SB Nation - Corey Maggette

RUMOR: Warriors interested in Hornets forward David West + Monta Ellis "as untouchable as a player can be"

Atma Brother ONE — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 20:42:10 -0000

FJ noted that even though the Dubs lost last night (again) they at least gave a good effort in NOLA. They get points in my book for that.

They could get even more points from me if they made some trades- QUICK.

Can CP3 come to The Town too? PACKAGE DEAL!

via www.hoopsdaily.com

Jump for the 411 on bringing Xavier product to the West-syde and more.

GSoM friend MT has the details about David West over at Inside the Warriors:

I've heard the Warriors have an interest in David West, but I wouldn't give up too much for him. He's still a pretty good player, but his best days seem behind him. Wednesday, he had a tough time scoring over Randolph. West is down nearly 5 points off his average from last season and more than a rebound. He still has a midrange though and he at least commands attention inside, so I still think he's a good fit.

The Hornets ownership has been rumored to be looking to cut payroll (not that they're in a unique position in today's NBA financial landscape), so maybe they're a natural trading partner for the Golden State Warriors injury exception/ expiring contract filled roster. Here's some possibilities that would save the Hornets money in the long run and put all those expiring contracts the Warriors have amassed to work:

David West for Speedy Claxton, Devean George, and Mikki Moore ($7.6 million in expiring contracts)
David West for Speedy Claxton, Devean George, and C.J. Watson ($7.8 million in expiring contracts)
[After January 16, 2010] David West for Raja Bell, Devean George, and Mikki Moore ($7.7 million in expiring contracts)
[After January 16, 2010] David West for Raja Bell, Devean George, and C.J. Watson ($7.9 million in expiring contracts)

There's also "the change of scenery swap" which would give the Warriors a one year shorter deal:

David West for Corey Maggette

Options, options, options.

But is David West worth it?

David West

#30 / Forward / New Orleans Hornets

Height: 6-9

Weight: 240

Born: Aug 29, 1980

College: Xavier

			FG			3PT			FT			Rebounds			Misc
	G	M	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	Off	Def	Tot	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	PPG
2009 - David West	27	35.3	6.7	14.5	46.3	0.1	0.3	28.6	2.8	3.3	86.4	2.7	4.7	7.3	2.4	2.0	0.7	0.7	2.6	16.3

Game

As MT astutely noted West is having a down year and his best years are probably in the past. That still doesn't mean he wouldn't be a nice piece for the Warriors. He would instantly step in and be their best scoring big man. West has an incredibly impressive arsenal of scoring moves in comparison to the Warriors bigs Andris Biedrins, Ronny Turiaf, Anthony Randolph, Brandan Wright (remember him?), Chris Hunter, and Mikki Moore who are pretty limited (which is a nice way of saying they're all rawer than sushi).

West never struck me as the most gifted athlete in the association, but rather as someone who was willing to put in the hard work to take his game to his personal apex. He's a savvy player and has done well for himself coming into the league as the 18th pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. Take a look at his career trajectory and you'll see a guy who impressively worked his way into a nearly 21 and 9 forward with dedication and commitment. It would be great to see that type of attitude rub off on the Dubs kiddie crew.

Truth be told I haven't watched West play all that extensively since the 2008 NBA Playoffs where the Hornets looked like they had next in the West (unfortunately that didn't exactly happen in 2009 and most likely won't happen in 2010). So I'll defer to the good folks over at At the Hive, the top Charlotte New Orleans Oklahoma City New Orleans Hornets spot for a deeper scouting report.

Contract

Let's put it this way. He's slotted to make less than Warriors small power forward (at least with all these injuries) Corey Maggette this year and the next. He has a player option to opt out for the 2011-2012 season where he would be taking a pay cut at $7.5 million (wouldn't you love to be able to call that a "pay cut"?). Point being, West has all the financial motivation to have a BIG year next season, so he can opt out for more greens (and we're not talking about collard).

He'll start off next season at the age of 30, so it's not like he's young. But it's not like the Warriors need to get any younger right now. They need to get better. His drop from 21 ppg to 16 ppg this season and slip for 8.5 rpg to 7.3 rpg are a cause for concern. If he could bump those up to maybe 18 and 8 those concerns would be alleviated. It's not like West relies purely on his athleticism to get his numbers, so here's hoping he ages well.

I can't say I have that many issues with the Warriors adding on his contract. Seems like money well spent, especially for this team.

So...

via www.sitcomsonline.com

Also of note it looks like Mr. Moped is off the table in trade talks (for now):

A story in the Memphis Commercial Appeal on Wednesday referred to discussions between the Warriors and Grizzlies involving Monta Ellis. These discussions were a while ago, as the report said. Back when that stuff about Ellis' agent meeting with the Warriors, I was told the Warriors were definitely listening in regards to Ellis. A lot has changed since then. Now, Ellis, I'm told, is about as untouchable as a player can be.

No one on a 7-21 team should be untouchable, but that's another story for another time.

99% of rumors never happen, but 99% of them are fun to talk about!

Poll

Do you think the Warriors can get David West from NOLA for expiring contracts?

RECAP: Warriors 102, Hornets 108 – Good Effort

Fantasy Junkie — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:21:13 -0000

Beaten by 7 year olds. Sigh, it's been a long season

Final Boxscore | Open Thread (550+ comments) | Warriors Web Links

The Warriors almost won. Does that count for something? This is loss number 21, 7th in a row, 11th in the last 12 games with the one win coming against the Nets. So here's what we've established - the Warriors are better than the Nets and Timberwolves. Like I wrote in the preview, this is looking like the 1999 19 win season.

But wait! If you think the losing is bad now, close your eyes, the next opponents are Phoenix (18-11), Boston (22-5), @Lakers (23-4), @Portland (19-12), and then @Denver (20-9). Are any of those 5 teams going to slip up and lose to the Warriors? I don't think so. So we're looking at 12 straight losses. The game after Denver is @Minnesota. That's the best chance the Warriors have of winning but it's on the back end of a back to back and the very last game of a 5 game road trip. Won't be easy. I'm sure Minnesota is looking forward to that game as well since it's just one of very few they have a shot at winning.

If you think it's ugly now, just wait. You ain't seen nothing yet.

