in sports than a team this far back making the playoffs over the last few weeks of the season. As long as they block out their performance against the Kings and harness their game against the Magic, they might have a shot to win the majority of these next 5.

Warriors v. Kings, NBA Scores: Kings Overpower Warriors 129-119 as Thornton Outguns Thornton

2011-03-07T21:33:50Z

Currently sitting eight games under .500 with only 20 games left in the regular season, the Golden State Warriors were in dire need of some road wins on their longest trip of the season away from Oracle. Unfortunately they found that easier said than done over the past week.

The Warriors are 1-4 on their road trip so far, and it hasn't been too pretty to watch. It started in Minnesota against the Timberwolves, where Steph Curry dropping 33 and 11 boards was eclipsed by another monster double-double by Kevin Love (37 points, 23 rebounds) eventually keeping the Warriors at bay by a score of 126-123. Monta Ellis had the ball with only seconds left, but couldn't hit his runner in the lane to take the lead late in the fourth, starting the road trip with a definitive sour taste in the team's mouth. From here it was on to Conseco Field House to take on the Indiana Pacers, and it was a shootout from start to finish, although the Warriors couldn't get the win by a score of 109-100. Reggie Williams had 25 points from the bench this game, which helped keep it close despite a meager 13 point performance by Monta on 5-17 shooting form the floor, without a single 3-pointer. Two games on the road, two losses in the books.

Golden State then traveled to our nation's capital to face the Washington Wizards where they got their only win of the trip thus far, 106-102. In rookie Ekpe Udoh's first start of the season, the W's let a 20 point third quarter lead dwindle down to three, but won the game by out rebounding the Wizards 54-40 and getting to the free throw line 34 times, two things the W's rarely do well. Unfortunately the high from the win in Washington was immediately quelled by a trip to visit the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. The Warriors fought with the C's the whole game, yet David Lee's 26 points and 12 boards against Kevin Garnett and Monta's 41 point explosion were not enough to topple the reigning Eastern Conference Champions, eventually losing 107-104. That's one up, three down for those keeping track at home.

From Boston the Warriors traveled to the city of brotherly love, where they found little to none of it against the Philadelphia 76ers. It took a triple-double from Andre Iguodala and five minutes of overtime for the Sixers to eventually beat the W's 125-117, which sent the team from disappointment to frustration as proved by head coach Keith Smart. The Warriors have moved in the opposite direction since the All-Star break ended, and with a record of 8-22 on the road this year and 11 of the last 20 games away from Oracle, you can almost hear the fat lady warming up her pipes about the W's season off in the distance.

Warriors Can't Finish in Overtime, Lose to Sixers 125-117

2011-02-22T17:56:40Z

With 28 games left and the Carmelo Anthony trade fully fleshed out, the Warriors now enter the Western Conference chase with possibly one less foe in their way to that last playoff spot. With a shortened week due to the 2011 NBA All-Star Weekend Festivities, the Warriors lone win took a backseat to the excitement of the two Warriors not named Monta Ellis to highlight the Saturday night events.

In only the bizarrest of situations would the Warriors lead the season series 3-0 over the Jazz. Of course, a little luck goes a long way too. The Warriors faced a downward spiraling Utah Jazz squad in Salt Lake City. A win is a win, but you get the feeling a lot of these "big" Warrior wins deserve some qualification before we jump on the bandwagon once again. Even with a full Jazz roster (they beat the Jazz prior without Deron Williams out with injury), the current Jazz squad was and still is in the midst of turmoil with their star guard receiving a lot of distracting media attention for his alleged leadership in forcing long-time coach Jerry Sloan to resign. But if road wins are hard enough for the Warriors, even against non-playoff teams, then I suppose we should still rejoice.

Stephen Curry joins a list of Warrior guards of recent past to star at the NBA All-Star stage. Like Jason Richardson and Gilbert Arenas before him, Curry took home some hardware for the Taco Bell Skills Challenge, facing the top point guards in the league. Even during the challenge, though, Stephen Curry, according to Warrior fans over at Golden State of Mind, had time to get his mack on (see clips). There's no denying Curry is a charmer, but is this bordering on Mark Sanchez' territory?

