SB Nation User Blog: Fantasy Junkie

RECAP: Warriors 146, Timberwolves 105 - There's no I in TEAM

Fantasy Junkie — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:41:28 -0000

More photos » by Rocky Widner - NBAE/Getty Images

We have to be sure to not get carried away with tonight's game. All that we've established is this:

Western Conference Power Rankings (updated)
14. Golden State Warriors
15. Memphis Grizzlies
16. Minnesota Timberwolves

I'm not trying to take anything away from the Warriors, they played dominant, amazing basketball tonight. I'm just worried that the success is more a result of the opponent and that the Warriors won't consistently play with this level of effort and intensity.

Hit the jump for some more thoughts.

Can we play the Timberwolves for 82 games?

All the things that the Warriors had done the last 2 games against the Clippers and Kings are what the Timberwolves did tonight, but much worse. I mean it was ugly. Heck, Canis Hoopus, the SB Nation Twolves blog, started writing their recap with 1:50 left... in the 3rd quarter!

Like I said in the preview, there's not a whole lot to like on this Twolves team. I never got the sense that any of these players had ever played together before. There was zero chemistry on the floor.

Guards turned the ball over a lot: Flynn 6 TO's, Sessions 4 TO's, Pavlovic 4 TO's, Ellington 3 TO's.
Lazy passes: There was no zip on the ball. Just a lot of lob passes and passes to the wrong side of the man.
Guys not coming to the ball when passed to: You have to come and meet the ball when someone's passing you the ball. The Twolves players just stood and waited for the ball to get to them.
There was no sense of urgency. They looked like they had given up midway through the 2nd quarter.

T.E.A.M. - the acronym for success

This wasn't all about the Twolves sloppy play. It was actually more that the Warriors finally decided to play with some life.

Teamwork: It was amazing. It was as if they had the most amazing practice sometime between the Kings game and this one where they learned how to play with each other. All 10 Warrior players seemed to know where everyone else was going to be on offense. They moved without the ball and even looked to set each other up. Tonight made it seem like they actually want to play with each other.

Effort: The guys were all over the floor tonight. You could just see the difference. They played with energy, life, and passion. Players were making things happen on offense and defense just by staying active. They were in the passing lanes all night as well as putting pressure on the guards while doubling down on the big men. Check out this stat: leading rebounder for the Warriors? Monta Ellis with 10.

Assists: The ball was zipping around tonight. The Twolves defense never got comfortable as the Warriors moved the ball with ease - 36 assists to just 12 turnovers. 15 for Jack compared to just 3 turnovers. Even Corey Maggette passed the ball. Corey Maggette! If he's passing the ball, you know something is going right. Seriously though, props to Maggs for 11 points in 10 minutes. But I digress. The Twolves D had something to do with the excellent ball movement, but the Warriors put forth a major effort to move the ball around.

Minnesota: Clearly the most important ingredient for another team's success.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

One thing that worries me: How did Brian Cardinal block Monta Ellis on a fast break layup? Is the ankle 100%? Will it get back to 100%? There's no reason Brian Cardinal should be blocking your shot on a fast break.
The Warriors are only 2 games under .500. Yessss.
Kelenna Azubuike was ridiculous tonight. 31 points on 13-19 shooting. He couldn't miss in the first half.
I liked what I saw from Anthony Randolph tonight. It was probably his best game of the season. He attacked the basket under control and didn't try to do too much.
Acie Law with 5 steals 12 minutes? I like his hustle. He really works hard out there.
Morrow had a good shooting night but there's still something lacking about his game. He tends to disappear at times and his defense can still use a lot of help.
Like I said, this game was against the Twolves which proves almost nothing. The Warriors played great, but they have a lot to prove. They'll get their chance to prove it with the upcoming road trip without Andris Biedrins (out 2 weeks). @ Indiana, @ New York, @ Minnesota, @ Cleveland, @ Boston, vs Portland, @ Dallas, @ San Antonio, vs LA Lakers. Before anyone gets too optimistic, let's see how the Warriors look after this tough stretch of the schedule.