Why does David West look like he's smiling?

Tonight's game saw the beginning of what will hopefully be some more minutes for Anthony Randolph. 36 whopping minutes! And he rewarded the team with 8 blocks, 6 of them in the first quarter. Glad to see him being more active in the paint. It's about time! He still had a poor shooting game (5-14) which is nothing new, but at least he was active in the paint. If he keeps that up and works on not shooting the ball outside of 5 feet, he'll get back to the success he had at the end of last year. Keep playing the young guy Nellie!

I think tonight's loss really exemplifies how badly injuries are hurting the Warriors this year. The Warriors got essentially nothing from the bench tonight while the Hornets played 11 guys, all 5 starters scored in double digits, and 3 of the 6 bench guys had 8 points. Distributed scoring, distributed minutes. Only David West and Chris Paul played more than 30 minutes.

Hornets bench = 90 minutes, 40 points
Warriors "bench" = 34 minutes, 11 points

Then you look at our bench.

Vladimir Radmanovic may well have not even played. 10 minutes, 1 point, 1 rebound, -19 plus/minus. If not for being one of a few healthy bodies, he'd most likely be getting DNP-CD's.

The other bench player, Anthony Morrow, had 10 points and 3 boards in 24 minutes. On a tangent, I'm glad to see Morrow is producing something again. Maybe not at the pace he was before, but in the games after he had to attend the funeral, he did not play well. These last 2 games we've seen him score in double digits and shoot 4-9 from the field. Is he back to where he was before? No, but at least it looks like he's getting his mind right again. The Warriors need him back.

Chris Hunter, DNP-CD.

The Warriors just aren't going to win many games, especially on the back end of a back to back, without quality minutes from the bench. Monta cannot play 48 minutes, Curry cannot play 47 minutes, and CJ should not play 37 minutes. That's just too much. But there's really no other choice if Vlad and Morrow don't start stepping it up.

Nellie resorted to the macarena and some sexy belly dancing to distract the Hornets.

When will Biedrins and Turiaf get back? This team will continue to get murdered on the glass until some more big bodies can get in the game. The Hornets had 14 more rebounds. Okafor had 9 offensive rebounds which helped the Hornets net 12 more shots than the Warriors. That was a big difference right there. Those extra shots kept the Hornets' possessions alive allowing them continual second and third chance points.

Speaking of rebounding though, I have to give props to Corey Maggette and Stephen Curry. They both had 10 rebounds. If not for their efforts on the boards, that rebounding differential would have been even worse and the Warriors would have had no shot at winning. Curry even had 7 assists and 17 points for a near triple double while Maggette chipped in with 22 points on 8-12 shooting.

Julian forgot this is basketball, not football. You don't need to tackle.

The starters played quite well tonight and just ran out of gas tonight. The Hornets didn't blow the Warriors away in any one quarter, they just beat them by a little each quarter. Overall, it was a good effort, the Warriors just don't have enough healthy bodies to win a game against a better team.

Monta Ellis. Kept the Warriors in the game with his high percentage scoring - 35 points on 15-26 shooting. The 5 assists and 4 steals are a nice bonus. But all these nice games are coming in losses. When are we going to win?

Game Preview #23: San Antonio Spurs @ Golden State Warriors

CapHill — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:09:12 -0000

Thank you, Suns. Why don't you stomp on it too.

Well, that was fun. I hate losing, especially when you manage to crawl out of the abyss, but then fail to close out on the best 3-point shooters in the League!

More doom and gloom after the jump.

Please, FSM, I can't take much more.

I thought that I would have some time to distance myself and do a real preview, but no, this is a SEGABABA. Crap. It's Game #23 and, according to Lauri, it's okay if I start panicking. Time to redo that poll, dfjmed. (My "Now" vote isn't looking so crazy, is it?)

San Antonio Spurs @ Golden State Warriors
Where: ORACLE Arena - Oakland, CA
When: December 16, 2009, 9:30 PM Spurs time
Watch: FSNSW

How They Stack Up


10-4	Home	4-5
2-6	Road	3-12
101.8	Offense	107.0
96.6	Defense	111.7
48.0	FG%	47.1
39.2	3-pt%	36.9
73.8	FT%	78.2
42.0	Rebounds	37.0
14.2	TOs	16.3
7-3	Last 10	2-8
Lost 1	Streak	Lost 3
2nd, Southwest	Position	5th, Pacific


Country/Time Zone	Game Time
Argentina	12:30 AM
West Coast	7:30 PM
Philippines	11:30 AM
Central Europe	4:30 AM
Palestine/Egypt	5:30 AM
East Coast	10:30 PM
Last Night's Massacre	8:30 PM
Perth, AUS	11:30 AM
Tokyo, JP	12:30 PM
Sydney, AUS	1:30 AM

Spurs (12-10)	Matchups	Warriors (7-17)
Tony Parker Meh	Point Guard Tony still seems to be having trouble integrating to the new offense. Plus, he seems a step slower. However, he actually is a point guard, unlike Curry, who's a shooting guard (emphasis on shooting) in a supermodel's body. Advantage: Spurs	Stephen Curry Not a Point Guard

Keith Bogans Meh	Shooting Guard Bogans is another one of those players whose contributions don't always show up in the box score. However, his non-boxscore contributions haven't been showing up lately either. Ellis isn't really big enough to play the 2, having a supermodel frame just like Curry. However, dude can shoot the damn ball. Advantage: Warriors	Monta Ellis Not a Point Guard

Richard Jefferson Meh	Small Forward RJ is still not showing up during some games. Morrow is a young kid who hasn't been starting the whole year. I could probably figure out who has the advantage by looking at advanced statistics, but I don't feel like it. Advantage: Neither	Anthony Morrow Summer League Stud

Tim Duncan Spurs' Savior	Power Forward I don't know why we even bother with rating this position. Timmeh is far superior to any Power Forward out there - don't even try arguing. Hollinger's PER compooper can't comprehend the greatness that is Tim Duncan, even though he's old and can't play anymore. Take that, you freakin' "experts". Advantage: Spurs	Vladimir Radmanovic Laker Cast Off

