I read that Gregg Popovich may rest some of his stars against us tonight. The Spurs have a 6 1/2 game lead over the Mavericks in their division, and a 6 1/2 game lead Lakers in the conference, so they can afford to rest some of their stars against the mediocre Warriors. That should give us a 20% better chance of beating them in San Antonio. Of course, if you know math, a 20% increase of zero chance is still zero chance, so don't get your hopes up.
What can we expect tonight? My guess is more of the same. The Warriors are falling apart as the season comes to a close. I think the stress and strain of an inconsistent team coupled with higher expectations of the season has started to gnaw at the Warriors. I saw the same thing happen with the 48-win Warriors in 2007-2008, right around this time too. They were trying to make the playoffs, and around this time of the season, they stopped playing loose and free, they started playing lots of iso individual basketball, and the team started to falter.
I sense some of the same thing happening to this Warriors team right now. There are higher expectations for this team as well. They're trying to make the playoffs, or they're trying to make .500, and every little mistake grinds at the mind more. So expect tonight's game to be more of the same: They'll look worn out and fatigued, and they'll fall apart early.
Warriors (30-40) @ Spurs (56-13)
Tip-Off: 5:30pm | CSN Bay Area | KNBR 1050
SB Nation: Pounding The Rock
Don't forget, Don Nelson will be on Chronicle Live after the game.