Credit where it is due

In the midst of the incredibly playoff frenzy and Baron-mania I'd like to take a few moments to thank someone who I think has been unappreciated by the fans.  Two people in fact, Chris Mullin and Don Nelson.  Can you believe at one point we wondered if Nelson would be a significant improvement over Mike Montgomery?  The man is a mastermind, he has motivated Baron, along with the rest of the team, to at last play up to the level we all knew they possessed.

Chris Mullin is the real guy I wanted to mention in this diary however.  I can't say enough about what a turnaround he has made.  I won't lie, the first half of his management duties were painfully bad.  Opening the checkbook for Murphleavy?  Drafting POB?  Even Ike wasnt that great a pick given his tendencies to get on the wrong side of our coaches.  Fortunately Mullin fixed many of those problems with 2 concise moves.  Hiring Nellie was a great move, and it did all he could have wanted and more.  The playoff excitement is back, and with any luck Nellie is grooming Keith Smart to pull an Avery Johnson and take us to the best record in the NBA (Ok maybe an exaggeration).  The Indiana trade sealed the deal.  I would have been excited if we got Indiana's team trainer and ballboys for what we sent to them.  It took a while for the team to start playing together, but once it happened it was well worth the wait.  WE finally started winning games against bad teams, and at the least sticking with the good teams.  Mullin brought more excitement to the Bay, even on an off night Jax and TMNT bring more excitement than Dnleavy and Murphy on their best days.  He also ditched two awful contracts which will weigh down the Pacers for the next few years instead of us.  Poor team.  Normally as this point in the year I am combing the mock drafts, trying to find the player that could turn this team around and could potentially fall to the 9-11 spot.  But this year I don't even bother looking for 2 reasons.  For the first time in a long time, it doesnt appear that the Warriors have and giant holes in their lineup.  There are still issues but nothing that the team needs just to win games.  The second far more enjoyable reason is that I am too busy watching playoff games!!