Golden State Of Mind

Game 13: Warriors @ 76ers - Game Recognize Game

2008-11-23T02:13:43Z

GSoM Station: up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, b, a, select, start.

Warriors: 5-7

76ers: 6-6

Tip-Off: 2:00pm PST

Radio: KNBR 1050

TV: NONE

My first "Open Thread" and the game isn't even televised in the Bay Area! We're 12 games into the season and so far, things have been pretty exciting. Now the real test begins. The Dubs start a 9 game stretch where 8 games are on the road. They go head to head with some pretty tough competition, Philly, Boston, Cleveland, Houston and San Antonio. (to name a few)

Is help on the way? You bet! Jamal Crawford from The New York Knicks is coming to town, and while I haven't seen any links yet stating that he's starting against the 76ers, Jamal's another fine addition to Nellie's already deep selection of guards. A number of our young prospects are looking real sharp and stepping up as well, The Anthony's (Randolph and Morrow) are showing some great production in minutes while Marco Belinelli is sort of coming alive. This road trip should be a great test for him if he gets minutes and uses them well. (The same goes for Brandon Wright.) Hopefully Azubuike will be back as well and the return of Monta is just around the corner. It'll be a whole new game from there!

The 76ers (Liberty Ballers) just came off an important win against Elton Brand's old team, the Clippers. Andre Iguodala played some great basketball that night dropping 14 points and delivering 12 assists. Andre Miller and Elton Brand stepped their game up as well and sent The Clippers home with a loss. I'm interested in seeing how our young guys match up against the 76ers. Our bench is hungry for minutes and we'll certainly see a little bit of everything from our bench. The good, the bad and the ugly! Everybody's gonna need to shoulder the weight as well. Captain Jack is gonna need to decrease his turnovers. Biedrins should remain dominant under the boards and Maggette needs to chuck in those points instead of bricking them! This road trip is going to be a major test for our team, lets get as many wins as we can Dubz!

Predictions

• Warriors win by 4

• Biedrins serves another "Double Double" meal for the Fans up in Philly

• Randolf gets more minutes and produces some solid numbers.

• I'm hoping to see a Block party courtesy of Biedrins, Turiaf, Wright and Randolph.

• Anthony Morrow shoots lights out.

Thunder fires P.J. Carlesimo after 1-12 start [NewsOK]

2008-11-22T18:20:52Z

Thunder fires P.J. Carlesimo after 1-12 start [NewsOK]

The only thing sillier than both the Sonics' move from Seattle to OKC and their generic new name was actually believing Carlesimo would make a good first head coach for Kevin Durant.

RECAP: Warriors 110, Bulls 115 – Oh So Close

2008-11-22T06:41:17Z

Final Boxscore | Open Thread (675+ Comments)

Back and forth, back and forth this game went. The Golden State Warriors hung in there and kept the Chicago Bulls close the entire game. It never got far enough away from the Warriors, but in the end they just didn't have enough stops to pull out a win.

Shorthanded Lineup
Kelenna Azubuike was injured tonight so someone else had to step up to replace his production. Anthony Morrow and CJ Watson would get more minutes as would Marco Belinelli and Marcus Williams. Consider the Warriors going from Baron and Monta last year to CJ and Morrow this year and yet they're hanging tough in games and keeping it interesting. It's a testament to those guys' talents, Nellie's coaching ability and schemes, and the improved play of the 3 veterans, ^^^^, Corey Maggette, and Stephen Jackson.

Hit the jump for thoughts on the game...

The Vets
You know who really stepped up thought? The three veterans mentioned earlier. It was on their shoulders tonight. If the Warriors were going to win, then these 3 would have to play above average. They played well enough, but just wouldn't let the Bulls pull away. ^^^^ had a big game with his 10-16 shooting good for 23 points and 10 boards. More on him later. Corey Maggette also had a great game as he kept the Warriors close with his barrage of free throws and strong drives to the hoop. And of course there was the captain, Stephen Jackson absolutely shooting the lights out going 13-16 at one point for 32 points. My gripe with Jax tonight? The turnovers, all 8 of them! In fact the majority of them came in the 4th quarter with him throwing some extremely poor passes, some out of bounds and some to the other team. Overall though, the three of them played extremely well tonight and if any one of them didn't play as well, this would have been a blowout.

