How long have you been a Warriors fan? This is the same line we’ve been hearing for as long as Cohan has been the owner. We’re rebuilding! We have talented young players! Chris Webber was the first of the talented young players. Then we shipped our young talent away. Sprewell was next. Joe Smith was touted as a savior. Then Hughes and Jamison and Gilbert. Then it was Richardson, Dunleavy, Murphy…

It’s hard to emotionally invest myself in a Chris Cohan owned team. I don’t know if I want to deal with the inevitable letdown anymore. Is Ellis the next of our “young talent” to get shipped out? I hope not, but the Warriors sure aren’t making him feel very welcome. Maybe Randolph has what it takes to become a star, maybe we keep Ellis around, and maybe we’ve moved past drafting the Todd Fuller’s of the world and we’ll take a guy like Jennings or Holiday or Evans and they pan out. Problem is, Chris Cohan will make sure his management team finds a way to f*ck it up. They always do.

Don’t get your hopes up too high until he sells the team. Absolutely the worst owner in sports, and our franchise won’t be able to sustain a competetive team until he’s gone.

(I stopped taking names and cities, so if it’s a random statement, it’s a question)

Fitz asking…where do they stand financially…What’s going on with the money from the Ellis fine?

Rowell: We understand the state of the economy……they’ve instituted the $3M Ellis fine back into tickets for fans next season. Also going into building a new club for floor season ticket holders

Riley: will make some changes, no major overhauling will be done. Young guys still have some growing to do.

Fitz: #7 in the draft, there are some names in the top 2 or 3…what about 7

Riley: There are really good players in this draft. Noticeably weaker than last years. Just find a player that fits the system and you’ve gotten the job done and you’ve helped your basketball team.

Fin from Berkley: Anthony Randolph is the most exciting player to watch. Will you comitt to keeping him long term.

Riley: We don’t have any plans on dealing him. We’d love to keep him around.

Kabeer: Is your job in jeopardy since you’ve only made the playoffs once in 8 years

Rowell: This is my 6th season as the pres. of the Warriors and I’m under pressure also to be able to help this team win. Nobody is under more pressure than I am to win.

We were 30th in season ticket sales when I took over in 1998 and we’ve greatly improved that.

My focus now is to help improve our product and make sure this product is one you fans are proud of. We’re holding people accountable. I’m under tremendous amount of pressure, moreso from you fans than anyone else.

What’s the focus right now?

Riley: We feel we can tweak this team and make the playoffs very soon. Winning is our main focus right now.

Fitz: Compared to the rest of the Western conference, where are we?

Riley: No question we’re not close to where we want to be. We’re slowly adding ingredients to make sure we have a winning team.

Rowell: We have a coach, one of the greatest in the history of all NBA who’s 24 wins from the record. We obviously want to win now. And we want to win in 5 years. We have a short-term goal and a long-term goal. We have young players and vets that fit the short-term goal and o our long-term goal.

PG situation:

Riley: We’ve definitely like to add a PG, but we really do like CJ Watson. Going further, we’ll investigate the PG situation through the draft and through trades. Monta’s one of the main focal points of this team. Monta can play the 2 and the 1 and there’s some flexibility there.

Better team defense?

Riley: We’re a better defensive team than we’re given credit for. Margin of points is a better indication than total points allowed. We need better individual techniques. Just need to stress more focus from the coaches onto the players for better individual defense. We’re going to emphasize much more on defense from the coaches going forward.

Don Nelson in his late 60’s. Are the Warriors already planning for his succession?

Rowell: We’ve had discussions for later down the line. But the main focus is now. 2 years from now, sure. We do like some of the guys that are on our bench now. It’s important to know what style we play and what style of play we will continue.

Fitz: Just to add, on points allowed, we were also worst rebounding team in the league.

Riley: If our players weere to average 1 or 2 more rebounds per game, it’d greatly help our team. Winning basketball is the direction we’re into right now.

Chris Mullin situation, long term fans have a bad taste in their mouth about how everything went down this season and how it was handled. Comments on Rowell’s dealings in Baron Davis extension.

Rowell: A lot of the information out there has been untrue. I was the one who went out and got Mullin to be our executive VP. No one wanted more success for Mullin than I did.

This is a big business. When you make mistakes, it’s pretty difficult to clean up those mistakes. I’ve been involved in a lot of the negotiations with our players, including Baron Davis.

I’ve got a degree in business. I have heavy experience and understand the business as well as anyone in the organization. I don’t claim to be an expert in basketball. I rely on my basketball people to make basketball decisions.

When there are laywers across the table, that’s when I’m involved. When Larry Riley wants a player and he really wants that player, we’re going to do what it takes to get that player.