Antonio McDyess Meh	Center McDyess has been down lately. We need to see the boards and the pretty jumper come back. Mikki Moore has the height to play the center position, but not much else. With the way Dice has played the last few games, no one deserves the advantage here. Advantage: Neither	Mikki Moore Token Big Man

DeJuan Blair BAM	Bench & Role Players Corey Maggette seems to be the first player off the bench, but the Dubs also have Anthony Randolph, the other Summer League Stud. However, we have DeBeast, who will promptly dive on the floor to recover the flailing arms that he has ripped out of the sockets of the Warriors' front court. I love this guy! Oh, and we have Manu Ginobili and George Hill too. They're not bad. Advantage: Spurs	Corey Maggette Who Knows

Gregg Popovich No Beard for Mojo	Coach Even though we don't always agree with Pop and his crazy small ball lineups, at least we don't have to deal with Nelson and his game-by-game, throw the dice decision-making process when filling out the lineup card. Advantage: Spurs	Don Nelson Mr. Crazy Lineups
	images via yahoo.com

	Other Factors
Intangibles
We really, really, really, really, really need a road win, especially against a team that's this bad at home. Advantage: Spurs
Mojo
We have none, after the Suns killed us. But then, the Dubs just lost to the Sixers. It's a tie for crappy karma. Apparently, both teams suck at sacrificing chickens. Advantage: Neither
Winner: The Spurs (I Hope)
The Spurs need another victory after that heartbreaking loss to the Suns. The Warriors want to trade all of their players. It should be a blowout, but it'll probably be too close for comfort. Prediction: Spurs win by less than 10.

Keys To The Game

Starters Show Up - Other than Timmeh, our starters have been wildly inconsistent this year. We can't continue to depend on Duncan to carry the team in the first quarter, or depend on BAM to pull our butts out of the fire.
No Crappy Quarters - Each game, the Spurs have one really bad quarter, or two, or three. It's hard to win when you start the game in a 20 point hole. No more RQCs (thank you, romes).
Defense - Defense is supposed to be a hallmark of the Spurs - not this year. Too many open 3s, too many easy jaunts down the lane - this is NOT acceptable and needs to be cleaned up.

Strength of Schedule

This is a SEGABABA on the road, after another crappy road loss, TO THE SUNS. This does not bode well for the team or our livers.

The Warriors are coming off of a road loss to the Sixers. However, they will be playing on one day of rest, at home. But the Dubs are less than .500 at home, so who knows.

Last Time They Met

Our last meeting with the Warriors was November 25th. We won 118-104, but not because of our defense on Ellis. Monta went off for 42 points, but no other Warrior did much. We had six players score double digits.

Here's some old school Bernard King and the Warriors vs. Iceman and the Spurs.

And now for my second favorite playoff upset of all times.

Some Other Reading

Warriors

Golden State of Mind - The Warriors' SBN blog is one of the most enjoyable blogs around. You gotta give it to Warriors fans, no matter how hard Nelly tries to destroy this franchise, the fans just keep coming and coming at you in waves.
Warriors World - The TrueHoop blog for the Dubs. Their tagline says it all: "We Got Suck and Salary Protection." Perfect.

Spurs

48 Minutes of Hell: Best damn TrueHoop affiliate out there. Always a must visit Spurs site.
Project Spurs: Features live chats, call-in shows and podcasts, with lots of content. Give 'em a try.

Twitter Musings

Nothing worth sharing (unless you count some more LOLs by Blair), but you can always find all the official Spurs Sports & Entertainment Twitter accounts here: http://twitter.com/spurs/official/members

Where to Tune In

TV

This game will be aired on FSN Southwest. If you have cable or satellite, you'll have to look up your individual channel. And of course, there's always League Pass for the haves. For the have nots, read on.

Online

As always, NBA League Pass is recommended for those who are willing to pony up the cash. Most Spurs games will be broadcast there, which is especially helpful for those of us who aren't in the San Antonio area.

Please don't post links to illegal game feeds in the game thread. Links to illegal feeds are not permitted on SBNation, but you can probably find them out there on the internets if you're resourceful and desperate. In fact, nobody can stop you from googling "atdhe". You can also shoot an email to dmenendez@gmail.com for more assistance.

NBA League Pass audio is still free this year, so check it out.

Radio

If you're in the San Antonio area and aren't near a TV, tune in to WOAI (1200 AM).

Q&A: Marcus Thompson - Contra Costa Times / InsideBayArea.com (Part 1 of 3)- Warriors bright spots, the next to be traded, Robert Rowell and basketball decisions

Atma Brother ONE — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 02:00:35 -0000

We recently mic'ed up Marcus Thompson of the Contra Costa Times/ InsideBayArea.com to get his thoughts on the Golden State Warriors.

Click and roll to MT's Dubs blog

Jump for some positives about the Warriors season, who will be the next players the team ships out, and Robert Rowell's future in making Warriors hoops decisions.

Golden State of Mind: We're in the midst of some seemingly endless "Dubs Drama" (again). Let's hit the pause button on the dysfunction for a second though. You cover the Warriors extremely closely, so you're the best person to ask this. What are some of the bright spots for this organization either on or off the court that aren't getting enough ink across the hoops world?

Marcus Thompson: The bright spots are obvious: Monta Ellis, Anthony Morrow, Anthony Randolph, Stephen Curry and I will even throw Kelenna Azubuike in there.

The brightest is no doubt Monta Ellis. Say what you want about him, the kid is showing he is special. He hasn't done anything yet. But the prospects look good. He will benefit the Warriors extremely down the road, whether as a player or as trade bait.

Morrow is right behind Ellis. He may not have the superstar power Ellis has, but Morrow at the very least could be just a solid starter for years to come. That is nothing to sneeze at.

Randolph, though he is up and down, I think is still promising. His fate may be more in the hands of his coaches, who have to figure out a way to help him progress. But that is what organizations have to do sometimes. Sure, the onus is on the player. But he didn't invest in himself, the Warriors invested in him. It is on them to do everything they can to maximize that investment. Because if Randolph turns out to be a bust, it's the franchise's fault for drafting him.

The cap flexibility is also pretty good. As it is now, they have the flexibility to add a big contract for a player they really want. The chance is there to really get someone good. If they don't take advantage, that is on them.