Best Young Player on the Warriors?
I'm talking about 3 years or less of experience. I know this is odd, but I'm going with Anthony Randolph. I know Morrow has had the 2 big games but tonight without his shot falling, he didn't really give the Warriors much else. He had 3 steals but he seemed to get scored on often and has a lot to learn about defense. On the other hand, everytime I see Randolph play (which hasn't been much) he's doing something to benefit the team. He can score but he's always challenging shots, grabbing boards, and can play some point forward. Oh yea, did you see that block on the breakaway dunk in the 4th? Yea it came off of a stupid pass he made but damn that was impressive. Later this year, I hope he gets more and more PT because he looks like he can be special. What I like the most about him is his presence. He plays with a certain swagger and has style. He's got that air of confidence about him where he knows he's good.

Best Young Player in the League?
I'm not going to get carried away because it's not Derrick Rose, but by the end of the year he's going to make a serious challenge for that title. Wow. What a 2nd half. I just sat there shaking my head in disbelief. For a rookie to lead his team like he did in the 2nd half is very impressive. He made shot after shot to keep the Warriors at bay. Nobody could guard him. Play too close to him and he drives right around you. He's got such great body control that when he drives he can finish around and over defenders. Play off of him to respect his drive and he uses that pullup J to kill you. What's even more impressive is that with that pullup J he can go either left or right and it looks just as smooth both ways. Double him and he finds the open man for the jumper. I was expecting him to be good, but man, that 2nd half was just ridiculous. Special. Unstoppable.

Biedrins Maturity on Offense
I really liked what I saw from Biedrins tonight offensively. Not because it was anything spectacular but because you can tell he's learning how to play. Early on, it looked like he had trouble on the low block against Gooden because of Gooden's strength and quickness. Biedrins tried to go around him but seemed to have trouble because Gooden would get physical with him. So what did Biedrins do the rest of the game? He went right at Gooden or whoever else was guarding him. He dipped his shoulder a couple times right into the chest of the defender and went up and over him. Other times he went strong to the hole off of a dribble drive and got layups out of it. And of course he ended up with another double double finishing with 23 points and 10 boards.

Player Observations
Marco: I'm not a big fan of his because he usually plays pretty soft and unsure of himself but today he played well. It started out poorly with a turnover and getting blocked, but after that he made a bunch of hustle plays and nice passes. I've been saying this all along, he's a very good shooter when he sets his feet properly, squares his shoulders and then goes up. The problem is he often takes off balance shots. If he can get he fundamentals down and keeps up his hustle, he's got a chance to earn some minutes when Kelenna and Monta come back.

Marcus Williams: What a waste. Nellie gave him quality minutes in the first quarter and he just didn't capitalize. He's got some nice handles and is a big guard, but he couldn't make a free throw or a jump shot and looked like he didn't belong out there.

Larry Hughes: Remember him? Well he makes 1 three pointer this entire season and then hits 5 tonight?! Are you kidding me? Ugh. He was their leading scorer tonight with 26 points. Larry comes back to haunt his old team at home.

Nocioni: What an annoying player. But I'll at least give him one thing, he plays tough and goes all out all the time. He was always in Jackson's grill and fought for every rebound.

Drew Gooden: This Bay Area product looked real smooth tonight. Lots of post up scoring and threw his weight around down low. His 16 boards was a huge reason for the Bulls' win tonight.

Joakim Noah. DNP-CD.

Line of the Night
Jim Barnett: "Sefolosha is really giving Jackson trouble tonight"
My girl sitting next to me: "What's that? Some foot disease?"
Me: "..."

Corey Maggette

He's really improved his defense to the point that you can call him a good defender. He stayed with his man tonight, moved his feet and challenged shots. Offensively he kept the Warriors in the game in the 3rd quarter when the Bulls couldn't miss.

Game 12: Warriors vs Bulls - It's Filipino Night!

