Recap: Warriors 121, SEATTLE SuperSonics 126- Too Hot for TV! That's That.

by Atma Brother ONE on Apr 17, 2008 12:46 AM PDT in Recaps Comment 20 comments

Well it's a good thing the season finale wasn't televised. Only this unclutch Warriors squad (3-6 in the final month of the season) could lose to the worst team in the Wild Wild West on the last game of the season at home on Fan Appreciation Night.

Final Preview/ Open Thread of 2k7-2k8

Nellie's too old and accomplished to be wasting his time with this sorry front office and cheap owner and so are we.

via d.yimg.com

Final Box Score of 2k7-2k8

Thank god it was all MEANINGLESS. Make a meaningful jump!

Game Notes

In this week's Counting W's segment on The W Column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area here's what I wrote about this game:

There's no reason at all why the Warriors should drop this one to the worst team in the West at home in front of the We Believers on the last day of the season. None.

And here's what I wrote in the preview:

As for the actual game against the SEATTLE SuperSonics (S.O.S.), well it's completely meaningless. Monta Ellis could go 1 for 20 and it means nothing. Marco Belinelli could duplicate his fool's gold summer league game and go off for 37 points again. It still means nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Um, so yeah this game was completely MEANINGLESS. Don't get me wrong I had a great time out at the game and I rooting on the Dubs as if it was Game 6 of the Shock the World series, but at the end of the night it was MEANINGLESS. I'm sure the passionate GSoMers who were at the Roaracle can toss in some more game notes in the comments about this MEANINGLESS game, but just for fun here's a few of my game notes:

Kevin Durant is going to be a superstar. Man this guy looked smooth. Imagine Brandan Wright with silky smooth handles, a sweet jumper, and more fire. All-Star in 2-3 seasons guaranteed.
Jeff Green is going to be very, very good. He was absolutely killing the nonexistent Warriors D in the first half. His handles looked pretty good and he exploded to the rim several times. His behind the back pass in the low post was CWebb-esque.
Marco Belinelli's a nice shooter when he sets his feat and gets a good look. Too bad he has the worst shot selection I've ever seen since Antoine Walker and doesn't have a clue on defense. Fantasy Junkie caught Belinelli trying to crash for an offensive rebound from the top of the key when he was the last line of defense. He looked utterly lost on a backdoor cut from his man too. I can't say I understand why the crowd goes nuts every time he comes in the game. It's just disrespectful to a guy like Kelenna Azubuike who worked hard for his minutes this season, outplayed Belinelli since the Summer League (but got next to no attention), and beat him for a backup spot all season long. Where's the love for Kaz?
The Warriors D tonight, like most of the season, was similar to their 2008 Playoff run. Nonexistent. I know the game was MEANINGLESS, but their defensive effort was just atrocious. Let's just say the Warriors "big 3" of Baron Davis, Monta Ellis, and Stephen Jackson didn't win any votes for Defensive Player of the Year tonight.
Andris Biedrins walked away with a nice gaudy stat line, but there's two things I'll remember from this game all offseason. When a Sonic wingman was driving to the hole (unguarded of course) Biedrins tried to slide underneath him late and take a charge which was rightfully whistled for a blocking foul. Biedrins had a nice look at the basket and instead of forcefully dunking over a smaller Sonic, elected to fade away and miss an easy 2 inches away from the bucket. Like the rest of this team in the final stretch. Soft.
Patrick O'Bryant and Brandan Wright looked sharp in those suits!
Props to the crowd tonight. They were loud and really into it. I was pleasantly surprised. The entire arena stood up for the last 2 minutes of the game rooting on the Dubs. That's luv.

S.O.S.

Here's my take on the Sonics and Seattle situation. You have a passionate hoops fan base that's getting played. The city already used public money to renovate the stadium in the mid 90's. Now some greedy billionaire owners are complaining that the taxpayers won't shell out their own hard earned dollars to help them build more corporate (read: less than casual fans) targeted luxury boxes so they can get richer. You know there are more important things in this world than continuing to line up billionaire's pockets with more green like improving public school education, public transportation, pollution, and other other public services. Disgusting. Capitalism and fan exploitation at it's worst. Let's hope Warriors owner Chris Cohan is at least classy enough not to go that route in a few years.