Golden State of Mind: Within his first few months on the job as the GM of the Warriors Larry Riley has already given the roster a shake-up. Jamal Crawford, Marco Belinelli, and recently Stephen Jackson have all been shipped out. This still isn't a contender to say the least, so more moves seem likely. Considering the big money deals still on the books, expiring contracts, young and raw talent, and lingering in-house drama, who do you think will be the next player(s) headed out? Does Monta Ellis "got next"?

Marcus Thompson: Ideally, it would be Corey Maggette. They aren't getting the bang for his buck, and he certainly would like to play more. But everyone knows it's tough to trade his contract. With that said, I think it has to be either Monta Ellis or Andris Biedrins. I don't see how they can land a difference maker without giving up one of those two. Those are the two big money guys, so if the Warriors want to give someone $15 a year, they will probably need to move one of those two (unless they can get rid of Maggette's contract). But mainly, those two guys I think are the only commodities the Warriors have that will make another team give up a stud.

If you're Phoenix, who would you want in return for Stoudemire? If you're Toronto, who would you want in exchange for Bosh? Sure, they want young talent, but for the money the Warriors will have to shell out, young talent won't be enough. Maybe if they decided to package Curry and Randolph with Maggette, they might get another team to bite. But I really don't think they'd do that.

Curry and Randolph are among the untouchables currently, but I wouldn't be surprise if their status changed between February and August. Especially in the case of Randolph, the Warriors may be more willing to include him in a deal down the line than they are right now.

Golden State of Mind: Golden State Warriors president Robert Rowell has had his fair share of critics for personally inking Stephen Jackson to that questionable early 3 year extension, among other recent front office decisions. With Larry Riley and Don Nelson firmly entrenched as the Warriors GM head coach is this the last we'll see Rowell making basketball decisions such as negotiating player deals and extensions? How safe is his job with the Warriors?

Marcus Thompson: I think it's the last he'll be taking or given credit publicly. There was a time when the Warriors wanted his name mentioned for the good things the Warriors did. Of course, with that comes your name being mentioned when bad things happen.

I think everyone in the organization, even Rowell, realizes that he needs to either become the GM or let the GM run the show. I don't think that means he is out of the loop on decision making, though. In the end, he's still got to approve all financial moves, and sell them to owner Chris Cohan. So he's in the room, and at the very least in the loop. But Riley will get all the credit and the blame when it comes to basketball decisions.

**********

Stay tuned for the rest of our Q&A with Marcus! In the mean time make sure to check out Inside the Warriors

RECAP: Warriors 91, Bulls 96 – Brick!

Fantasy Junkie — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 06:58:58 -0000

More photos » by Nam Y. Huh - AP

13 days ago: Golden State Warriors' Monta Ellis (8) reacts after missing a shot during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls in Chicago, Friday, Dec. 11, 2009. The Bulls won 96-91. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Browse more photos »

Final Boxscore | Warriors Web Links | Open Thread (1100+ comments)

With all these young guys playing prominent roles, I guess you have to expect this kind of inconsistency. A blowout win over the Nets followed by a head scratching loss to the Bulls. The Warriors "should" have won this game? I guess my optimism got a little ahead of me. The Bulls, losers of 9 out of 10, maybe aren't as bad as I thought. But I'll still maintain that this loss wasn't so much that the Bulls beat the Warriors, but the Warriors shot themselves out of the game. Plain and simple, the Warriors desire to shoot tons of jumpers instead of getting aggressive and driving to the hole, cost them the game. Hopefully these young guys learn from this game.

Shooting Woes
The Warriors made the Bulls look like a great defensive team tonight. 38% shooting? You realize the last few games the Bulls have allowed 50%, 45%, 48%, and 51%? This is not a bad Warriors shooting team. What was with all the jumpers and lack of drives? Were they saving themselves for the second game of the back to back? 37-97 from the field. 8-28 from 3, 28.6%. Ouch. Oops. Oy.

And what's with the 12 free throws? Monta had 6. So between the other 7 players for the Warriors, they shot a combined 6 free throws. Ummm guys? You're allowed to go inside of 10 feet from the basket more than once a quarter. Corey Maggette usually gets to the line 6-7 times per game - tonight he never made an appearance.

The lack of free throws means a lot of jumpers which means not very many assists and also means lots of rebounds. The Warriors got pounded on the boards 58-44 with many thanks to the twin towers, Brad Miller and Joakim Noah. Yeesh. 14 rebound differential.

I have a beef with Anthony Morrow. 15 shots. 13 three pointers taken! Only 4 made. I can understand the 13 three pointers if he was hot, but like with alcohol, know when to say when. He went a little overboard with the 3's tonight. Every now and then you have to take the ball to the hole if you're not shooting so well from the perimeter. Or maybe take a few steps in for a jumper. C'mon young fella. I guess this is part of the maturation process? For awhile there it seemed like he was varying his offensive game by driving it to the hole, pulling up from 15, and making some decent passes. Tonight was not one of those nights.

Monta was bad as well. 10-26 from the field. At least he had more assists (5) than turnovers (3). Steph Curry was 3-9, Vlad was 4-13. The starting 5 was 24-66 (36%).

Just a bad offensive night for the Warriors. Too many jumpers and not enough drives to the hole. Not the Warriors style of play. Not a style of play they'll be successful at. They were nearly successful but that's because this was against the Bulls.

Corey MEgette
There's not a whole lot else I want to write about this game, so I'll write about Corey MEgette. I like how in Marcus Thompson's interview with MEggette that they make the argument he's not selfish because he takes care of the young guys off the court or buys expensive presents for teammates. THAT'S NOT THE SELFISHNESS FANS CARE ABOUT. Nobody gives a crap if you're a kind, generous person off the court. He may be the nicest guy, helps old women cross the street and rescues kittens out of trees. Again, nobody cares.

The selfishness fans care about is his play ON THE COURT. He's selfish on the court, no matter what Monta says. If you directly ask Monta if Corey's selfish, you really think he's going to say "Yes, Corey's selfish. He's a black hole and dosen't try on defense." Uh no.