Sorry ladies, it's not Kelenna Azubuike. I'm going with Stephen Jackson.

Damn impressive game from Jax tonight. He was Steve Nash-like with his passes. The 15 assists in 3 quarters weren't simple passes. It wasn't a bunch of passes to Anthony Morrow standing wide open. He was threading the needle to the big men as they rolled through the lane. He was able to drive into the lane and create for others on the floor. And what was even better, he didn't force any shots tonight. I'm not sure what was going on, but he really increased his trade value tonight.

Final - 11.9.2009	1	2	3	4	Total
Minnesota Timberwolves	29	26	22	28	105
Golden State Warriors	33	41	37	35	146

Complete Coverage >

Poll

Will the Warriors win more than 25 games?

GAME THREAD #6: Timberwolves vs Warriors - Battle of the Bottom Feeders

Fantasy Junkie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:57:13 -0000

Welcome to being a Warrior fan

Warriors: 1-4
Timberwolves: 1-6
Tip off: 7:30 pm
Radio: KNBR 680
TV: CSN Bay Area (do you really want to watch?)
Blog Buddy: Canis Hoopus

Ooooookaaaay. So much for starting hot out of the gate. Remember, this was the easy part of the schedule. It's going to get a lot harder soon. You know I didn't want to make the playoffs this season anyways. In fact, I didn't want the Warriors to win 20 games this season. Whatever. Stupid Laker fans, it's their fault. And Al Davis's fault. And I blame Bush. And Tim Kawakami. Actually, it's the economy. I blame it all on the economy.

So many questions, so few answers: Is Don Nelson tanking already? Is John Wall that good? When is Stephen Jackson going to get traded? Can we trade for Chris Bosh even if he doesn't sign an extension? Will he even be any good playing for this cursed franchise? If you could trade all the Warriors for all the Clippers, would you do it? Do vegetarians eat animal crackers? Can fat people go skinny dipping? How does a thermos know whether a drink should be hot or cold?

Let's review:

Loss to the Rockets without Yao Ming or Tracy McGrady
Beat down by the Suns without JRich
Blowout loss to the Clippers without Blake Griffin
Served by the Kings without Kevin Martin

I'm sure if Minnesota sits Al Jefferson, they'd beat the Warriors too. Here's what would happen:

Oleksiy Pecherov would dominate inside
Brian Cardinal would laugh in our faces as we grabbed his 15th rebound
Ricky Rubio fly over from Europe so he could play just this once so he could tear up our backcourt
Jonny Flynn would drop 30 all against Stephen Curry
Corey Brewer would shoot higher than 35%

Actually, wow this Minnesota team is bad. They beat New Jersey (the worst team in the league, no offense Warrior fans) and then have lost 6 straight. Even though they lost to the Clippers in LA by only 3, I just don't see a whole lot on this roster that I like: Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Jonny Flynn, Corey Brewer, Ramon Sessions?

The Warriors have to win this game. If they have any pride at all, they win this game. It's becoming a matter of pride and effort. As of right now, it looks like the Warriors have no pride and give no effort.

Awww comfort food. A nice bowl of curry (not Curry) to make the pain stop

Predictions

Warriors by 6
Al Jefferson DOMINATES
Monta has a field day and scores 30 since nobody on the Twolves can stop him or block his shot
We will all know who Oleksiy Pecherov is after the game
Anthony Randolph continues to struggle

Poll

Will the Warriors win more than 25 games?

RECAP: GSOM Night 7 Free Throw Contest - P!

Fantasy Junkie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:47:13 -0000

Inaugural GSOM Night Jersey

To say that the post game free throw contest was a success is an understatement. It couldn't have gone any better. People lined up on time, the Warriors staff made things happen smoothly and efficiently, and lastly, everyone had a great time. How many other times will you get to step on the court and take a shot?

But this was a contest and there could only be one winner. The prize? Courtside seats to the upcoming game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Yes, courtside seats - a $500 value - for making your free throws. Chris Murphy of the Warriors seriously hooked it up.

