Agreed.

Randolph needs to take the step to being a regular above average contributor on both ends of the court before we start talking about a 20 year-old as the “team leader.” Let’s remember what he was and start from there rather than having him improve upon what we so want him to be that we forget what he actually has done. He was a very, very good rebounder and a good shot blocker. When he limited himself to scoring in the paint he was a reasonable, albeit not fantastic, contributor on offense. Even just looking at what Randolph did his last couple of months, Wright was better at finding shots and making shots, and I don’t think anyone considers Wright to be an offensive monster. AR showed some flashes of ball handling ability and a mid-range jumper that can make him a matchup problem at the 4, but both were wildly inconsistent all season long.

I’d like to see: no drop off in the rebounding, something close to the blocked shot rate of this year while moving the foul rate down, and a somewhat more diversified offensive game that keeps him at or above 50% from the floor. If that happens, he’ll likely start drawing some more fouls (something that moving him out away from the basket is unlikely to do) and get enough attention that he’ll make things just a bit easier on everyone else. This happening is not a guarantee by any stretch, but it’s realistic, more realistic than dreaming that he’ll come in and dominate and have the team rally around him.

Thanks for offering different perspectives on the matter. I must admit, my response to this post wasn’t that well thought out to begin with as it was more of an “angry” response towards everything that has happened. It sure did feel good though as a fan (to be able to let some steam out). But the points you raised about Baron Davis didn’t really help to explain much for me (the fan). Granted, Baron wasn’t 100%, and he played only 65 games for the Clips last year, but when you say horrible, you forget to mention that Baron was running Coach Dumleavy’s offensive system, which didn’t allow Baron to be the Baron that he was under Coach Nelson. Thus, the horrible numbers.

I was wrong in saying that Baron’s injury history shouldn’t have factored into Cohan’s decision to give him that contract, but who is to say that he wouldn’t have been to stay healthy for the Warriors and play 60-80 games last season. Put this into perspective. Baron Davis played in only 63 games in the 06-07 campaign, and yet that was enough to propel the Warriors into the playoffs. For my money, I’d take that any day! A banged up Baron Davis who plays in 63 games is better than no Baron Davis. Don’t forget that he came back the next year, played in all 82 games, and guided them to a 2nd consecutive winning season. Further, he played all 82 games in his first three years in Charlotte, so it’s not like the guy is a stick who goes out there and just breaks every time.

You say that “you don’t give a contract to a player for what he did in the past”… that kinda makes sense, but when it’s the player that guided you to your very first playoff season in the past 14 years, I think it’s safe to say that that particular player earned a new contract (because he showed what he could do for you, right?). Baron led the Warriors to the playoffs in the ‘07 We Believe season, and helped them to another winning season the following year. That wasn’t too long ago if I’m correct. So saying you don’t pay someone for what they’ve done in the past really doesn’t make much sense (and is REALLY UNFAIR TO THE PLAYER) when the past was only, what… 1, 2 years ago? Where have you been this whole time? If the “past” you’re referring to was, say, 7-8 years ago and in that timespan he failed to stay healthy and produce consistently, then yes, I would agree with you. But that wasn’t the case. Baron asked for a 3 year contract if I’m correct, and to me, 3 years isn’t asking for much. He was in the prime of his career. Are you telling me his body was breaking down, was just too old, and no longer had the capacity to play through injuries and/or stay healthy at that juncture in his career? The Warriors weren’t dealing with a 39 year old at the time, they were dealing with a 29 year old!

Listen, if Baron was riddled with injuries and couldn’t play in his last season with the Warriors, then I’ll understand the freaking decision to let the guy go. But once again, he played in all 82 games! That’s not enough to convince you as an owner to sign the guy to an extension? The man helped put an end to 14 years of misery, brought the Warriors to the national spotlight, and helped Cohan and his greedy people generate so much revenue from selling tickets and apparel, and you don’t want to give him an extension? That’s really not fair. From the fans’ perspective, that doesn’t reflect well on you as an owner, and as I said in my first response, it pretty much questions your commitment to winning. Thus, you have my angry “fan” response to this “How long can we believe question?” A friend of mine said, “Pull the trigger and sign him, and stop being a pussy about it.” I thought that’s what Cohan should have done.