Does MEgette work hard? Yes. Does he give up his body on offense while driving to the hole? Yes. Flopping on defense does not count as giving up one's body, that's just flopping and nobody likes a flopper. Nobody's saying he's not trying. I write "MEgette" because he plays like he's never heard the word "pass" before. I'm not asking him to be a point guard but at least make the defense think that you might drive and kick or rotate the ball around the perimeter. The second reason I write "MEgette" is because he doesn't give a crap on defense. He flops all the time and will rarely get a charging call. More often than not the offensive player either makes an uncontested shot or goes to the line. And while guarding guys on the perimeter, he's more matador than defender. Good defenders know that it's all about hustle and desire. If you're not a good defender, you lack hustle and desire.

That said, he had a nice rebounding game off the bench - 10 boards in total.

I think he's a good guy and does some great things off the court. I don't think he should be booed at the Oracle. He's far from one of the bad players on the team. He's just not a team player. He doesn't make anyone better. I don't think it's because he doesn't want to, I think it's because he doesn't know how.

One More Rant
Why is Mikki Moore still starting? When your starting center gobbles in 3 rebounds in 26 minutes, you're in trouble. Except for his revenge game against the Nets, Moore has been bad. He played a combined 19 minutes in the games against Houston and Orlando. Is it any coincidence that the Warriors had legit chances to win those games? Heck he grabbed as many rebounds as I did against the Thunder, except he played 21 minutes. How does your starting center suck so bad at getting 2 hands on an orange ball? If he was a good defender ala Chuck Hayes, I could forgive him. If he swatted shots like Turiaf, then at least he'd have something desireable about his game. But the guy is a non-factor. Can we mix up the starting lineup just a bit? It might be just me, but starting Mikki hasn't seemed too successful so far.

Anthony Randolph may have regressed and has been pretty ugly this season, but he's still better than Moore. He might even find a groove if you change it up and throw him in the starting lineup. I don't care if he hasn't earned it. Neither has Moore. Randolph at least has shown some flashes that you might be able to get something out of the 5 spot if you started him. Might even boost his confidence. What do you have to lose?

Right now, you need to change things up. Keith Smart? Don Nelson? Hello?

Silver Lining
The only silver lining? A better chance at getting John Wall. Nobody will match the Nets and Twolves ineptitude, but that 3rd worst spot is up for grabs. LGW!

No Warriors player deserves this. Nor does any of the coaching staff, front office, or waterboy. So instead I'm going TMZ style and giving it to Elin Nordegren for no other reason than I can imagine her coming after the Warriors with a 9-iron after watching them play tonight. And she's not even a Warrior fan.

And this is just a funny picture. Even Corey is about to laugh.

Poll

For the rest of this road trip, Pistons and 76ers, how many games will the Warriors win?

Polling GSoM: Do Warriors fans need to stop booing Corey Maggette?

Atma Brother ONE — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 06:20:35 -0000

GSoM friend Marcus Thompson has a great piece on Golden State Warriors forward Corey Maggette over at Inside Bay Area: Golden State Warriors' Corey Maggette battles perceptions that he believes are unfair

The picture MT paints of Maggette is a great locker room guy who hasn't had the easiest trajectory to the association, but has prevailed.

Don't look at me- I ain't booing the man.

My thoughts after the jump...

Corey Maggette

#50 / Forward / Golden State Warriors

Height: 6-6

Weight: 225

Born: Nov 12, 1979

College: Duke

			FG			3PT			FT			Rebounds			Misc
	G	M	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	Off	Def	Tot	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	PPG
2009 - Corey Maggette	20	25.1	5.0	10.4	47.8	0.3	1.2	21.7	5.2	6.7	78.2	1.3	4.1	5.3	1.9	2.1	0.8	0.2	3.2	15.4

Sure his game isn't perfect, but the man comes out every night to play hard and he's been a great teammate. That's a lot more than you can say about some of the recent and current "captains" of this squad.

This ain't Al Harrington faking a back injury or Stephen Jackson being a jack... or even Mike Dunleavy being well Mike Dunleavy (see Why Does Mike Dunleavy Get Booed So Much?).

I'll pass the mic:

Hurt. Confused. A bit angry. That's how Warriors forward Corey Maggette said he feels about his home fans booing him, which has been the case of late at Oracle Arena.

"It's not pleasant at all," Maggette said. "I remember the time when Al Harrington was here, and he was getting booed and he was asking to be traded. And I saw it when (Stephen Jackson) was here, and he was asking to be traded. And now, I'm getting booed for wanting to be part of this team through all this nonsense."

Seriously, quit booing the man.

Warriors fans are better than that.

Poll

Do Warriors fans need to stop booing Corey Maggette?

Game 20 Recap: Oklahoma City 104, Golden State 88

Zorgon — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:59:09 -0000

More photos » by ALONZO ADAMS - AP

You couldn't have asked for a better battle of the rookies tonight.

Browse more photos »

Yahoo! Sports Box Score:

Golden State of Mind Recap:

Well, that game went pretty much as I expected it to, yet at the same time, it held a lot of surprises.

Lets start out with the expected. The Warriors started off this game with the lead, slowly rising to a margin of 21-15. Then, the Thunder came back to within 1 point by the end of the quarter, and took a short lead at the beginning of the 2nd. Then, the Warriors went on another run, making it 35-27. Then, the Thunder climbed right back with a run of their own, and it was pretty much even by the time the 2nd quarter was over. This concept of runs and draughts is frequent in Warrior games. By the time the 3rd rolled around, the Thunder came out rolling, taking a 62 to 54 lead. The Warriors pounded their way back to tie it at 62, and then....Corey Maggette lost his cool. I couldn't see what was going on from where I sat, but apparently he was badmouthing somebody, causing him to commit a double technical foul, along with his normal foul. He was escorted out of the arena, giving the Thunder 3 free points and leaving the Warriors bench with 2 guys and an emergency backup in Devean George. At this point, the entire team collapsed. If you were a Warriors fan, you've seen this happen before (most notably during the Steven Jackson and Baron Davis era), and you knew the game was over. Monta Ellis got called for a technical later on, but that's pretty excusable, considering he was the only one scoring for the team.

