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Fitz put it best tonight
Hanging by a thread our Warriors are on the brink of a complete collapse right out of the playoff race with each loss. Luckily for us we got the best recipe for tonight, a game against Memphis Grizzlies.
Tonight it was essentially over by halftime as the Warriors beat the Grizzlies 117 to 86. Now the focus is on the Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets, praying they start losing. Half a game behind Denver for the 8th spot, we better get lucky, or else we all are watching Planet Bboy for the rest of the summer!
But first let's see how we creamed the Grizz shall we?
Jump!
My all time favorite competition. Now you know!
Why can’t we play with this kind of energy and emotion every night? Why? With this type of hustle we could have probably stolen a win from Dallas, San Antonio or at least Denver. But that’s in the past and we can only focus on what will hopefully lead us back into the playoffs. From tip off we controlled the ball and the game taking a quick lead and gliding to a 117 – 86 victory. It wasn’t even that close and with unlikely heroes for tonight, it was actually enjoyable to watch.
We won on three factors:
Our Bench
And Pietrus didn’t even play! Let’s start with Marco Belinelli. At one point in the game he ran down the side, lifted up and floated a long range fade-a-way 2 pointer that swished. It was one of those shots where you say "what the hell?" when it left his hands but then retract with "oh yea I knew that was going in" when the ball falls through. Though he only had 13 points and shot 6 for 11 it was great to finally see Belinelli get some playing time and quality play. I’m always on the fence with this guy but I do love his shot and if we somehow found a way to utilize him, he could be a great addition, except for the defense part (we have to work on that big guy).
Brandan Wright on the other hand was able to score 10 points and grab 4 rebounds with 2 blocked shots with just 19 minutes of playing time. We can debate all night whether or not we should play him more or less, but I’m digging on this guy. I think he will be Most Improved Player of the Year next year if he can work out all summer and have an amazing summer program to improve strength and offense.
Now I always question why the hell we are playing CJ Watson but tonight in just 8 minutes he played pretty well. With 9 points shooting 4 for 4, CJ had a nice spark off the bench allowing our starters like Baron and Jackson to sit out most of the 4th.
Monta
I know I know, I like to go on and on about how great it is watching a fantastic young player like Monta grow up before our very own eyes, but I’m doing it again! Monta was great tonight. Nothing spectacular on the stat line, 19 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals but it was his overall effort that made it great to watch. It seemed as though he took off from the free throw line a couple times catching the Grizz off guard and floating it in. Easily the fastest player on the court he made Mike Conley look like a fool on both ends of the court. Playing only 31 minutes I’m hoping he’s going to have another great game this coming Sunday when we need him most.
We Played the Grizz
Wow I haven’t seen such complacent nobodies before. I mean it was like they were just standing around taking a beating. Granted the Grizz have nothing to play for other then lottery position, but even then it was interesting to see a team completely unwilling to put in an inch of effort. I’d like to say our Warriors are just that good, but I think my over 40 coworker basketball league could take them on! At one point in the game the ENTIRE Grizzly team stood still as the Warriors ran past them for a layup. It was crazy. To add salt to the wound, when we were up by 26 points in the third, Baron hustled for a steal during an inbound play and as he grabbed the ball Conley just stood there watching. Even Barnett commented the Grizz had other intentions tonight.
But don’t get me wrong, I’ll take it. Sometimes we need an easy win to get back in our ways. What was nice was to see Biens having a field day. Spinning left and right, I thought I was looking at an awkward version of the Dream! With some sweet hook shots, he was able to score 21 points and grab 17 rebounds.
See if we all stand over here … maybe they’ll miss!?!
Warrior Wonder: I’d really have to give it to the Grizzly Season Ticket holders. Do they really pay to watch that? I kid! Honestly this goes to Biens. Finally having a good game let’s hope he can use this confidence booster to help us win the remaining 6!!
Side Note: No YaoButta Winners. Next one coming up next week!
Photos courtesy of (AP Photo/Bill Waugh)