Fitz: You’ve been in the league for quite some time..bucks Grizzlies…You have scouts, GM’s..etc…(couldnt hear what he asked)

Riley: There are a lot of people who contribute into making basketball decisions. We have a model here that we like and would like to proceed with.

I believe we were a big man away, or now a big man away from going deep into the playoffs

Riley: Everyone is a big man away. I’ve said a couple of times that we’re going to look at making some change within the organization. When I say big man, we mean that differently because we need some “beef” around the basket.

What a waste of a call.

Fitz: When you look at Biedrins and Turiaf, 23 and 26 years old, and Randolph, you’ve got a lot of length in the block, but it’s the Carlos Boozers who give you fits and problems. Are you looking at some bulkier players around the league?

Riley: Looking at a few guys on some other squads with some beef, not necessarily through the draft. We need some guys with experience, not really sure that’s what we can find in the draft.

Rowell: Newspaper business is tough. Tough times are out there. People are doing and saying what they need to do to secure their next gig.

Riley: It’s their business as sportswriters, bloggers whatever. They can speculate all they want. Robert and I are willing to do what it takes to address the media as much as they want, moreso than the past.

Fitz: I think a lot of the media nowadays have their own agenda to it. A lot of the information is fabricated.

Riley: There’s so much out there, in radio and newspapers, that you can’t keep up with it. You just have to put your head down and go to work. The agents are a part of it also. We have to deal with them in a professional manner.

Rowell: The bottom line is, when you win, a lot of problems are not problems. When you lose, the issues are magnified.

Jamal Crawford and the direction going forward with him:

Riley: Crawford is the ultimate professional. He’s done what we’ve asked him to do. He’s not going to be shipped off for absolutely nothing.

A question on concessions and bringing their own food:

(Haha…omg…..seriously broham? Caller asked about tough economic times and bringing their own food….Rowell pretty much said NO.)

Why the rush to re-sign Stephen Jackson. We lost a lot of flexibility salary-wise. Why?

Rowell: We really need to get the facts straight on this one. Jackson was eligible for an extension and we sat down last summer with the entire operations staff and everyone was in agreement that he should get one. Whatever you read out there, it’s important to note there were 96 players in the NBA who made more money than Stephen. We went ahead and did it because our coaches, players, and front office felt he was someone we wanted here for a long time. We’re dealing with someone who later down the line has a moveable contract.

Fitz: Is he justfied for 5 years $40M?

Rowell: It’s much less than that.

Riley: Jackson earns his money. He’s worth his money.

We lost 15 games by 5 points or less. In closing games, we need an all-star to help close games. What’s the goal in attracting free-agents?

Riley: I’m not surprised at that observation. We’re at the point where we expect two of our players to grow into those type of players: Monta Ellis and Anthony Randolph. If you look at how Chris Bosh was his rookie year, he’s grown immensely and that’s the type of growth we expect from Anthony.

Fitz: Why cant Monta have the same impact as a Tony Parker or an Aaron Brooks.

Riley: Parker runs the pick and roll better than Monta Ellis. There are all kinds of small and quick point guards who have tremendous impact on the game. There are different ways to skin a cat. We’re looking for more PG growth from Monta.

When you let Mullin go, were there any other candidates for the job? I’m not a Don Nelson fan, and he’s ruined our team before and he’s back to ruin them again. He’s lost as many games as he’s…CLICK (they hung up on him!!!)

Rowell: Riley understands our coach. Yea, I understand you say he’s lost a lot of games, but he’s won championships as a player and has plenty of experience. He’s corky and he cares about winning and he has a passion. We need someone who understands Nelly and manages Nelly and that’s one of the reasons why we chose Larry as our GM. He has a great rapport with our players and that’s what it’s all about. Larry’s the right guy for the job.

The last year was the most disappointing year of my life with the Warriors. I’m having a tough time wanting to renew. After 45 years, I’m so disappointed. What is the direction of this team? (sounds really disappointed…almost suicidal)

Riley: You seen what happened a few years back and played Dallas then Utah in the playoffs. That’s our objective. We want to grow our young players and get back to the point. I understand your frustration but we’re working for you, working for you fans. Our plan is to upgrade this team whether through FA or through the draft, and be a team you all want to be a part of.

Our top two players are not as considerably good as other teams top two players. Our top talent needs to be on par or better with the competition. I really don’t feel like we’re really that close at all to the playoffs.

Riley: You need to have 3 guys. I believe we need to add one more player, or have a player grow into that mold. It’s very difficult to go from 29 wins to making the playoffs. I’m setting a more realistic goal. Let’s shoot for 40-42 wins and let’s go from there. We have guys coming back healthy and that’ll be huge.