Now, let's move to the unexpected. This could hardly be considered a fast break game at all, not very typical of the Warriors. It was a game of possessions, with teams actually running offensive sets, and the Warriors not being silly enough to fire it up within the first 7 seconds. In fact, I hardly remember any Warriors fast breaks at all. Most of the fast breaks were made by the Thunder, after the Warriors made a huge defensive error. Whenever the Warriors stole the ball in the back court, the Thunder defense would get back down the floor before the Warriors could do anything.

Another surprising statistic is the fact that Monta Ellis wasn't only able to guard and complete with Kevin Durant, he was able to guard him well. Now, I know, Kevin Durant did have 28 Points, 9 Rebounds, 4 Assists, and 3 Steals. But he also had a whopping 6 turnovers, a poor 9-24 shooting, and 18 of his points came after Corey Maggette's foul. I know that some of those 18 were legit, but Monta Ellis essentially held the Thunder's best scorer to 10 Points though the first 2 and a half quarters, in which he scored less than Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green. If the game had been competitive the whole time, who knows? Monta Ellis might have held him to 16, and people would be saying a whole lot of "wows" right now. Obviously, for his defensive prowess, Monta Ellis gets the Thunder Plunderer award. I know, he had 9 turnovers....but I don't want to award it to Stephen Curry, as explained later.

KD: I'm sorry, my fine sir, but could I perchance acquire that basketball from you? Curry: I do apologize my good man, but I have already thrown it to one of the gentlemen on my basketball team. KD: Ah, well, alright then. Cheery-O! Curry: Cheery-O!

But, admittedly, the Thunder also did an excellent job on defense against the Warriors guards. As a team, the Warriors had a whopping 20 turnovers to 12 assists, with Monta having 9 turnovers and Stephen Curry having 5. It was clear that while both could move the ball well, neither was functioning as a true point guard, and that hurt the Warriors. C.J. Watson, who was in for the entire game, was completely shut down on the offensive end of the floor. 10 Points? That's like scoring once every 10 minutes. Sheesh.

Regardless, back to the Thunder. This is a Thunder blog, isn't it? James Harden had another excellent game tonight, pulling in 26 Points, 9 Rebounds, and 5 Assists. He stepped up the scoring when Kevin Durant couldn't, keeping the Thunder in contention. Sure, 8 of those points came in garbage time in the 4th, but it's undeniable the help he gave tonight, and it's undeniable how much he would help the Warrior's scoring situation right now if he was on their team. He even outscored, outrebounded, and outassisted Curry in 7 less minutes. If I were a Thunder fan (which I supposedly am), I wouldn't regret taking Harden at 3 at this point. He may have to provide scoring on the bench, but he has a long career ahead of him. Oh, and need I say, "Thunder Wonder"?

Jeff Green also pitched in, adding 21 Points, 13 Rebounds, and 3 Assists, earning him the Thunder Down Under award. He also added to the scoring while Durant was out of commission. The Thunder Blunder, without question, is Russell Westbrook. I know, he had decent numbers considering he was up against a team full of players who do the exact same thing he does offensively, except better in every way. But 4-17? Sheesh.

Me, shortly after being stringed.

Just adding to the bizarro night in which the Warriors played half-court ball and Monta Ellis defended well was the vendetta Rumble took against me. I've cheered for the Warriors twice before when the Thunder were in the Ford Center, but it was before I was well known as a fan, and before rumble ever existed. It all started with Rumble getting people excited in the section, and other fans encouraging him to jeer me. Then, his cold, angry eyes met mine, and he clearly disapproved of what I did. Eventually, he left. But, just before the 4th quarter started and the game looked out of reach, Rumble popped out of nowhere and emptied about 5 cans of silly string on to me. I tried to think of something clever to do, but I just sat there, in extreme shock and awe. He left as soon as he'd come, and I now have a ball of goo sitting in my car as a result of the incident. As the game ended in a Thunder victory, Rumble stopped on his victory segway to stare at me again. He pointed to me, and cut his throat as an indication of what he wanted to do to me. It was all very shocking, very entertaining, and very flattering. How many people can say they've drawn the ire of the mascot so much as to have him break out in a vendetta against them? I guess I'm one of the lucky few, heh! In any case, I'll get him back one day....and it will be in the name of Thunder, the old Warriors mascot! I'll get you, Rumble!

Next Game: At the Grizzlies, Friday, December 12th, 7 PM Central Standard Time

Polling GSoM: Will the Golden State Warriors lead the league in turnovers this season?

Atma Brother ONE — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 03:49:53 -0000

Game Thread #20: Warriors @ Thunder - Battle For Our Mascot

Hash is working on a fantastic recap and IQofaWarrior is assembling the exhaustive linkage for tonight's blowout loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder as you read this, but I thought this Polling GSoM segment was in order.

If I had to pick one picture to describe the Warriors 2009-2010 season thus far, this would be it:

The Dubs really need to stop eating these for breakfast.

Jump for a look back at some words from GSoM's 2009-2010 Golden State Warriors preview that unfortunately have proven to be true through almost a quarter of this season.

Macro-Warriornomics - WE BELIEVE WE SUCK :: GSoM's 2009-2010 Golden State Warriors Preview

Biggest Weaknesses

The Human Powered Turnover Machine

Barring no injuries and if Monta Ellis can make through the season without hopping on a "low-speed moped", it's a pretty safe bet that the Warriors will lead the league in turnovers. Monta Ellis, Stephen Jackson, Corey Maggette, Anthony Randolph will be the main culprits. Rookie Stephen Curry will probably add to the turnover totals considerably, but we will excuse the rookie.

We'll be using this picture quite a bit in our recaps this season.

Low Hoops IQ

Top to bottom this is one of the dumbest rosters in the league. It can be painful watching them struggle to throw the simplest inbounds pass. Part of that is being young, but most of that can be attributed to players who simply aren't that sharp on the court and off the court. We'll just leave it at that. We're not in the business of hurting the trade value of players on the home team- well at least today.

Well today we are in that business.

Just the facts and nothing but the facts:

The Warriors currently lead the league in turnovers.
"Point guard" Monta Ellis leads the league in turnovers. In 8 games out of 20 so far this season Ellis has as many turnovers if not more than assists.
Corey Maggette, Anthony Randolph, Vladimir Radmanovic, Ronny Turiaf all average more turnovers than assists right now.
C.J. Watson, Chris Hunter, and Mikki Moore are the only players on this roster that have a 2:1 assist : turnover ratio. Watson is a low volume dime dropper most likely gone by the February trading deadline, Hunter is a recent D-League call-up, and Moore is a journeyman.

I'll let you draw the appropriate inferences in the comments.

GM Larry RIley- hope you're on the phone trying to wheel and deal!

via www.sitcomsonline.com

Poll

Will the Golden State Warriors lead the league in turnovers this season?

YES: Apple turnover

219 votes

NO: Something will get over turned

37 votes

256 votes | Poll has closed

Orlando Magic 126, Golden State Warriors 118

Ben Q Rock — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 07:32:42 -0000

More photos » by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

Browse more photos »

In a long, wild game featuring plenty of offense, the Orlando Magic battled back to defeat the Golden State Warriors, 126-118, on the strength of a 17-4 run in the final 5:08 of action. Golden State's Monta Ellis led all scorers with 33 points, while Anthony Randolph tallied 28 points, 13 boards, 5 assists, and a steal in just 35 minutes off the bench. Yet the Magic's balanced, efficient attack proved more potent; three Magic players exceeded 20 points, with three others cracking double-digit scoring. Vince Carter had a vintage, all-around performance, by far his best since joining the Magic: 27 points on 7-of-13 shooting, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and just 1 turnover in 34 minutes. For a guy who dominated the ball in the second half against a ball-hawking team like Golden State to only cough it up once is impressive. With the victory, Orlando won its 7th straight road game, to tie a franchise record.

Team	Pace	Efficiency	eFG%	FT Rate	OReb%	TO Rate
Magic	97	129.9	60.8%	48.6	24.1	16.5
Warriors	105	111.9	49.4%	33.7	24.4	14.4
Green denotes a stat better than the team's season average; red denotes a stat worse than the team's season average.

When Corey Maggette made a driving layup in transition to give Golden State a 114-109 lead, I couldn't envision the Magic getting back into the game. The Warriors were simply too quick and too active, on both ends of the floor, for the Magic to handle. But the Warriors just ran out of gas, to use a well-worn phrase, at the end, and Orlando blitzed them. Anthony Johnson couldn't find any open passing lanes, so he just drove to the hole for an easy layup to start the Magic's rally. A fast-break three-pointer from Mickael Pietrus knotted the score at 114, with Carter nailing another transition three after the Warriors' subsequent miss. The Magic had scored 9 points in 90 seconds to take a 117-114 lead, which left the Warriors visibly shaken. The young team did not respond well to the pressure, turning the ball over on 3 of their next 4 possessions while the Magic added another 5 points to their lead. Tonight was a case of the better, more experienced team grinding out a win against an overmatched, yet talented and driven, opponent.

I really cannot say enough good things about Golden State's play in the first 19 minutes of the second half. Their offense never gave the Magic a chance to react. Smart passes, quick cuts, finishes in traffic. Randolph saved a ton of would-be empty possessions with offensive rebounds or dives to the floor to retrieve loose balls, while Ellis hit jumpers from just about everywhere. Orlando's a great defensive team, but Golden State's great ball movement and off-ball cuts were too much to handle. Yet at the end of the game, the offense stagnated, for a few reasons. First, the Magic started hitting their shots again, which stopped the Warriors' running game; it's hard to fast break when you're taking the ball out of your own net. Second, the Warriors were tired. Ellis played the entire game, with Stephen Curry only resting for 1:51. Weak legs. Third--and this is me playing pop-psychologist--they were just shaken up. All 3 of the turnovers I mentioned in the previous paragraph were unforced: a senseless, telegraphed pass from Curry to Vladimir Radmanovic that Carter picked off with ease; a Curry travel; and an Ellis travel. Sometimes, defenders can bait ballhandlers into a travel. Not in these instances. Curry and Ellis just shuffled their feet, for no reason, in the triple-threat position.

Orlando led by as many as 15 points in the first half on the strength of its three-point shooting, connecting on 8 of its first 9 tries from long-range. Golden State countered with a series of contested jumpers. Neither team could keep up that pace for the whole game, so it appeared as though Dwight Howard would decide the game. If all else failed, the Magic could just dump the ball to their franchise center and let him work against the Warriors, who are especially ill-equipped to handle him. He scored 12 points in the first 8:23 of the game, with Carter and Jason Williams doing an exemplary job of finding him on his rolls to the basket. He also created his own offense with some sweeping hooks, which looked excellent. It appeared as though he was on his way to a 30-point night, and that the Magic would cruise to victory.

But that's not how it happened. Saddled with foul trouble, Howard couldn't get back into the rhythm of the game. His 8 rebounds led the team, and his 4 defensive boards during the final 7:52 were key in preventing the Warriors from getting second-chance opportunities, but he was mostly invisible. His backup, Marcin Gortat, picked up 5 fouls in just 12 minutes, forcing the Magic to run their offense from the outside-in, as opposed to inside-out, as is their custom.

No problem, though. Carter was simply magnificent tonight. 27 points on 13 shot attempts, just 2 of them from three-point range. Carter was visibly in attack mode tonight. Golden State doesn't have a shot-blocking presence, and with the Magic in need of scoring, Carter took over. 19 points in the second half, 12 of Orlando's 25 points in an anemic third quarter in which they gave up the lead, to go with 7 assists and 5 boards. This game was an excellent demonstration of why GM Otis Smith sought Carter's services this summer. We've seen Carter assert himself offensively earlier this season, most notably at Boston, when he needed 29 shots and 6 turnovers to score 26 points. But tonight, he asserted himself, and did so efficiently. The Warriors play crummy defense in general, so it's easy to point to that factor as the biggest one in Carter's big night. Go ahead. 27 points on 13 shots is impressive against anyone at this level.

Which brings me to my next point: the Warriors played inspired defense in the third period, which caught the Magic off guard. Orlando had trouble setting its offense, with Carter, Williams, or even Pietrus standing 30 feet from the basket looking for a receiver with fewer than 14 ticks on the shot clock. Golden State dug in, denied the ball, and played the passing lanes beautifully; Williams may never live down the pass he threw that Radmanovic took the other way for an emphatic jam on his head, the basketball equivalent of an interception returned for a touchdown, with the scoring player stiffarming the quarterback on his way to the endzone. Not just any defense can force the steady Williams, who had committed 7 turnovers in his 264 minutes as the Magic's starting point guard prior to tonight, to commit 4 turnovers in a single game. Give the Warriors credit for really turning up their D for a big stretch of the second half.