Before I get into how it all went down, I'd like to give a special thank you to Chris Murphy for making it all happen. If the Warriors ran their organization like Chris runs the group ticket sales, we'd be championship contenders. The coordination involved with pulling this off is no joke. If you enjoyed the free throw contest, let Chris know your appreciation in the comments.

The instructions for the post game free throw contest were to line up outside of a certain section and wait for the Warriors staff to direct you where to go. I thought it would be 150-200 people. Boy was I wrong because after taking some pictures after the game and heading down to that section I was met with a LONG line. It must have stretched 1/3 of the way around the arena.

It started here...

and kept going...

and going...

and going

When they finally let everyone downstairs, the line stretched from half court, up out of the lower bowl, and halfway back up the stairs to the upper bowl. The GSOM community was an impressive sight to see.

Round 1
Here's how the contest went. Every one of these people in line got a chance to shoot free throws on the court. You had to make 2 free throws in a row to move onto the 2nd round. If you missed the first, you were done. All 400 or so people in that line got a chance. Not many were remaining after the first round. I saw a lot of made first free throws but missed second free throws.

Shooting free throws in the first round

Swish!

As for me, I choked on the first free throw. It was straight, but short.
It hit the front iron and I was left to walk off the court with my head down.

The 2nd Round Begins
All that was left for the second round stretched from half court to the baseline. Clearly, some people need to practice free throws.

The 2nd rounders

The 2nd rounders lining up for a second pair of free throws

3rd Round
The 2nd round rules were the exact same as the first round. You had to make 2 free throws to move on. If you missed the first you were done and if you made the first and missed the second, you were done. No mercy here. Basically, this whittled the field of 400 down to just 7 for the 3rd round. There was a nervous excitement in the air as everyone knew what was on the line - courtside tickets.

3rd Round lineup trying to remain calm

Even Luis Scola came to watch the 3rd round

Final Round
The 3rd round knocked out all but 3 shooters. One of them, ~~Pete~~ P, even had his own cheering section. (Update: turns out they were yelling "P!") ~~I figured his name was Pete P since they kept yelling it before and after his shots.~~ ~~PETE!~~ He had about 20 loud supporters hoping he'd make his shot.

It helps to have the crowd on your side.

The first 2 of the 3 finalists missed. So it was down to one shot for the courtside tickets. Miss and the final 3 get another chance. Make it and he's sitting courtside to watch the Warriors take on the Twolves.

And with ice in his veins, P sets up to take the shot

Nothing.

But.

Net.

and the crowd goes wild

He takes home the prize, 2 courtside tickets to the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and he also takes home bragging rights as the winner of the GSOM Night Free Throw Contest. Congratulations! A well deserved win.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the contest for making this happen. All of these GSOM Nights could not happen without you guys showing up and making it a fun night out.

Look out for news on the next GSOM Night where we hope to be able to do something special following the game just like this one.

Also see:

OPEN THREAD: Game #1 – Rockets vs Warriors: This is the Year

Fantasy Junkie — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:40:10 -0000

Update 1:45pm: The Bay Bridge is closed today so there's going to be a lot more traffic on 880 and on the streets. To get to the arena on time, either take BART or give yourself lots of extra time to get to the game.

Warriors: 0-0
Rockets: 0-1
Game Time: 7:30pm
Radio: KNBR 680
TV: CSN

You can count on two things at the beginning of every season, an in-depth and entertaining Warriors season preview from GSOM (part 1 (players previews) / part 2 (team preview)) and tons of fan optimism. Fans think their team improved over the offseason or are genuinely excited to watch specific players with potential. Not many fans dread opening day because reality has not yet slapped them across the face. Royals fans, Raiders fans (snicker), Clippers fans and yes, Warriors fans are all guilty of hoping that this is the year.

This is the year Anthony Randolph steps up and starts to fill out his immense talent on his way to becoming a perennial All-Star.

This is the year of Stephen Curry. Rookies always get a lot of hype. And this year it's not just from fans, but Nellie is hyping him up as a possible Steve Nash type player.