By the way Howard Schultz- nice little publicity stunt. Too bad you're probably going to lose the case and your efforts seem just a little bit disingenuous seeing as how you sold the team to a group of Oklahoma City investors in the first place.

Some far superior insights from around the web:

Why Warriors Fans Should Care about the Sonics (xacto)
Save the Sonics, and Your Team [Fast Break]
Save Our Sonics
Save the Sonics! Rock the NBA Board of Governors vote! [Ball Don't Lie]
Legal experts call Schultz suit a long shot [Seattle PI]
Stern's trash talk stinks, but pros could teach him a lesson [Seattle Times]

There's plenty of more good stuff out there on S.O.S., so please drop links in the FanShots or in the comments section of this post. This is a big deal and if this goes down it could easily happen to any NBA fan community. No one is safe.

To get the offseason rolling I'm going to drop the first edition of what should be a semi-regular segment titled the Golden 5. Post any requests for the segment in the comments. A few of the topics in consideration:

Biggest Offseason Questions
Reasons to Look Forward to Draft Day 2008
Warriors Front Office Blunders of 2007-2008

But here's the Golden 5 numero uno...

**********

Golden 5: 2k7-2k8 Golden State Warriors were Unstoppable Baby!

1) Point's a Plenty!

A lot of critics will point to the Warriors lack of a credible and consistent low post scorer as the chief reason why they're gone fishing earlier than we and the NBA Ratings committee would have liked. I'll point them to the Warriors league leading 1 10.9 ppg this season. More often than not scoring was not a problem for this team. Nellie had a very flawed roster put up tremendous scoring outbursts nightly. It was just a pleasure to watch whether it was Boom Dizzle dazzling us with his stepback "what is he thinkin-- YESSSSSSSSSSS!" treys, Monta gliding to the rim and just floating in the air for what often seemed like an eternity, or Stack Jack shot putting another clutch trey in the 4th.

Defense- well, that's another story for another time.

2) Hell Froze Over

I still cannot get over the fact that Chris Webber came back 14 years after the breakup to reunite with Coach Don Nelson and retire as a Warrior this past season. Here's what I wrote on the day he retired:

As an editorial note, I have to say I really loved the drama and excitement of covering the Chris Webber and Don Nelson short, but wildly entertaining reunion tour on the Golden State Warriors 14 years after the breakup and start of the drought (see The Dirty Dozen: 1 | 2 | 3). Part of me now feels complete. The curse is over. I'm just waiting for Chris Cohan to sell the team now. Two words: Larry Ellison. He put the Oracle in Roaracle.

Chris Webber Comes Back:

3) 1 Luv, 1 Dub in the Community

In this day and age of sports media sensationalism unfortunately all we ever see in the headlines is the negative stuff. It's like the mainstream media and b-rate independent blogs get a kick out of celebrating other people's struggles, misfortunes, and dysfunctionality. I'd just like to highlight a few of the many wonderful things this cast of Warriors did this season off the court:

That's a lot to be proud of. Please drop more in the comments. Spread the good word.

4) Counting Big W's

Don't ever forget these wins:

5) GSoM in Full Effect

This show rose to new heights this past season and a lot of times I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Rolling nearly 1000 deep to a Warriors game? Sporting the flyest threads at the Roaracle in unison? Messing around and getting a triple double on the real deal hardwood? We've come a long way my friends.

There's no other online hoops spot like GSoM. None.

**********

As Snoop and Kels would say THAT'S THAT. It's an odd ending to what was mostly a fun season but overall still a HUGE disappointment. When the Warriors ended last year with a Game 5 loss in the playoffs to the Jazz, both Fantasy Junkie and I wrote headlines proclaiming "This is just the beginning."

Sadly we couldn't have been anymore wrong. But I guess that's what happens when you follow a season that was sparked with a brilliant trade that the mastermind Nellie shaped into the improbable fastest starting 5 ever assembled (Baron, Monta, J-Rich, Stephen, and Al- you know the t-shirt!) with a cheap move that turned out to be a complete disaster in year 1 and deprived us all of a thrilling spring of We Believe 2.0 in the Bay.