2008-11-21T20:00:05Z

Originally posted: Nov 21, 2008 12:00 PM PST

Remember last year when the Bulls came to Oakland? Noooo? Oh you'll love the video then.

Warriors (W-L): 5-6
Bulls (W-L): 5-7
Time: 7:30 PM PST
TV: CSN
Radio: KNBR 680

So when can we get Jamal Crawford in uniform? The big news of the day of course is the Al Harrington for Jamal Crawford swap. I'm not quite sure how this benefits the Knicks other than the mantra, "Never trade big for small". Hopefully Al resurrects his game out in NY and Crawford finds Nellie's offense just as conducive and perhaps more to his scoring abilities. All in all, this should inject some new life into the team.

The Chicago Bulls (Blog-a Bull) just got waxed by the Portland Trailblazers (Blazers Edge) 116-74. Yup, that's not a typo, that's a 42 point difference. What can we expect from the Bulls tonight? Well as long as they start Aaron Gray and Larry Hughes again, this should be an easy win. But I doubt it. Rarely do decent NBA teams play so poorly on consecutive nights. We'll see what kind of team the Bulls are tomorrow. Will they come out angry and aggressive or will they play like they want this road trip to be over? I'd say the Dubs come out strong and lead the entire way but it'll be close the entire way.

It's Filipino night at the arena tomorrow and Tony.psd will be reppin' his roots. He's got his entire family there - brothers, sisters, parents, uncles, aunties, cousins, 2nd cousins, 3rd cousins, you name it. Look for Tony and say whassup.

Predictions

Warriors by 8
^^^^ starts another double double streak
Jax drops 30
Brandan Wright DNP-CD. ^^^^ isn't going to get into foul trouble.

Hit the jump for things to watch for.

Things to watch for:

What else? Anthony "The Real Deal" Morrow. His third straight big game? Do I smell another 20+ points? I'm still holding back because 2 games does not make you "for real". But how fun is it to watch Morrow light it up like we haven't seen in a long time. You can bet the Bulls are not going to leave him open. There's now 2 games of him to break down so let's see how the Bulls adjust.
Derrick Rose: The #1 pick is living up to his top billing. He's scoring 18 a game on 46% shooting to go with 5.5 assists and 4 boards. I always find it fun to watch the top rookies strut their stuff.
The start of another double-double streak from everyone's favorite Latvian lefty, ^^^^.
Nellie's back to his small ball lineup now that Morrow got hot. Let's see if Maggette can take advantage on offense of facing the other team's power forward.
Joke-im Noah: because he's fun to boo. Something about that guy that's just annoying.

(Warriors.com) Whoa! How'd he get that jersey on so quick! lol

2008-11-21T22:13:46Z

(Warriors.com)
Whoa! How'd he get that jersey on so quick! lol

I'm stoked, is what I am.

2008-11-21T21:54:59Z

I'm stoked, is what I am.

Warriors Head Coach Don Nelson on Jamal Crawford coming to Dubs land and the breakout performances of Anthony Morrow via Matt Steinmetz

Warriors, Knicks agree in principle on Crawford-Harrington deal [ESPN]

2008-11-21T17:32:56Z

Warriors, Knicks agree in principle on Crawford-Harrington deal [ESPN]

It's not official yet and nothing's for sure till we see a press release from either the Warriors or Knicks, but here's my initial reaction: Fantastic move for the Warriors and the Knicks are really, really angling for that 2010 free agent campaign.

Definitely stop by Posting and Toasting for some Knickerbocking thoughts.

Also check out what GSoM buddy Tim Kawakami has to say: Harrington to Knicks is close to happening, but do the Warriors get Crawford or Rose? [Talking Points]

The Golden State Tricycle

2008-11-21T05:17:22Z

Friday's home game match up against The Chicago Bulls is also "Filipino Heritage Night" at the Oracle Arena. For myself and so may others, this is an important night showcasing of course, our fearless Golden State Warriors and an evening filled with Filipino related entertainment, culture and our community having a great time out at the Roaracle!