This is the year Monta Ellis returns to his pre-moped self and the moped accident didn't affect his game. He'll still be the one man fast break and shoot better than 50%.

This is the year Anthony Morrow becomes the next Reggie Miller and shoots 60% from 3. Which reminds me to ask, what will be higher, Morrow's 3pt percentage or Biedrins free throw percentage?

This is the year the Warriors surprise everyone and sneak into the playoffs. Last year was a fluke because of all the injuries.

This is the year I don't feel like bursting bubbles. Instead, I'll keep telling myself that all these young guys just need to mature and gain experience. This is the year that winning less than 30 games is okay as long as our young guys get experience. This is the year I'll need to be a delusional Warrior fan to survive the suckiness.

And this is the year that the Warriors win on opening night.

Houston may be just as bad as the Warriors, probably worse. Maybe even the worse team in the West. They don't have the most talented players, but they have guys do a great job filling their roles: Shane Battier, Luis Scola, Chuck Hayes, and Trevor Ariza. The problem is, these are role players with no star to bind them together. Yao is out this season. TMac is out for a few months. Houston's just not going to be a very good team until Tmac comes back. But that won't stop them from scoring at will on the Warriors. Scola will kill them inside with his toughness and hustle. Brooks and Kyle Lowry will routinely break down the Warrior perimeter defense and be in the paint all night.

Lucky for the Warriors, Houston played last night and will be playing the 2nd game of the back to back. They lost last night to Portland by 9, but the game really wasn't that close since they were down 19 heading into the 4th. So, as good as the numbers might be that Houston puts up individually, they just aren't talented enough to beat the Warriors.

For the Warriors, I wouldn't expect Anthony Randolph to play since he's been nursing an injury and is listed as questionable. He's the guy I was looking forward to seeing the most. I'll have to settle for the sweet shooting of Anthony Morrow. I will be looking forward to seeing how Monta's ankle looks after a full offseason to rehab. And lastly, I'll be looking forward to seeing the fan reaction Stephen Jackson will get - boos, applause, indifference?

This game is for the Warriors taking and a great way to start the season off on the right track. Houston's stars are banged up and they have role players filling star roles. We're undefeated still and I imagine the Warriors will keep it that way tonight.

GSOM Night 7
As you probably know, opening night is GSOM Night. It's the 7th in the series and 3rd straight opening night. And as you also probably know, we made some big changes to the festivities. Instead of t-shrits, we're handing out Tony.psd designed mesh jerseys. Instead of trudging back to your car amongst the common folk after the game, you'll get to participate in a post-game free throw contest for a great prize.

"MAKE YOUR FREE THROWS... PLEEEEEEEEEASE!"

By now, if you purchased tickets, you would have received an email from Chris Murphy with instructions on what to do to participate in the post-game on court free throw contest. Please do not share that information publicly as we want to ensure only the GSOM community participates and the contest doesn't last too long due to too many people. Plus it cuts down on the number of people you're competing against. If you purchased GSOM Night tickets and haven't received that email, please email Chris Murphy for the instructions, CTMurphy@gs-warriors.com

Remember to bring your cameras to take and later on share pictures of your GSOM Night experience.

Live Tweet
Opening night will also be the first time GSOM will live-tweet a game while at the game. Our buddy from Dream League, Rich Twu aka dreamleague, will be tweeting his thumbs off on a Palm Pre providing insight you can only get from being there. He's always had a keen eye for the game as you can tell from his in depth summer league fan posts, so you'll most likely learn a lot from reading his tweets. Make sure to keep it locked to this game thread and the GSOM twitter handle, @unstoppablebaby. For all the details, check out the fan post, Live Tweeting from Row 8!!! (GSOM's Charity Auction seats).

You Ready?
Get the chants started early: LET'S GO WARRIORS!

