I have been breathing basketball all my life, but because I wasn't born and raised here in the U.S I only root for players not teams. It wasn't until 4-5 seasons ago not long after I moved here in SF that I adopted the Warriors, by default, as the team to root for.

I started following the Warriors during the year we got Baron Davis. It was a tough two years and there was only one thing that kept coming out of my mouth back then: We need a better coach. Sure enough, we get Don Nelson and the rest is We Believe history.

So while I don't have the credentials of being a Warriors fan since birth, I have seen my share of some tough times. And through the years, I've come to experience Warriors basketball and found out why people still root for them despite their mighty struggle to be successful.

Rooting for the Warriors is more than looking at the win-column, it is a game-by-game experience. This is why a lot of people are bewildered how a lot of people genuinely support this franchise despite being woeful for so many years. They're missing something us fans see, every single game. Even before the Nellie years, the Warriors have been entertaining to watch. Every single game, they find a way to win or lose despite having a seemingly insurmountable lead or deficit. I am sure you are very familiar with this scenario: Warriors burst out the gates and get a double digit lead in the 1st quarter, then as time goes down the 2nd quarter the lead slowly goes down to 10...8...6...4 just before the half ends. Third quarter comes, and there goes the lead..... OR perhaps this scenario: Warriors seems lifeless and gets down by 20 in the 1st Q, they finally wake up in the 2nd Q and it they start slowly chipping away the lead. The 3rd Quarter becomes a struggle as the Warriors starts creeping in to tie the game. Then there's the storybook ending. After being down or up so many, it seems to always come down in the last couple of minutes of the game. After your chest has undergone numerous rise and fall, there's always room to hold your breath for the last minute of the game and witness the incredible comeback or how the Warriors incredibly blew the game. The Warriors has been this way even before Nellie came in, he just multiplied the fun factor even more by making the team susceptible to major collapses as well as leading them to miraculously runs so no lead was ever safe or insurmountable. And this is the very reason I couldn't get enough of Warriors basketball no matter how frustrating/heartbreaking/depressing it can become because I come in every game not knowing what to expect. I expect them to lose, they win. I expect them to win, they lose. I turn around to grab something to eat and next thing you know they're up by 18. I use the bathroom and they're down 4. It is this brand of basketball that had me watching every single game I can and not just checking the boxscore and celebrate the W.

The Warriors has got to be one of the most unorthodox team in the NBA. Like I said, you come in every game not knowing what to expect. There's no team that can't beat us (except the Mavs at one point) and there's certainly no team we can't beat. Nevermind the fact that the opposing team is on a 20-game winning streak or starting the end of their bench due to injuries, all predictability goes down the drain as soon as they play the Warriors. Playing against the Warriors, at least for the last couple of years, also mean career nights for at least one bench player. No worries about Kobe dropping 81 here, it will be the likes of Vujacic or Farmar or Sun Yue (who will be activated and will play just for this one game) who will have career nights against the Warriors.

The Fans really connected with the players and the players with the fans. It was either Jason Richardson or Baron Davis or Monta or Jackson or even Pietrus and Barnes who will make one spectacular play that will draw fans off their seats. Be it a thunderous slam or a monster block, it is a call to arms to every fan in the arena who are more than willing to oblige. The players really did well in feeding off the energy from the crowd and all in attendance was generous in giving it.

BUT..... this year, the Warriors did more than just put new faces on the team. They created a whole different atmosphere. An atmosphere that's not only disgusting in the boxscore, but also disgusting to watch.

The current Warriors, exaggeration or not, are soul-less. Yes, they are very well capable of putting points on the board like teams of the past, but the way they're doing it is unfamiliar. Gone are the flash and swag that gets fans off their seat, this team is exactly what it is, a scoring machine. They're like Bingo, you'll know you'll keep getting the numbers but there's nothing to be excited about until you actually win one.This team has always taken pride for having a lot of heart that let them will some games into wins but this current great seems to be greatly lacking in that department.

On the defensive side, while the Warriors has not exactly been great in this department they were capable of turning it on once or twice a game, especially when they needed it. This team doesn't look capable of doing just that.

Stephen Jackson. I'll tell you why Jackson is all of a sudden getting a lot of heat this year. It's not because of his poor shot selection or not looking to pass the ball enough especially when the defense is on him. Like he said, he's always played this way. He's getting a lot of heat this year because he's not playing for anything anymore, at least not right now. Last year, no matter how bad he was playing he comes off the hook and then some because of his late game heroics. Last year, it didn't matter much if he shot 1-6 beyond the arc because that one 3pter sealed the win for us. And it is all about the win. This year, we take it as it is: woeful 1-6 beyond the arc.

This season is too early to write everything off although Nellie already did, but Nellie is like my friend who says/promises a lot of things but only 1/10 of those ever happen. And especially with countless arguments to be made, there are reasons not to throw in the towel. But that doesn't mean I'm not starting to lose interest, at least in watching games (already missed two games deliberately this year).

This team didn't just lose some players or a couple of games in the win column. This team lost something bigger. This team, at the moment, is playing without a soul.