Almost a year later we're back to where we started with this team. Back in the lottery and with even more dismal prospects of returning to the promised land (meaning 1st round of the playoffs) next year and beyond. The West is only going to get tougher next season with what should be improved teams like the TrailBlazers (the biggity biggity O), the Clips (Thornton + Brand + Kaman = Nice), and the Kings (they should be healthier and who knows? Artest might actually stay). If there's one thing that this season proved, it's that this current front office mindset and roster just isn't going to get it done. Major changes need to be made or else we could be looking at a team that's just fighting to make the 9th or 10th spot in the loaded Western Conference when it's all said and done in April 2009.

The future ain't looking so bright.

Thank god we still got jokes.

I want to dedicate this honor to my potnas in the GSoM Crew. Big ups to Fantasy Junkie (Justin), Hash (Ashish), DJ Fuzzy Logic (Brian), Yaobuttaming (Owen), Tony.psd (Anthony), R Dizzle (Ram), and Adam. This past Warriors season left a lot to be desired in terms of front office competence. Cohan, Rowell, and crew pulling a cheap bait and switch on the Warriors fan base (forcing thousands to buy season tickets to watch a playoff team last spring, then cutting costs in the offseason and refusing to spend for a Western Conference Playoff product this year) and pricing out many longtime loyal Warriors fans with next season's ticket price hike ain't so hot either. But there's no doubt about it. My boys made this entire season one big great time out! The amount of dedication, passion, and energy they pour into this friend-based effort 24-7-365 is just remarkable. For me they make it like that old CMY slogan:

Success is not in the trophy won, but in the race run.

Signing off on 2k7-2k8!

Poll

Was the 2007-2008 Golden State Warriors season a disappointment?

Yes

773 votes

No

795 votes

1568 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs | Comment 20 comments

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Comments

NICE

LONG RECAP! good season. Was fun. Can’t wait for next year. Deep down inside I am kinda glad the Dubs missed the playoffs… sure it hurts a little but the way we’re playing right now we are going to get swept for sure by the lakers. Then everyone will say last year was a fluke yadda yadda yadda. At least this way we can say we were tired :p

and Buke did get love. He got “The Wave” from the crowd hahahaha…

I think the reason people love Beli is because people think he is Manu v2. I see him more as Peja v2.

by saintdee on Apr 17, 2008 1:18 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I think if I had to vote on the poll immediately after the Denver loss, I’d have voted yes for a disappointing season. Having a week now to sit and reflect on the positives, I don’t feel so bad about this season. There’s so much potential for growth for Monta and Biedrins and Wright. If we can keep them, there will be plenty more enjoyable seasons to come.

by IQofaWarrior on Apr 17, 2008 1:22 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Great season ending game! (even after the loss...)

It isn’t often a Dubz player like Croshere takes the time to critique my work! That right there was a plus! After our conversation he officially asked me to draw him during the off season! Boom-shaka-laka!

I thought he was mad at me for making him chubby!

by Tony.psd on Apr 17, 2008 1:25 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

You got a Warrior as your fan

that’s awesome.

by IQofaWarrior on Apr 17, 2008 1:28 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dude...

He looked mean when I showed him my sign! I had to explain what and why I did it. I got hella nervous lol! Austin never smiles! But when I saw his grin… and he gave me a thumbs up, it was a big relief! The sign I made this morning was half drawn and I wasn’t proud of it- I stayed up will 4 am doin it and had 2 sleep cause work was at 7. I’m actually gonna redo that beastie boys concept and add more flavor like a doper looking boom box, fisherman hats and stunna shades…

Anyways- that game was hype-, hype as in I took it in hard and cheered as much as I could. 6 months out, I’m gonna miss the Oracle just for bein’ there and rockin’ out like a fan.

by Tony.psd on Apr 17, 2008 1:36 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I found...