Predictions

Warriors win by 7
Lowry and Brooks combine for 20 assists
Scola collects 20 and 10
Stephen Jackson with 30 points, 5 rebs, 8 assists
Morrow with 5 three's
Biedrins starts another double double streak
Last but not least, Hash gets 100+ happy birthdays at the game tomorrow from GSOM members who recognize him. He's officially one year older today.

Poll

Tonight's Warrior Wonder will be:

GSOM Night 7: Time's Running Out

Fantasy Junkie — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 17:46:43 -0000

Update @ 10/22/09, 3:22pm
Chris Murphy just told me that over 500 tickets to GSOM Night have been sold! That means the Tony.psd GSOM Night jerseys are sold out. If you buy tickets now, you can still participate in the post-game on court free throw contest, enter in the raffle, and pick up these discounted tickets. There's less than 1 week until opening night, be sure to purchase your tickets to GSOM Night 7!

Previous text of this story:
We've sold just over 300 tickets to GSOM Night 7 and are looking to continue to fill the stadium with the GSOM community. There's about 1 week left to get in on the post-game on court free throw contest and pick up a free Tony.psd designed jersey. Time's running out to purchase your tickets to GSOM Night 7. If you're planning on going to opening night, you might as well pick up the discounted tickets and get in on the GSOM Night festivities.

When
Opening Night: Wednesday, October 28, 2009 vs Houston Rockets @ 7:30pm

Tickets (purchase tickets online)
- Club 200 Sideline (Sec 218-220): $30 each ($10 discount)
- Club 200 Corner/Baseline (Sec 222-223): $25 each ($10 discount)

Perks
~~- Receive a specially designed Tony.psd GSOM jersey~~
- Compete after the game in a free throw contest on the court
- Each ticket is entered into a raffle for Warriors tickets, memorabilia, and prizes.
~~- First 150 tickets purchased can go courtside during the pre-game shootaround.~~ (First 150 have been sold)

The first 500 GSOM Night 7 tickets purchased get a free Tony.psd designed jersey.

Every ticket purchased to GSOM Night 7 can take part in the post-game on court free throw contest. Prizes will be awarded.

GSOM Night 7 Archive

GSOM Night 7: Jersey Giveaway & Free Throw Contest

Fantasy Junkie — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 19:32:44 -0000

Originally posted Oct 9, 2009 @ 1:23pm: Thanks to the hard work of Chris Murphy and Tony.psd, I'm excited to announce 2 major additions to GSOM Night 7: a free Tony.psd GSOM jersey and an on court post-game free throw contest! To participate, purchase your ticket through GSOM.

When
Opening Night: Wednesday, October 28, 2009 vs Houston Rockets @ 7:30pm

Tickets (purchase tickets online)
- Club 200 Sideline (Sec 218-220): $30 each ($10 discount)
- Club 200 Corner/Baseline (Sec 222-223): $25 each ($10 discount)

Perks
- Receive a specially designed Tony.psd GSOM jersey
- Compete after the game in a free throw contest on the actual court
- Each ticket is entered into a raffle for Warriors tickets, memorabilia, and prizes.
~~- First 150 tickets purchased can go courtside during the pre-game shootaround.~~ (First 150 have been sold)

1) Tony.psd designed Jersey
We're changing it up with the free giveaway. Instead of the usual Tony.psd t-shirts we give away, the Warriors and GSOM have collaborated to give away a limited edition Tony.psd jersey for the first 500 GSOM Night tickets purchased. We've gone with the old school city style with the Golden Gate Bridge and the cable car on the back. Except this time we're going with the older royal blue jersey and the design in yellow. So far 200 tickets have been purchased, so there's still time to pick up one of these for free.

2) Post-Game Free Throw Contest
For every ticket purchased via GSOM for opening night, you'll get to take part in a post-game free throw shooting contest on the actual Warriors court! Yes, you get to pretend you're at the line in a tie game with no time left in game 7 of the NBA championships. The details and prizes have not been quite worked out yet, but we will get them hammered out so everyone can enjoy the experience. The prize should be you get to be Andris Biedrins new free throw shooting coach, but I don't think that'll happen. Practice your free throws and I'll see you on the court!