Dorell Wright did not fare as well as his teammate, narrowly missing the final round of the 3-Point Shoot Out. Wright began the first round netting four points in the first rack, but then finished strong in the last two racks. Paul Pierce eliminated Wright with his last shot, a 2-point money ball to beat Wright by one point (12-11).

Seeing two Warriors in "skill"-based challenges is somewhat odd to see given that I rarely think of the Warriors as a team with skills as opposed to underdeveloped "raw-talent" or "athleticism." And seeing Warriors represented at the All-Star game didn't necessarily make me think the Warriors are destined for the playoffs, but rather that they might be a better put together squad than previously expected. I will go out and say it that this team is a not a great team by any means. But with a little bit of luck (more injuries to star players on opposing teams?) these Warriors may have a chance to make a splash come April.

With 28 games left, do the Warriors have what it takes right now to get to that coveted 8th playoff spot? And if they get there, do we really want to see them get trounced by the San Antonio Spurs in 3?

Golden State Warriors At All-Star Weekend: Stephen Curry Doing Things!

2011-02-15T15:23:02Z

After a few weeks of trade talks that had fans choosing sides between Team Monta Ellis versus Team Stephen Curry, this week was more about the actual game. The Warriors had the weirder of weeks, unexpectedly beating two playoff bound teams in the Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder. But between those two surprising wins was a blowout at the hands of the Phoenix Suns on the road with the Warriors reverting back to the team that you never thought could, would, or should ever beat the Nuggets or the Thunder, regardless of who was available (Chauncey Billups was out for the Nuggets).

It's the same story as it's been for weeks. Imagine going to 6-Flags Great America (or whatever theme park is near you) and since no one's around, you get to ride each ride like 10 times (yes, even the Vortex or Top Gun). Anyway, by the 10th time, you're probably predicting every turn and whiplash moment. You're bracing yourself for the pain and you know it's coming so it's no surprise. By the end of that 10th trip, you find bumper cars pleasing. Well, that's how these "defining" Warrior games feel that the Warriors keep having week-to-week after stumbling when they probably shouldn't be. The excitement is all gone because you just know what's going to happen next and it isn't pretty.

In the previous week, the Warriors stopped the Bulls and MVP candidate Derrick Rose -- frustrating him into 9 turnovers -- but proceeded to let the Phoenix Suns, a team with a far worse record and arguably worse of a bench, steamroll them with 13-three pointers. Well, this week began and proceeded just like the previous week, with the Warriors letting Channing Frye look more like the more determined power forward that he used to back up in Portland in LaMarcus Aldridge. The Suns shot over 50% from the field and made 12 3-pointers, one less than the previous time they met the Warriors.

With the Warriors of late, they're either really good or really bad. And versus the Suns, you know they were really bad. But when it was good, it was rainbows, sunbeams, and flowers. Against the Thunder, Monta and Curry combined for 56 points and 20 assists against 4 turnovers. David Lee snapped out of a short funk, scoring 23 and grabbing 19 boards. Udoh played 27 minutes and set some great screens, one huge weakness of the Warriors if you haven't noticed yet. In the Nuggets game, the Warriors shot over 50% from the field and from 3-point land. At least we know what the recipe to the Warrior success is?

After witnessing these three games (or bits of them at least), I echo San Francisco Examiner's contributor Tim Liota, who today said regarding the Warrior's recent play:

They are so far from being any good, so far from threatening teams that are championship contenders. A winning streak here, or a nice win there, sure, but this team feels light years from the championship conversation.

The Warriors are worse than a team in need of a new start. They're a team lacking a place from which to start. Pin their problems on Don Nelson, who left them in September with this team possessing less than a mismatched roster. He left them without any combination of players that could legitimately serve the Warriors' uniform as the hope for a new beginning.

What do you make of the Warriors recent inconsistencies?

2011 NBA Trade Deadline Rumors & Trades: Warriors, Kings Remain Relatively Quiet as Deadline Passes

2011-02-09T16:23:29Z

Thursday, Feb. 24 (at noon Pacific) is the 2011 NBA trade deadline, which means some deals will start going down but more frequently an insane number of rumors will be appearing at a record pace over the next two weeks. The most notable rumors will involve Carmelo Anthony, and in fact the rumors have already been flying in regards to Anthony. One minute the Nuggets are looking at a three-team deal with the Knicks and a few minutes later they've made headway on a trade with the Lakers that involves Andrew Bynum and Ron Artest. When in doubt, believe nothing.

The Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings are long, long shots to land Carmelo Anthony, but that doesn't mean they won't be active leading up to the trade deadline. The Warriors have a decent number of expiring contracts and have reportedly inquired about the availability of Nuggets center Nene. Let the rumors begin! Throw in the idea of potentially dealing Monta Ellis or Stephen Curry and rebuilding around just one of them and the rumors could flow over the next two weeks.

The Sacramento Kings have a ton of cap space, which could enable deals with just about anybody in the league if they wanted. Of course, with a potentially cash-strapped owner it remains to be seen how much they'd be willing to take on in veteran contracts. They are in the midst of a rebuilding project so they also want to tread somewhat lightly in order to avoid weighing themselves down with bad contracts or bad apples.

And who knows, maybe one of the two teams will shock the world by swooping in to land Carmelo Anthony. I wouldn't hold my breath for it, but sports can be a wildly unpredictable thing sometimes.

Monta Ellis Outperforms Kevin Durant, Golden State Warriors Beat Oklahoma City Thunder

2011-02-08T16:32:02Z

In the ongoing roller coaster that is the debate of whether Monta Ellis or Stephen Curry is the face of the franchise, probably magnified by the pending trade deadline on Feb. 19, Golden State Warriors GM Larry Riley has a lot to think about. As Marcus Thompson II reported earlier, Riley's hands are tied as his expiring contracts have become surprisingly useless to the Warriors in a limited, available talent pool:

"The main thing is do the right thing," Riley said. "But there is no question we need to make this team better. It has to be done in the right way. It won't be done in a knee-jerk reaction. We can (wait). We prefer to find a solution before the deadline. But if we have to, we can do it this summer."

The reality is a difference-maker is probably not going to come by the Feb. 24 trade deadline. The Warriors' main assets, the more than $17 million of expiring contracts, are not as valuable. Few difference-maker types are available. The ones who are would require something the Warriors don't want to give up.

But as Warriors fans debated whether Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry could co-exist and wondered more and more who to trade, the Warriors quietly rolled out three wins in a row, finally beating an elite team in the Chicago Bulls. But after winning what Dorell Wright called "definitely the biggest win by far this year" -- punctuated by Derrick Rose's nine turnovers and Monta and Curry's combined 56 points and 13 assists (four turnovers combined) -- the Warriors looked about as hopeless as a penny with a hole in it against the Phoenix Suns.

The three game roll featured Monta snapping out of his funk and doing what he does best: twisting, Houdini-type dribble drives and that improved midrange jumper. After having putting up 2 points in a win against the Deron Williams-less Utah Jazz, Monta rebounded with a 24-point effort, followed by 33 points against the Bulls. The dismantling at the hands of the Suns quickly ended this cheer, especially when Channing Frye (19 points and 11 rebounds) looked more like LaMarcus Aldridge than the lanky kid typically scared of the interior. Again, with one huge win, all was perfect again in the Warriors backcourt. And just like that, a disappointing loss against the Suns and another poor effort from our backcourt brought back the backcourt debates, once again.