...the season disappointing, but given the differing reasons I likely have with the recap for why, I didn’t cast an actual vote. I am pretty dismal about it, though.

by Zack Vank on Apr 17, 2008 3:47 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Offseason

With a young nucleus, do you think the Warriors should continue building upon it in the draft, or should try to sign a big free agent like Jamison to bolster their team for 08-09?

by marzorg on Apr 17, 2008 5:57 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

if Nellie is still the coach

and the team wants a shot at the playoffs, the draft is worthless unless they are going to use the draft pick as part of a package trade for a VETERAN that Nellie will play, otherwise, BWright will have more company on the bench.

by centerre on Apr 17, 2008 10:25 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Look

i am disappointed sure, but i understand why. When you look at Jackson and baron, baron is 29, jackson is 30, and both logged in 40 minutes of everygame, 82 times, plus at a chaotic pace. No one and i mean no one can keep that up. Monta only played about 25 game for the first 30, plus, he is so young that it does not make a difference. Whoever is coaching, whether its nelson or someone else, needs to give theses guys some rest. bench will be critical in the offseason. I’d love to see use pick up powe and posey, and get doresy in the second round. Beans is on fire, but his defense is always questionable, since he is not much of a presence. Dorsey is in the second round for 3 reasons, 37% free thrower, fouls a lot, and his range is the restricted zone. However, he would make an amazing back up. Fast, crazy stregth, athletic, gets us into the bonus, and is a REAL presence down low. and he will not have to worry about fouling as a back up. i would not mind seeing a trade for derrick rose, sorry baron, but it is not our biggest concern. Here is my check list
1. resign monta to 12-15 mil, 5 years
2. resign baron to 14-16 mil, 3 years
3. resign beans to 6-8 mil, 3 years
4. Lottery!
5. drop barnes and krosure, but barnes can still be a cheerleader
6. resign azibukie to 4-6 mil 3 years
7. Add fa depth to team(posey, jones, powe, baas)
8. resign watson to 2-3 mil 2 years
9. sign POB and Petrius for anything that is resonable, like 4-5 for mickael, 2-3 for POB as long as we use him
10. A potential sign-and-trade deal w/ heat to get derrick rose and dequean cook

as you can see, we have a lot of work. it will be tough but we can do it. I think if we are going to take 27 3s everygame, we might as well get some people over 40%, like cook, posey, or jones, and belinelli absolutely rains. He could be the 6th man for the future.

by montasmob69 on Apr 17, 2008 6:43 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

You may dislike this but...

...here’s my check list for next season:

- resign M. Ellis
- resign B. Davis
- resign A. Biedrins

these are the top 3 priorities, please make the impossible to get them to long term deals.

Then (2nd priority)
- resign M. Pietrus, DON’T MISS HIM
- resign K. Azubuike, DON’T MISS HIM also!

THEN (3rd. priority)
- resign Bellinelli, Watson and Kosta. Get rid of POB and M. Barnes

Then the best:

- trade either S. Jackson (who KILLED us with his erratic play during all season, specially in the last month) OR Al Harrington (same as Jackson, but in a minor scale) for an athletic big man who REALLY cares about rebounding, running, blocking shots, running, dunking at will and finally, running. Someone like E. Brand or J. O’Neal (both healty, of course). You can even throw both jackson and harrington on the deal if you get this big and a descent complement.

Both Jackson and Harrington have erratic 3point shots, but nonetheless they keep launching them… we can’t affor to shoot 30 threes per game with Baron + Jackson + Harrington shooting 33% per night, this is pathetic and drive us (fans) furious.

Do not rely on rookies, Nelson won’t play them… and we already have future start B. Wright

that’s it.

=Gaucho=

by Gaucho! on Apr 17, 2008 7:47 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I agree with all of that...

...expept I’m not sure how much value we could get for Al & Jack, even as a package. I’m pretty sure the Pacers or Clippers wouldn’t give up their stars for the both them; I know I wouldn’t if I were an owner. I completely agree with you about Pietrus. We all know he’s extremely athletic and its seems like his basketball skills are starting to catch up with his athleticism. He could have the best season of his career next year, I just hope it’s with the Dubs. Also, I’d keep POB over Kosta but that’s just based on the limited minutes I’ve seen them play and a personal gut feeling.

copy & paste: geocities.com/nellieballtee

by JonDoe on Apr 17, 2008 9:59 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

lol

Belinelli is still on his rookie contract. haha

by ejdacanay on Apr 17, 2008 10:24 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Regrets?

