They’ve arrived. We know you've been waiting for them. The 2006-2007 Golden State Warrior Report Cards are complete and we’re going to bring them to you fast and furious. At GSoM, we always try to give you fresh look at the Warriors, so this year we switched it up by adding two excellent Warrior bloggers to the mix. Meet our co-professors to help out in the report cards, Adam Lauridsen of Fast Break: A Warriors Fan Blog" and Daniel Turman of Fear the Beard.
Retro Chris Mullin
Rod Higgins: Signing autographs?
We kick the Report Cards off with a look at the decision makers, Chris Mullin and Rod Higgins. From the drafting of Project O’Bryant and Kosta Perovic to the hiring of Don Nelson to the trades, the duo was busy this year trying to get this team to the playoffs. By the way, does anyone know what Rod Higgins does? It always seems like Chris Mullin is the one getting the face time for all the Warrior moves. Now that Rod Higgins is going to the Bobcats, the Warriors need to hire someone. That someone should be me. Anyways, on to the report cards!
Grade: A
If not for the questionable POB pick, I would have given them an A+. The Trade, along with bringing back Nellie, saved this franchise and gave us a ride we'll always remember. After lots of early mistakes, they seemed to come into their own this year. It's unclear how much of a difference Higgins' departure will make, but Mullin seems to have a plan for this team and I'm liking it so far.
Fun Score: 6
Mullin gets big points for being the last man in America still sporting a flat top.
Atma Brother #1
Grade: A
If there was an award for most improved NBA front office I'd give it to Mullie and Higgy. In less than one year they cut ties with one of the league's worst coaches and brought on an NBA coaching legend. With one quick heist they robbed the Indiana Pacers of a great all around player and seasoned veteran in Stephen Jackson as well as a top notch 3pt threat who can defend the post exceptionally well in Al Harrington. By offloading the Dunmurphy apathetic play and horrendous contracts to the Pacers, Mullin and Higgins ended one playoff drought and began another. I really want to give them an A+ for all that outstanding work, but the disaster that was the Warriors' 2006 NBA Draft can't be overlooked. Good luck to Hot Rod in Charlotte with MJ. Hopefully, Higgins is just working undercover for the Warriors to help swing an Adonal Foyle for Emeka Okafor type deal.
Fun Score: 7
Thanks for finally assembling a fun Warrior team both on and off the court!
Grade: B+
I'm pretty sure that Mully could have hand fed a bear or pulled Sockeye salmon out of a roiling river with his bare hands if he had chosen to, but life being what it is he had to content himself between team-altering GM-ing with post-practice games of half-court two on two with Higgy Baby. Rod, you had the best job in the league since Jack Haley checked out of his Rodman-sitting duties. And then parlayed it into a job from MJ his damn self. I'm envious. Grades: "Grizzly Adams" and "Kenny Rogers"
Fun Score: ‘08
Fun score of '08, like Obama in '08 or Warriors '08 NBA Champions
DJ Fuzzylogic
Grade: B
Chris Mullin and Rod Higgins went retro this season, transforming the 2007 Warriors into the 1987 Warriors (thank goodness not the 1997 Warriors...). Too bad the figurative time machine couldn't give Nellie some years back into his life, the dude looked like he was sleepy half the time on the bench! Snagging Jax and Harrington might have been the biggest heist we've seen since Oceans 12. Finding a way to get rid of their glut of one dimensional (or no dimensional, if you're talking about POB) big men should be their next step and could give them some extra credit points for the next exam.
Fun Score: 6
Fantasy Junkie
Grade: A-
They started out the offseason with an F after drafting POB and Kosta Perovic. They could have taken two players who could actually help the team. But they made up for it by grabbing Nellie, signing Barnes, signing Kelenna midseason, and of course, getting rid of the DunMurphy sisters. I'm not sure how they got rid of those two contracts, but to get Stephen Jackson and Al Harrington for them was even more of a steal. Anyways, congrats to Chris and Rod for a great season managing the personnel.
Fun Score: 4
Hash
Grade: B-
After so many years of ridiculousness, I can't in all good conscience give these cats anything higher than a B-. That being said, the only reason they didn't get a D/F has to do with a little midseason trade that you might have read about...
Fun Score: 7
If it weren't for the midseason trade they'd be owing me some change on this Fun Score...
YaoButtaMing
Grade: A-
There was a point in time early last season I literally wanted to take my season tickets and mail them back to the Warriors with fecal matter stuffed inside. But then "The Trade" occurred where we gave up two gigantic loser contracts and reinvented the Warriors. This trade could be looked back as one of the most lopsided trades ever.