The concept behind "The Tricycle" design is a celebration of 2 interests. First, when I was growing up, I often enjoyed my tricycle rides in the Philippines and loved the look of each stylized tricycle. Second, my devotion towards Warriors basketball fell into place and had me wondering, "What if the Warriors had a "We Believe" Tricycle?!" So there you have it, a Warriors-colored tricycle with Monta riding it in style (oversized shirt, comfortable summer shorts and slippers!) You'd be surprised at how many folks can fit in a Tricycle!

Wallpaper it up on your desktop courtesy of GSoM and Tony.psd!

True Hoop - Now Playing Well: Andris Biedrins Gets Props

2008-11-20T22:42:46Z

True Hoop - Now Playing Well: Andris Biedrins Gets Props

Henry Abbott over at ESPN's True Hoop wants to know who's playing well.

"Who, in your mind, is starting to make a name for themselves right now?

I'll throw out a name: Golden State's Andris Biedrins."

Click the link to read more about what he thinks of Beans' emergence as a potential star.

The NBA’s Most Depressing Players of 2008 [Empty the Bench]

2008-11-20T22:40:42Z

The NBA’s Most Depressing Players of 2008 [Empty the Bench]

Here's a piece that's depressing and frustrating, but still very interesting.

But let's do it Dubs style in the comments. Who are your most depressing Warriors players of all time?

My first nominee is Larry Hughes. I honestly thought this guy was a star in the making and a permanent fixture at the 2-guard spot when he instantly averaged 22.7ppg after Warriors GM Gary St. Jean pulled off that midseason trade for him back in Y2K. Sure he shot a depressing 38.9% from the field during those first 32 games with the Warriors, but he was young, athletic, and pretty fun to watch. Aside from his single All-Star season with the Washington Warriors in 2004-2005 his post Warriors career has been pretty, well... depressing. Too bad. Hughes always seemed like a good guy.

Mariners' Wakamatsu is first Asian-American manager in majors [ESPN via Hyphen] This is a great...

2008-11-20T17:27:00Z

Mariners' Wakamatsu is first Asian-American manager in majors [ESPN via Hyphen]
This is a great thing to see for Asian Americans, all of America, and the entire world of sports. There's some Bay Area flava here to as Wakamatsu was the bench coach for the Oakland A's this past season. Good luck to Wakamatsu and the M's as long as they're not playing the A's!

Also see: Wakamatsu It Is [Lookout Landing]

Andris Biedrins interviewed on Fox Sports.com (with Top Gun art Plug!)

2008-11-20T02:43:47Z

Find more videos like this on www.truveo.com.

Andris Biedrins interviewed on Fox Sports.com (with Top Gun art Plug!)

In N.B.A., All-Star Acting Is Part of Game [NY Times]

2008-11-20T00:00:47Z

In N.B.A., All-Star Acting Is Part of Game [NY Times]

It wasn't that long ago that NBA head coaches voiced their frustrations about having to be mic-ed up, so that TV stations could get fans supposedly more up close and personal with the game. To tell you the truth what I'd really like to hear more of are the on court sounds of the players. Sure it's probably far from being PG (or even PG-13 when KG's playing), but it'd be really entertaining to check out what the real screamers and trash talkers are doing nightly.

RECAP: Warriors 111, Trail Blazers 106 - Futures Collide

2008-11-19T08:16:40Z

It's odd that going into a game against a team with a future as bright as Portland's, I still found myself thinking that this thing can swing either way. I certainly wasn't alone. Judging by the pre-game comments made in the Worst Open Thread I've ever put up, many of us walked into the Arena or flipped on our tubes tonight with the hopes that the Warriors can continue our reign of terror on Portland.

Sure, we had taken the previous 6 meetings with them in the Arena. But in all of our victories last year, we all knew that we were really going up against a fraction of the true beast. With Oden out all year, it was tough to envision how powerful Portland would really be with all their components in place.

Well tonight we saw the real Blazers. And even though Joel "Can I buy a vowel" Przybilla got the start at center, we all sat witness to the incredible power of Oden. I'm not kidding man, this guy is a BEAST. And when you have a player like Roy feeding him down low, you have a dangerous combination. You have years to come of "Roy to Oden" which offer limitless possibilities to build around. You have the Blazers of the future. Who can stop a team like this?