All this talk about how the Warriors’ ship might be sinking is making me think twice about renewing my season tickets for next year. I was just caught up in the excitement during renewal time. I was already trippin off them raising the prices, but I did it anyway. Oh well, I just hope the team makes it worth it.

by Golden Boy on Apr 17, 2008 8:24 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

not a disappointment...to me!

Granted I was living in Paris last year and didn’t get to see a single NBA game last season (Go figure, they showed the Superbowl on France1 TV but I couldn’t even find any bars that were showing NBA playoffs come April/May). I’m really glad I got to see the Warriors play this year even though they won’t be in the playoffs….And I feel much better now about next year knowing Mullins intends to keep Andris/Monta at all costs…Hopefully Buke will stay too because he is definitely one of my faves….I love his story and his drive to play in the NBA!! I’m a sucker for the under-appreciated, energy guys!

by the wingless one on Apr 17, 2008 9:03 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Disappointing? Yeah but exactly what we deserved for trading Jason right when the team was coming together and right after they told him he was not on the table.
Bright spots of the season? Bukkake can ball, Monta can actually rebound, Jackson found peace,Baron dint get tweaked,and the other teams dint play hack-a-dris or zone D every game.
Low points, Jack out for first 7 games, where was Barnes?, and Little AL??, not enough playing time for Wright, Mickael getting hurt right when we needed him.
Atma, You’re still the boss. Good to see the GSofM growing but I kinda liked the old format better, I miss the webpins.

by Skeptic con Urquell on Apr 17, 2008 9:37 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Ticket prices

I’m season ticket holder to and it suck, but we all got to remember that for the past decade the Warriors had the cheapest tickets in all of the NBA. So in some respects this price gouging was to be expected. It’s not like we’re the T-wolves and are going to have the $43 for entire season promotion (if they get the #1 pick ).

by mcwalter44 on Apr 17, 2008 9:38 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Not disappointed

Sorry I couldn’t hold it down with all my GSOMers last night in the Open Thread. My friend hooked me up with her tickets last minute, and I just jumped on them hah. I had a good time at the game. I knew Seattle was going to be a bitch. Durant is a stud, no doubt about it.

It was fitting they played the game the same way we’ve been playing all year. Just relying on the 3 ball to get us back into games or trying to run away with the game (in the 1st only, since that was about the only time we were ever up). Not the way any of us pictured them to end such a crazy season, oh well. Next year baby!!

Anyways, Marco takes Bart!!

I think it hella looks like him though. My gf pointed it out, and I had to take a picture. Sorry for the quality, bad lighting at bart.

by disguy on Apr 17, 2008 9:51 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

hmmm...

Resemblence… but I don’t think it’s him
doesn’t even look tall compared to the other people
could be though

Formerly known as phutmasterflex
Warriors, A's, 49ers... the only three that matter to me right now.

by PHUT! on Apr 17, 2008 10:05 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Oh, yeah

I know it’s not him. I was just playing about that haha.

by disguy on Apr 17, 2008 10:11 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Last night was cool...

Except for that drunk in the front who kept screaming “We want Branden Wright!” not knowing that Branden has a strained groin for the past week and hasn’t played the last 4 games. Shows how much he followed the team during the playoff push.

But the best, had to be when he started chanting “Lets play Defense” when the Warriors were on offense.

I had a riot watching him go at it all night.

Real Quick though,

OFFSEASON PRIORITES:

- Shell up Chris and have the “Cohan-as” to re-sign Monta, Beans, Kaz, Barnes, and Baron. We already gave you our money this year, now show us yours.

- Hire a Defensive minded Assistant Coach.

- Dangle our tangible Assets, Lottery pick, Trade Exception, Al Harrington, POB, to acquire either a STUD Power Foward, or more solid Bench players, and rugged junior-vets. ala…Leon Powe, Ramon Sessions, Milsap, Rasho Nesterovic, Gerald Green, etc.

- Retain the Warrior Girls…let’s not be shady and oust the entire team like last year.

- Have better food, i swear we don’t have any signature foods at the snack bar like (ex. SF Giants: Garlic Fries) , and establish a healthy menu at the snack bar.

- And Last but not least, have more GSOM nights! we deserve it!

Stephen Jackson..."I make love to pressure."

by 3 The Hard Way on Apr 17, 2008 11:06 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs