FINAL Golden State Warriors Review: Andris Biedrins - Forget "F", the "U" was more worrisome

NOTE [7/5 1:30pm]: This article was originally slotted to go up on Monday morning 7/8. However seeing as how Golden State Warriors GM Bob Meyers shocked the world today and actually found a willing trade partner for this $9 million dollar salary albatross, it seemed fitting to bump this up and post now.

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Golden State Warriors 2012-2013 Season Review: Andris Biedrins - Forget "F", the "U" was more worrisome

Who would've ever thought that 6 years after WE BELIEVE the last Warrior standing would be Andris Biedrins?

Seriously. Think about that one for a minute.

There was Don Nelson leading the way as the old mad scientist out to prove everyone wrong with his bunch of schmoes, Baron Davis playing the part of Boom Dizzle, Jason Richardson as The People's Champ, Stephen Jackson cast as everyone's favorite lunatic cousin, Al Harrington aka TMNT miraculously pulling some Nellie gimmicks at the 5 against the likes of Yao Ming (unforgettable classic Nellie-Ball), Matt Barnes as the journeyman who finally found a home near home (well at least for 2 years), Mickael Pietrus aka the lovable goofball, Monta Ellis aka The Blur who didn't exactly sound like the sharpest cat in his TV interviews, and Adonal Foyle aka the FRANCHISE (if you were a Warriors fan in the late 90's and early 00's you'd feel me on this one- see Lucky #9: Revisiting the Warriors' Draft 9 Years Ago). And then there was Andris Biedrins aka the One Minute Man who only Nellie could disguise as a solid NBA player (well at least for 3 seasons).

Who would you predict would still be on the Warriors 6 years later?

7.2 per 36 minute fouling and 11.1% free throw shooting- ANDRIS BIEDRINS?

You've got to be kidding me.

(Okay to be fair, there were plenty of folks in Chris Cohan/ Robert Rowell/ Chris Mullin's camp who were gushing about how Biedrins- along with Monta Moped Ellis- were the future. And of course this Biedrins + Moped-led future was supposedly so bright, that it was worth destroying the only Warriors team to make it to the Western Conference Elite 8 during a full season of Cohan ownership. Yes, I'm still bitter about that unbelievably dumb era of Golden State Warriors basketball. Thank you Cohan, Rowell, and Mullin. I hope you all find your way to the LA Lakers front office!)

Back to the present, I saw a lot of words that start with "U" last season from Biedrins:

Unwatchable

I'll be honest. I can't stand watching Biedrins play. At least when Nellie first came back Biedrins brought some solid energy and enthusiasm. Now there's nothing. He's either uninterested sitting court side in some very expensive seats or uninterested in spot minutes on the hardwood so other Warrior players can get a quick breather (meanwhile the other team goes on a crazy run).

Thanks to Peter Guber the new Warriors ownership team has tried to push the envelope with in-arena entertainment. Here's a suggestion for It's a Great Time Out 2.0: Every game this upcoming season use the upgrade-your-seats contest to swap some loyal Dubs fan from the nosebleed section with Biedrins and his floor seat. Biedrins could play Doodle Jump on his iPhone without being caught on camera and the fan would have a truly unforgettable experience - everybody's a winner. Now that would be Unstoppable Baby!

Uninspiring

How would you feel last season if you were Jarrett Jack ($5.4M), Carl Landry ($4M), Stephen Curry ($4M), Harrison Barnes ($2.8M), Klay Thompson ($2.3M), Festus Ezeli ($1M), or Draymond Green ($850k) and you saw your paycheck dwarfed by Biedrins' insanely silly $9 MILLION dollar contract? Shoot even Kent Bazemore should be upset. At least he used his pine time to bring some serious #Bazemoring!

Aside from compensation inequalities, it has to be pretty uninspiring to be a teammate of Biedrins. After 9 seasons with the Warriors he should be a leader setting a great example for younger players. If the younger Warriors follow his example and have a similar career trajectory, we'll be seeing a lot of super lotto balls for the rest of this decade.

Uncoachable

Mike Montgomery was scared to play the guy because he was so unskilled and didn't seem to know what a foul was. Then Don Nelson came in and worked his magic to find a role for Biedrins. Post-WE BELIEVE Nellie asked him to step up and do more. Biedrins crumbled and earned the dubious distinction of worst free throw shooter in NBA history. Nellie was let go largely to appease Biedrins.

The following season Keith Smart tried to boost Biedrins' confidence by running early plays in a futile attempt to get him going (i.e., care about the game). All that did was send Smart packing to Sacrapmento.

Mark Jackson came in and talked a big game during the 2011 offseason about how he would revitalize Biedrins' career. Didn't happen. It looked like Jackson would be out in a season as well.

Then in the 2012 offseason Biedrins disrespected Jackson and his teammates by not even showing up to the to the team's voluntary mini-camp. (<sarcasm>Some great veteran leadership there!</sarcasm>)

I pity the GM in the 2014 offseason who thinks Biedrins is worth even a dime of their salary cap. He was a short-lived Nellie gimmick- nothing more and nothing less. Any GM who believes Biedrins has any upside or potential left is just asking for a pink slip.

Don't miss: Hall of Famer Don Nelson was Right about 2008-2010 Golden State Warriors

Useless

At the age of 26 (young to mid-career by NBA standards) Andris Biedrins posted:

• 9.3 minutes per game (mostly because of injuries to other Warriors)- career worst
• 0.5 points per game- career worst
• 2.9 rebounds per game- career worst
• 7.3 fouls per 36 minutes- shocking not a career worst as he was at an incredibly awful 8.2 fouls per 36 his rookie season
• 30.8% FT- actually almost 3x his previous season!
• 47.6% FG- career worst for a player who doesn't make an attempt outside of 2 inches from the bucket.

That my friends is not a good way to use a roster spot in the NBA, let alone $9 million big ones. Overall, the new regime of Warriors basketball has done an outstanding job since freeing us all from Cohan's reign of utter incompetence. However, the one major stain is not using the NBA's Get Out of Jail card on Biedrins 2 summers ago.

What's your grade for Biedrins' 9th campaign for the Golden State Warriors?

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FINAL NOTE: If you're a Utah Jazz fan you can't be too happy right now. Please be kind to our friends over at SLC Dunk.

Also see:

• Utah Jazz Trade: Adrian Wojnarowski reports Jazz to take on Golden State Warriors salary dump and 2014 Draft Pick [SLC Dunk]
• Adrian Wojnarowski + David Aldridge: Andre Iguodala coming to Golden State Warriors, Andris Biedrins and Richard Jefferson traded to Utah Jazz
• Andre Iguodala to Warriors? Dwight Howard still in play?
• Richard Jefferson, Brandon Rush and Andris Biedrins traded to Jazz in salary dump, according to report [SB Nation]