Boxscore | Open Thead Cop Out (1140+ Comments)

You can tell by those cold steel eyes that he can only be thinking one thing. "Off the rafters, off Grimaces head, over the Arches... Nothing but net."

Apparently the Warriors of the future can. The Blazers aren't the only team discovering themselves in the Western Conference. There's potential a'brewin' in the Roaracle.

Wrote a recap about it. Like to hear it? Here goes.

JUMP!

So it appears as though this Morrow fellow is... how you say... "The Real Deal." For lack of a better term; this cat can ball. At first glance, he almost looks sloppy as he consistently stops and pops on long range jumpers off of the dribble. But then he drains it. Then he does it again. And again.

Before long, (and after a few slow-motion replays) one realizes that they are in fact watching a damn quick release combined with an extremely pure shooting stroke. Until then, the viewer is trapped in the real time dimension, where the naked eye simply can't comprehend Morrow's form. So that naked eye simply sends a signal to the viewer's brain that makes him throw his light domestic beer and yell loudly to young Morrow through his television, only to have yelling turn to cheers as the shot is nailed, but still resulting in the scaring of his roommate before staggering back to the couch.

What's that? No, I'm talking about someone else. You must be confused.

Probably should have waited to see if his shots went in...

In addition to Morrow's excellent showing tonight with 25 points on another efficient night of 8-12 shooting, we were treated to a stellar game by Maggette on both ends of the floor. Tonight, he drew at least 4 charges (that I counted), 2 swats (one nasty one on Przybilla), 2 jacks, and dropped in 20 points. It was excellent to see Maggette in form tonight.

Before we continue, let's all take a second to bow our heads in memory of Biedrins' incredible Double Double streak. Allow me to say a few words.

"Friends. Family. Random guy who I'm pretty sure is just here for the salad bar. We are gathered here today to mourn a loss that is almost beyond words. For after 17 games, we say goodbye to the Biedrins Double Double. On November the 18th of 2008, young Biedrins gave us a stellar game (audience: "yes he did") Looooooord he gave us a stellar game! (audience: "a fine game indeed") And I defy any man to overlook a game of 17 points, 2 blocks, and... 9 rebounds..."

(audience: GASP!!)

"Yes. I tried to lay the news down gently. He missed it by only one rebound. But we shall all stand strong together knowing that no true talent steps on the court to fill a stat sheet! (audience: "no they don't") They step on the court for the LOVE OF THE GAME! They step on the court to CREATE! They step on the court to EXECUTE!!!"

(audience: *Cheers loudly. A bra flies onto the stage*)

"And the millions of dollars they make doesn't hurt either. Now please help yourself to some salad. Don't take all the croutons. Good night."

So anyways, the point I was trying to make was twofold. Biedrins played well, and don't be a crouton hog. I hope I've illustrated these items for you. Let's continue.

There has to be a shout out for SJax, who made up for an off shooting night with perfect free throw shooting and 8 dishes (including a couple of sweet ones to Biedrins). It really is easy to throw stones at Jackson, as he doesn't always make the smartest decisions with the rock when he's covered. And while it's safe to say that tonight was an off night for him... well let's just say that any player that can walk away from an off night with 20 points, 8 dimes, and 8 boards... or a near triple double is certainly figuring out ways to contribute. So to you, Captain Jack, I tip my pirate hat.

Arrrrrrr!!

Okay, let's look at our Weapons Inventory, shall we? Let's see, we have Biedrins making huge strides in the post. Not too far behind him we have BWright. Okay.. that looks good. If we get challenged with some muscle we can sprinkle a little Turiaf in the mix. Hey that works... what else?

Well there's SJax and CJ, both doing an acceptable job at the point until Moped Ellis gets back. SJax is also bringing in significant offensive and defensive firepower. Add to the mix the potency of Maggette. No? What about the muscle of Buike? No? Pretend that Morrow isn't a 2 game wonder...

The truth is, we're running out of excuses for why we can't be a better team. Maybe the reason is, we can be. Maybe the future is, we will be.