I was expecting a better rebuttal regarding Curry, but the things you said, once again, didn’t help explain much for me. I made the comparison while taking into consideration who the Warriors already have on the roster. Ellis, Azabuike, Morrow, Speedy Claxton, and Acie Law (a 24 year old 6-3 guard with whom the Warriors are intrigued with in playing the 1 to backup Monta). Did you forget about the roster, or were you just ignoring it? With the make-up of the team as it is, why draft another small guy. Your 5th rebuttal says that the Warriors want to play Curry at the 1. That would be perfectly fine, but you ignore the fact that they already have a star in the making in Monta Ellis, who is built very similar to Curry, mind you, and plays the exact same position(s) of point and shooting guard. You honestly think Ellis and Curry together would work? Look at the whole picture why don’t you… Ellis at the point (where he has said he feels comfortable playing in), Morrow at the 2 (a 6-5, 210 lbs guard who can stand a much better chance of guarding the prototypical two guards around the league, and has proven he can shoot the lights out, so why need Curry…), Jackson at the 3 (his natural position), Randolph at the 4, and Biedrins at the 5. Where does that leave Curry? On the bench? Or were you thinking about starting Curry in place of Ellis, or starting both of them. The former would cause a huge problem with Ellis (the team’s last star player) who will not be happy with it, and the latter would create a defensive issue at the guard positions, which is a problem that the team doesn’t need because defense is already an issue.

About his rebounding… are you kidding me? “…based on his college stats”, yes, he’s an okay rebounder I suppose, but even then he did so only “fairly well” as you put it. Rebounding fairly well at the college level, I don’t think, will translate to the NBA. You honestly think that at 6-3, 185 lbs., Curry will be able to provide the kind of rebounding that the Warriors desperately need at the NBA level? When making my case against Curry, I also considered the fact that the Warriors constantly get murdered on the glass every single season, which is a tidbit of information about the team that you ignored.

And my ‘comparison’ to Reddick wasn’t really a comparison, even though I think they’re similar, so much as it was a statement in saying that I think Curry has a good chance of becoming a bust. That’s all I was saying. You know? Like one of those players who many considered would come into the league and shoot the lights out and failed miserably. Like an Adam Morrison (dubbed the next Larry Bird, hahaha)… etc. But if you’d like to make the comparison, allow me… Redick was thought of in the same light as Curry. A 6-4, 190 lbs guard with a shoot first mentality who was drafted high at 11 overall. Pretty similar if you ask me. Thus, the brief ‘comparison’.

The only thing I’ll agree with you regarding Curry is that there is absolutely no correlation between summer league and NBA performances, so we’ll never know, but his performance so far is kinda hard to ignore when I take EVERYTHING into consideration (which I won’t elaborate on now because it would take a while, as it usually does when I write about something).

Lastly, you challenged my reasons for thinking that drafting Curry was a mistake, but you failed to even give me one reason as to why they drafted him in the first place? To score? Seriously? Is that what they need? Another scorer? You gotta give me somethin’. WHY DID THEY DRAFT HIM?

(Thanks for the response. I took much of that into consideration as well. That is, his attitude and motivational issues. But I think he loved playing for Nelson and the Warriors. I think he would have been able to set aside the attitude and motivational issues because he felt comfortable in the environment he was in. There were a number of things that confirm this: 1) he had his two friends Harrington and Jackson at the time, 2) he enjoyed playing with Monta (mini-Baron, remember?) and Biedrins (with his great hands down low helping Baron rack up those assist totals), 3) he was in good standing with Chris Mullin, and 4) he knew that under Nelson’s system, he could continue flourishing and becoming ‘reborn’, after the debacle in New Orleans. But, it’s as if Cohan ignored this stuff and only focused only on whether or not this guy could stay healthy.)