Perhaps lost in the overall story of this game--veteran team goes updouble-digits on the road, young home team responds with a flurry of spectacular plays on both sides of the ball to take the lead, only to crumble when the veteran team regains its focus--is that Stan Van Gundy appears to have adjusted his rotation. Brandon Bass has claimed the backup power forward job from Ryan Anderson, who earned his first DNP-CD of the season tonight. Bass played just 9:25, but produced, with 4 points, 4 rebounds, and an assist in that stretch. Bass matches up well with the Warriors, who don't have anyone who can handle him on the interior. Playing Anderson, the three-point marksman, might have only fed the Warriors' fast-break game, as long misses tend to lead to long rebounds. Bass, by all accounts, handled his temporary demotion well and responded on the practice floor and in the film room. It's far too early to say Anderson has fallen out of the rotation, but this situation is one to monitor as the season progresses.

Here we are, 9 paragraphs into a fairly lengthy recap, and I've yet to mention Rashard Lewis. 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting, 3 three-pointers, 4 rebounds, 4 assists. A quiet, steady performance from the Magic's veteran combo forward, who's now hit 17 of his last 31 three-point attempts in the last 5 games.

A word on Pietrus before wrapping this recap up: he was clearly motivated to stick it to his former team, as he was in his only other game against Golden State, which came last season. In his 2 career games against the Warriors, he's averaged 18 points on 62.5% eFG%. Tonight, he made a spectacular, Michael Jordan-esque fadeaway from the right baseline, and drew the foul. He also sank 6 of his 7 free throws, coming into the evening shooting a mere 50% from the stripe. My favorite Pietrus moment tonight, though, came just 2 minutes into the game: Williams picked off a bad pass by Radmanovic, and Pietrus sprinted from the right sideline to the left corner, waving his hand in the air the entire time. Carter found him there, wide open, where he drained his second trey of the night, and from the exact same spot. We sometimes get on Pietrus for not playing smart, but he knew just where he needed to be on that possession. Counting tonight, Pietrus is 13-of-25 from the left corner and 10-of-24 from the right corner this season, per NBA.com's Hotspots feature.

And with that, I'm spent. A good win for the Magic. If Carter continues to select his shots judiciously, Orlando will be in great shape.

GAME THREAD #19 - Warriors vs. Magic - Superman that..

R Dizzle — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 00:36:43 -0000

My arms are this big - I swear.

Warriors: 6-12

Magic: 15-4

Tip-Off: 7:30pm

TV: CSN Bay Area

Radio: KNBR 680

Blog Buddy: Third Quarter Collapse

Alright so things aren't going so well. We lost the last game to the Rockets by a stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid (I think you get the picture) play and it was heart breaking. Monta's been scoring out of his mind but also giving up turnovers at a rate that is out of his mind. Yay.

But hey, at least we get to see another great Warriors game tonight. We're going to finally have a full roster...right?

Right?

What's this? IQofaWarrior says...a big fat N-O.

Sigh...

FACTS

1. The Magic are tied for the best record in the Eastern Conference.

2. The Magic will set a new team record with 7 consecutive road wins,

3. Don Nelson will miss the next 5 road games.

4. Anthony Morrow will miss tonight's game.

5. The Warriors are missing these players - Brandan Wright, Kelenna Azubuike, Raja Bell, Anthony Morrow, Ronny Turiaf, Andris Biedrins, Anthony Randolph, Speedy Claxton, Devean George.

6. The Warriors will play these players tonight - Monta Ellis, Stephen Curry, Corey Maggette, Chris Hunter, Mikki Moore, C.J. Watson, and Vladimir Radmonovich.

7. Mickael Pietrus was one of the most fun Warriors players. (See Below)

8. The Warriors are in desperate need of some magic "health" potions.

9. Mickael Pietrus, Matt Barnes, and Adonal Foyle will all get standing ovations when they step on the court (if they do).

10. This guy (pictured below) will Superman the Warriors.

FICTION

1. The Warriors will win tonight. (That is all...)

Poll

Who is your favorite ex-Warrior on the Magic?

Mickael Pietrus

227 votes

Matt Barnes

203 votes

Adonal Foyle

152 votes

582 votes | Poll has closed

SB Nation - Corey Maggette

RUMOR: Warriors interested in Hornets forward David West + Monta Ellis "as untouchable as a player can be"

David West

#30 / Forward / New Orleans Hornets

Game

Contract

Do you think the Warriors can get David West from NOLA for expiring contracts?

RECAP: Warriors 102, Hornets 108 – Good Effort

Game Preview #23: San Antonio Spurs @ Golden State Warriors

Coach

Keys To The Game

Strength of Schedule

Last Time They Met

Some Other Reading

Warriors

Spurs

Twitter Musings

Where to Tune In

TV

Online

Radio

Q&A: Marcus Thompson - Contra Costa Times / InsideBayArea.com (Part 1 of 3)- Warriors bright spots, the next to be traded, Robert Rowell and basketball decisions

RECAP: Warriors 91, Bulls 96 – Brick!

For the rest of this road trip, Pistons and 76ers, how many games will the Warriors win?

Polling GSoM: Do Warriors fans need to stop booing Corey Maggette?

Corey Maggette

#50 / Forward / Golden State Warriors

Do Warriors fans need to stop booing Corey Maggette?

Game 20 Recap: Oklahoma City 104, Golden State 88

Polling GSoM: Will the Golden State Warriors lead the league in turnovers this season?

Biggest Weaknesses

The Human Powered Turnover Machine

Will the Golden State Warriors lead the league in turnovers this season?

YES: Apple turnover

NO: Something will get over turned

Orlando Magic 126, Golden State Warriors 118

GAME THREAD #19 - Warriors vs. Magic - Superman that..

FACTS

FICTION

Who is your favorite ex-Warrior on the Magic?

Mickael Pietrus

Matt Barnes

Adonal Foyle