Couple Quick Notes
1) There were some questions earlier about when purchased tickets will be mailed. They were mailed out on October 7 for those who purchased early. For those not mailed out on October 7, they will be mailed out every few days.
2) Just to be clear, if you've already purchased your GSOM Night tickets, you're still entitled to the jersey and free throw contest as well.

GSOM Night 7 Archive

Mikki Moore – Ronny Turiaf Sr. :: 2009-2010 Golden State Warriors Player Recap and Previews

Fantasy Junkie — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 04:48:41 -0000

Mikki Moore's player preview for the upcoming year can be summed up by this clip:

In all fairness, and I'll be honest, I don't know much about Mikki Moore so he may be more than poster fodder for this upcoming season. What I do know about him after the jump.

Here's what I know about Mikki Moore:

I know that if I squint hard enough, I can see a Latrell Sprewell resemblance - which makes me want to give Nellie a permanent neck brace, just in case.

I know that he's been billed as an energy guy, a hustle guy or perhaps as the annoying-guy-on-the-other-team who screams like he won the championship after making a free throw (see above). But it's not so annoying when he's on your team. Essentially, he was the annoying-screaming-guy-on-the-other-team before Ronny Turiaf stole the title.

I also know that ESPN's player page has the pronunciation of his name in all caps: "MIKEY", not "Mickey". I think that explains why he's always screaming and yelling. He needs to be heard! From here on out, I will refer to him as MIKEY! and you can pretend I'm screaming it every time I write it.

I know MIKEY! signed for the veteran minimum, $825,497. Yup, half of what I make, sucka.

I know that MIKEY! is not going to contribute much to the Warriors championship run. He might help pour the champagne though.

Here's what I know from John Hollinger's player analysis (I'll just tease you with the good stuff):

Moore was worse than a replacement-level player last year...He's a long 7-footer but ranked 66th out of the league's 67 centers in blocks per minute, and though theoretically an energy guy, he was 58th in rebound rate and 59th in steals.

And Hollinger continues with:

Amazingly, Moore managed to keep his career afloat by signing a one-year deal with Golden State for the veteran's minimum. He's 34 and hasn't played effectively in three years, so it's a mystery why a rebuilding Golden State team decided to bring him in.

Veteran leadership in action!

I know that all the talk of bringing in MIKEY! and Devean George as veterans to help show the young guys what it means to be a professional is a bunch of poopie. Journeymen should not be considered role models for our up and coming players. Why the Warriors wasted their money on an aging big man is beyond me. Couldn't they have just saved some more money and signed a D-league player? I mean, save Cohan some money! The economy has hit him hard. D-league players can keep that bench warm just as well as MIKEY! and Devean can. And D-league players have the potential to actually contribute something to the team.

Lastly, I know that if he continues the forearm shivers to any of the Lakers players, I'll be chanting his name during games for more PT. MIKEY! MIKEY! MIKEY!

What do you know about MIKEY!?

The YouTube-ness

I was looking for some Mikki Moore highlights on YouTube and the most recent set of highlights someone made a compilation of is from 2006-2007.

MIKEY! loves snakes and reptiles. He'll love Robert Rowell and Chris Cohan! (Oh c'mon, I had to take a shot at those guys at least once in this preview).

Dream League: A Bay Area Hoops League

Fantasy Junkie — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 17:43:16 -0000

GSOM friend, Rich aka Poor Man's Commish, over at Dream League, the Bay Area's largest recreational basketball league, wanted us to extend an invite to the entire GSOM community to join the upcoming fall-winter season of hoops. It's the best game in town for those looking for a competitive (at many different skill levels) and extremely well-run league. If you recall, Rich posts under the screen name "dreamleague" and has provided tons of in-depth player analysis during the NBA's summer league in Vegas. He takes that passion for hoops and puts it into his league. Some key things to know about Dream League:

NBA rules apply (e.g. 24 second shot clock)
Top notch refs at every game (4 have even made it to the NBA!)
7 game regular season, everyone makes the playoffs (double elimination if you're .500 or above)
Previously an Asian-only league. They have now opened it up to everyone

Atma and I have participated in multiple seasons and have been impressed by the quality of the league. If you're looking for a competitive game of hoops, you have one week left to sign up for the upcoming season. If you do, mention that GSOM referred you by typing in "gsom" at the registration page. Good luck!