2011 NBA All-Star Game: West Defeats East Behind MVP Kobe Bryant

2011-02-04T01:32:27Z

The 2011 NBA All-Star reserves were announced an hour ago, and Monta Ellis of the Golden State Warriors wasn't among them. Ellis has had a fantastic season and would probably be All-Star worthy, but it would be hard to say that he deserved it over other guards like Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs, and Deron Williams of the Utah Jazz, who were the official reserve selections. Ellis will probably only make it if one of those guards gets injured or declines to attend, including starters Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets.

In a complete non-surprise, no Sacramento Kings will be making the trip to Staples Center Sunday night (they'll be competing elsewhere though!). Although as Akis notes, Luther Head's omission is quite notable.

For reaction head over to Golden State of MInd (Warriors SB Nation site) and Sactown Royalty (Kings SB Nation site)

Golden State Warriors NBA Scores, Schedule, News: Suns Control Warriors

2011-02-01T15:56:05Z

With the Carmelo Anthony trade chatter slowing down a bit, it seems like the Golden State Warriors are suddenly the new flavor of the moment. And while Warriors fans and the Warriors organization are a fickle bunch, loving the next big thing before the previous next big thing even could establish themselves as the next big thing, it's clear that both sides are torn up by the decision of, possibly, having to split up the backcourt.

The Warriors had rough ending to the previous week, which seemed to leak into this week. But despite the 1-2 finish, a week filled with Warriors epic meltdowns against sub-par talent AT HOME, this was hardly what caught the fans' attention. Instead the on-going trade chatter extended into this week, seemingly magnified by Monta Ellis' struggles with an ankle injury and poor shooting. It just so happened that those games Stephen Curry shined and reminded us why we once unanimously anointed him the face of the franchise (recently revoked by Joe Lacob and some fans at Golden State of Mind). Fans' obsessive support for either Stephen Curry or Monta Ellis has gotten nasty. The divisions between the Curry and Monta factions are so deep you swear it was at the epic level of Team Jacob and Team Edward of the Twilight series. Based off some debates earlier this week, Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group has some opinions that may help you decide which team you want to be on.

But who is the trade bait and for what? On-going rumors are swirling that the Warriors are trying to make a move for Andre Iguodala. If that were the case, are we expecting Monta to be shipped out, since the Philadelphia 76ers have the ever-improving PG Jrue Holiday? But then more rumors purportedly from within the Warriors organization came out suggesting the Warriors were interested in a slew of wings:

The Warriors would like to upgrade at small forward before the Feb. 24 trade deadline, and the Philadelphia 76ers' Andre Iguodala, Chicago Bulls' Luol Deng, Atlanta Hawks' Josh Smith, Oklahoma City Thunder's Jeff Green and Indiana Pacers' Danny Granger all may be on their radar

The Warriors do have expirings and maybe those, currently in this economic climate, are more valuable than a number these all-star or near all-star level-type players.

This week also marked what looks to be the return of center Andris Biedrins. Biedrins footwork has looked so good you thought he had been breakdancing. With an array of pump fakes, pivots, and up and under moves, Biedrins has looked more like Kevin McHale than the offensively challenged center we've complained about. By Kevin McHale, I don't mean the GM but the ex-player. Though you could say Biedrins has played as bad as McHale was a GM. In two games, Biedrins has averaged 11 points, 11 boards, and 2 blocks per game. What led to this? Rusty Simmons reports:

"Coach kicked everybody else out of the drill. It was just me, Monta (Ellis) and Biedrins," point guard Stephen Curry said. "We produced a lot of trust between the three of us. We believe that Biedrins will finish plays when we give him the ball, and he believes that we're going to look to get him the ball."

...

During the three-man drill, Biedrins was able to show Curry and Ellis where he wants the ball - the ghost positions under the basket and posted up on the right block, where he can use his dominant left hand to get into the lane. The center was able to work on the timing of the pick-and-rolls that used to come so naturally with Stephen Jackson.

Can we expect more consistency from Biedrins from now on? More importantly, can we see those up-and-under moves some more?

Lastly, here's a feel good video of Jeremy Lin of the Reno Bighorns:

Jeremy Lin Highlights 2011-01-28 Reno vs Bakersfield (via deansoapbox)