Just ask the future of Portland.

I gotta give it to Morrow. While it can be argued that others did a little more on the floor, a lot of the Arena crowd came through those doors wondering if Anthony Morrow was a fluke. And he did deliver.

He may not be proven yet; 2 games is hardly enough. But there is raw talent there. And there is no one better than Nellie to help him realize his potential. Let's see what the future holds.

Game 11 Recap: Blazers 106, Warriors 111 [Blazers Edge]

2008-11-19T08:02:16Z

Game 11 Recap: Blazers 106, Warriors 111 [Blazers Edge]

Big ups to my man Dave who runs the mighty fine Blazers Edge. Good game Blazers Nation. Good game indeed.

He’s the real deal. And we haven’t even learned how to play with him yet.

2008-11-19T07:50:41Z

He’s the real deal. And we haven’t even learned how to play with him yet.

Don Nelson on Anthony Morrow after the Warriors fantastic win against the Blazers Tuesday night at the Roaracle via GSoM buddy Tim Kawakami

OPEN THREAD: Warriors vs Trailblazers - Open Thread Cop Out.

2008-11-19T01:26:14Z

Work. Not stopping. Must... get... up... open thread.

Warriors: 4-6

Trailblazers: 6-4

Tip-Off: 7:30pm

TV: CSN, CSNHD

Radio: KNBR

Wow. What a cop-out. Worst Open Thread ever. Alas, work continues to rain down on me and the game is merely 2 hours away. And dammit we need a place to DISCUSS.

DISCUSS the performance we expect from Morrow tonight. Fluke?!

DISCUSS our possibilities of riding our momentum in the house that We Believe built.

DISCUSS how ugly Greg Oden is. (Seriously though... I'm no prize, but that guy? Dayam.)

DISCUSS how crappy this Open Thread is.

DISCUSS.

Predictions:

I'm still here when the game ends. God bless DVR.

GO WARRIORS!!!!

Poll

(I'd like to dedicate this poll to warriorsscore110 and the extra notch I'm gaining by adding it. I wonder if I add more answer options I'll get an extra extra notch? Let's find out.) The Warriors will:

Stephen Jackson: Captain For Life [48minutes.net]

2008-11-18T04:46:44Z

Stephen Jackson: Captain For Life [48minutes.net]

Geoff Lepper breaks down the cap ramifications.

Love Jack and I'm happy he's getting paid, but what an odd signing. Further proof that the Warriors mismanagement has some of the worst contract negotiation skills in the business. They have this bizarre habit of outbidding themselves. The Fisher/ Foyle free agent signings were just awful moves. J-Rich, T-Murph, and Dunleavy were all extended BEFORE they were even restricted free agents. Why does history keep repeating itself?

Monta Ellis has better chance of staying if Chris Mullin is around [Examiner]

2008-11-17T19:13:37Z

Monta Ellis has better chance of staying if Chris Mullin is around [Examiner]

Hooking up GSoM friend Matt Steinmetz with the assist!

Need More-ow?

2008-11-17T17:45:19Z

Okay bad story title, but if you haven't had enough of news about Anthony Morrow, I've got you covered. He's the latest buzz around Warrior circles so get your fill of Morrow news.

What the Morrow will bring

The most amazing part about Anthony Morrow’s performance Saturday was that it wasn’t that amazing. Sounds like a contradiction, right?

How Morrow could change the Warriors assuming that wasn't a fluke 37 points

It happened. In the NBA. With NBA players trying to guard him, well, except for the times Baron decided not to. Morrow did this in summer league. He occasionally does this in practice.

HE CAN SHOOT THE BALL.

The lost Morrow tapes? Nah but he had confidence before training camps

Seems like the perfect time to go to the tape recorder and transcribe that Anthony Morrow interview from back in training camp.

And a recap of the Warriors-Clips from the blog Clips Nation, Golden State 121 - Clippers 103

One thing is certain. Fringe players throughout the NBA are, as we speak, checking the schedule and circling the dates against the Clippers. Because it's their best chance to score a career high, and probably go for 30.