Fun Score: 8
Overall Grade: B+
We know you have your own grades and fun scores, so in the comments leave your grade, any comments, and a fun score to keep the discussion going.
did here that rod higgins was very important and did a lot for the organization, but mullin was just the one getting the face time because people can identify him and know who he was as a player, etc.
guys we haven't heard from before, good expansion to the team GSoM for the Report Cards, you guys also get an A on the draft for hyping up with massive Atma powered linkage(can't knock his hustle on adequate, and then some, linkage!) on the future no shows in POB and Kosta Petrovic, even when there wasn't a whole lotta info out there on such vague/under a normal level of hype guys.
Even without them playing a second, the GSoM guys and members gave these guys a name in Notorious POB and Kosta Koast since we were excited to see new Warriors just like every other year during the drought!
Front Office did a great job on rosters, not to mention a very important and perhaps essential part, bringing back the (Sleepy!) Nellie.
OK, "the Trade" turned out great, and I say this with humble admission that at the time, I thought it was basically a neutral move with long term moderate cap advantages that would probably never really show much of an impact on the court. It was better than that and even if Jax and Harrington disappear in the future and revert to the problems Indy wanted to deal, we've still come out ahead. High marks there. High marks for finding Barnes, even if it was Nellie who managed to get him to be a player in the league.
But when you draft the POB, you can't get an A unless you also win the championship. It's like failing the mid-term or forgetting to turn in the term paper. You might get a prof to disregard it if you ace the final, but otherwise, it's tough to average in that 7 foot tall "need pick" that so far seems to be the poster child for why need picks are a bad idea and come up with a grade better than a B+.
Fight grade-inflation and diminished expectations. An "A" is for excellence. Drafting POB ain't excellent.
Forget the bad; let's just grade on the good stuff. Sort of an A curve. That shows the love. (The point is the W's needed a four last year -- just as much as they do now. Failing that, there were a number of swings available who were much more likely to prove valuable than POB -- and we didn't go that route either. In short, we threw away the draft when we had a lottery pick. Not very smart -- even if Nellie, the Trade and Barnesie worked out so well.)
A "B" is supposed to be a good grade. You've got a curious definition of looking for the bad in everything, coma. I just don't see the cause to give highest marks for guys who clearly did had some big gaffs. Rewarding mediocrity generates mediocre results.
The "A" grades for last season are short term popularity contests based on half of their actions, not a real evaluation of the whole of their management decisions. They're 'gift' grades for a feel-good story of squeaking into the playoffs and winning an upset series. Hey, I know other teachers who give out A's like candy on Halloween too. Doesn't really help their students, but they win popularity contests.
These aren't grades for Mullin and Higgin's entire front office tenure for the Warriors. They're grades for the 2k6-2k7 season. I don't think any of the graders think they deserve a B+ for their entire career.
I was grading based on last year, starting with the draft. Since we're grading before this year's draft, I'd think that the season has to include the draft and when you pick the first lottery pick to get demoted from 12th man to NBADL, coupled with a guy who, by all accounts is a project best left overseas for the foreseeable future (while passing on some guys who could have actually helped immediately with the pick), you don't get an A of any variety.
That's the "F" on the midterm that really brings down the average. Just don't see how anyone can give them an "A" without completely ignoring this.
They got extra points in my grade for helping end the 12 year curse.
Let's pretend that trade never happened, but they made the playoffs. Say Murphy/Dunleavy actually lived up the contracts Mullin gave them. Also, say Ike blew up. I'd probably still give Mullin and Higgins high marks. Ending that curse just meant a lot to me.
Chris Mullin gets a nice contract extension/resigning. Good Indiana trade, good "diamonds in the rough" finding with Azubuike and Barnes. Only fluke was dropping Devin Brown and then watching him become a starter for the Hornets, and losing Fisher. Note that this rating is THIS SEASON ONLY.
Fun Rating: 10 FLATTOP!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see some betamax tapes being used for Warriors Yi scouting.
I think some of the posts in other threads about us being in the situation we are now (considering trading J-Rich) is due to Foyle's contract, the only remnant of multiple years of really bad decision making.
Ok, ok, so you can set your parameters anyway you want, but I would look at the "body of work" rather than this one year. It seems more fair that way. If you look at the body of work, you get some solid F's and some solid A's.
I am mystified by the love and high grades. If it hadn't been for hiring Nellie and the trade--which I have to think was more forced by Nellie than Mully's creativity, Mullins would be on the way out the door at the end of last season. I know that is hypothetical, but his bad judgements with contracts and previous drafts leaves me with a C for the "year to date".
Judging from the judges and other posts, I must be pretty far off base but I just had to get it off my chest.
I'd flip through the archives if you want a better sample of how Mullin and Higgins have done for their entire tenure. The annual report card isn't intended for that. As for this past season, they've done allright by me.
by Fantasy Junkie
on Jun 18, 2007 12:00 AM PDT
in Report Cards
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