Fitz: Warriors beat Utah twice and beat Hornets twice. Even with 5 of the top 8 players missing, we beat those teams at their place. The West is going to be a little bit different next year.

Riley: We’re expecting a few teams to drop next season and a few to come up. We’re expecting to be one of those teams who come up. We’re going to be a surprising team. I don’t think you fans would be happy with a 5 win improvement. But if you get into that 40-42 win range and move forward from there, you guys will be happy.

I’m reading that some NBA teams are having trouble. How about the Warriors?

Rowell: We’re the 5th largest market in the country but we’re stronger than a majority of the teams in the league. We’re closing in on 70% renewal with season tickets. I’d definitely be happy at that number. When it’s all said and done, it’ll be about top 12 in the league in renewals. We want our fans to renew their seats and come back and as rough as this last season was, we had some great wins and great games at Oracle. Boston, Dallas, Lebron and his buzzer beater. Fans see how much fun it was to go to games last year. Our players comment about how great our Warrior fans are and you guys are the best and we need you guys back. This is going to be the first season where you see the cap and luxury tax actually go down so we need to be creative with sign and trades and trades.

Fitz: 21-20 at home. 12-20 at 5 points or less. If you’ve won 21 with a banged up squad, I believe you can win 8-9 more games with a healthy roster.

Riley: Even if we split the close ones and play the ones on the road with a healthy team, even .500 on the road, we’ll be closer to the playoffs.

What’s the word on the trade front? I know you can’t comment too much about it.

Riley: What I would like to see is what happened with Boston with KG and Allen. It’s not too possible right now.

Fitz: Is it going to be an active summer? I hear there are shuffling from teams with higher picks than the Warriors wanting to shuffle around.

Riley: It’s no question that the economy has gotten a hold of 25 or so teams in the league. There’s going to be a lot of activity by teams wanting to save money and I really believe there’s going to be a lot of movement.

Monta

Riley:He doesn’t run a team like a Chauncey Billups. He’s a different type of player. Monta’s going to have to do it a different way. Will he ever be a Chauncey Billups? Maybe, but he’s not there yet.

Fitz: Jackson can pass the ball………Are you looking for a passer/ballhandler in this draft?

Riley: Absolutely. We need to improve our passing and ballhandling. The way our system goes, it’s better to have a true point guard like when we had Steve Nash. We need a true point guard who’s a true passer.

Fitz: Can we not put Biedrins, Randolph, and Turiaf out there?

Riley: Well when we play small ball, and you put a team on a bind to match up defensively, you’re at an advantage. When there’s a PF who’s guarding someone out there who he can’t handle. And we probably have better FT shooters on the floor.

We have completely rebuild year after year and seems like we can’t keep pieces around.

Riley: Anthony Randolph and Anthony Morrow played over 1000 minutes this past year and we like to see a situation where we collect another player this year and keep them for 4-5 years and have them grow each year.

Fitz: Was it because Morrow was 22 and spent four years in college…(I missed the early part of his response/question)

Riley: Josh Howard taught me that lesson. I highly believe in guys who graduated or spent all four years in college. I have no problems drafting an older guy with plenty of college experience.

Riley: I’ve been talking with Monta and asking how things are going with him, not physically, but mentally. I want to make sure he comes back with a good mentality. He’s a guy I want to see develop.

Fitz: You do remember he’s only 23.

Riley: Exactly. If you put Anthony Randolph in this year’s draft, you could possibly take him #1. Or even #2.

Rowell: Randolph played 17.9 minutes a game this year. T-Mac averaged 15.something…Jermaine Oneal played _, so Randolph will definitely grow with more playing time.

You talked about accountability. You talked about Mullin with 1 playoff appearance in 5 years. The economy as a whole, 1 playoff appearance in 15 years. Where is your accountability? How serious is this organization not just about squeezing into the playoffs, but actually playing well into June?

Rowell: I agree with you, we should all be held accountable. Over the course of the last decade, I’ll put our building against anyone in the league in terms of entertainment value. Even games when we lost, they were still exciting. Even in those games, you saw promise in all of our young players. The 1 playoff appearance 3 seasons ago is not enough. I’ll back up that 3 years ago that we had to squeeze into the playoffs. And magic hit. We had 3 weeks where we were the toast of the entire country. That’s where we want to be, not just squeeze into the playoffs. The next year, we finish 9th despite winning 48 games. So that’s where accountability comes into play. We can’t finish the season going 10-12. …blah blah blah blah blah…Didn’t say much after that.