The latest a team can start is 10/25. REPEAT: all teams MUST start by 10/25, which means the absolute deadline for paying is 10/18.

GSOM Night 7: Get Your Tickets!

Fantasy Junkie — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 04:01:18 -0000

A few weeks ago, we announced GSOM Night 7 for this opening night vs the Houston Rockets. It's been a few weeks, so here's your friendly reminder that there are still tickets left for purchase if you haven't got yours already. This year's Warriors may not win a lot but they'll definitely be entertaining. I'd pay admission just to admire Morrow's sweet shot (rather than Jax) 20 times a game, see how good the kid-who-held-up-the-Amare trade is, and watch "the other Anthony" blow up. You can purchase tickets online and make sure to check out the info below:

Tickets (purchase tickets online)
- Club 200 Sideline (Sec 218-220): $30 each ($10 discount)
- Club 200 Corner/Baseline (Sec 222-223): $25 each ($10 discount)

Perks
~~- First 150 tickets purchased can go courtside during the pre-game shootaround.~~ (First 150 have been sold)
- Each ticket is entered into a raffle for Warriors tickets, memorabilia, and prizes.
- Receive a specially designed Tony.psd giveaway item (what will it be? oh the suspense)
- Discounted tickets

After the jump, check out what happens if you don't buy tickets...

Andris will go crazy

Jax will sing the national anthem

And Turiaf wil play the point!

Prevent the above from happening and buy your GSOM Night tickets. We're not Warriors' ticket salespeople, but the more GSOM community members at the game, the louder the arena gets and the more fun it is for all. I'm sure you'll have a great time at the Warriors game with fellow GSOM community members. You never know, you could actually meet those people whose comments you laugh at, agree with, or disagree with.

Around the Association: 2009-2010 San Antonio Spurs: An Apple A Day...

Fantasy Junkie — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 16:43:18 -0000

After a disappointing postseason which ended with a first round exit at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, the Spurs knew they needed to reload. The Spurs did just that by bringing in Richard Jefferson and are ready to take aim at the mighty Lakers. In the Western Conference, only two teams are considered title contenders, the heavily-favored Lakers and the Spurs. Nobody else is seriously in that conversation. But the Spurs title hopes are a precarious one and require things to go just right. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

Offseason Additions
VIA FREE AGENCY
Keith Bogans (from Milwaukee)
Theo Ratliff (from Philadelphia)
Marcus Haislip (from Spain)
Malik Hairston (from NBDL)
Antonio McDyess (from Detroit)

VIA DRAFT
DeJuan Blair (No. 37)
Jack McClinton (No. 51)
Nando De Colo (No. 53)

VIA TRADE
Richard Jefferson (from Milwaukee)

Offseason Subtractions
VIA TRADE
Bruce Bowen (to Milwaukee, then retired)
Kurt Thomas (to Milwaukee)
Fabricio Oberto (to Detroit)

Why the Spurs traded for RJ

There's no doubt in my mind that the Spurs upgraded their roster.

They traded some spare parts (Kurt Thomas, Fabricio Oberto, and Bruce Bowen) for a bona-fide scorer, Richard Jefferson. That single move launches the Spurs from pretender to contender. He'll take a lot of the load off of Parker, Duncan, and Ginobili to score and he'll also make it easier for them to score with his ability to draw defenders away from any double teams on those guys.

And those spare parts they traded, the Spurs replaced them with shinier and better functioning spare parts.
They signed Antonio McDyess to be their starting power forward. Doesn't it seem like McDyess has been around for 20 years? The guy keeps finding a home and "brings his lunch pail to work everyday".

They also signed Theo Ratliff to help out down low. I'd say he gets under 10 minutes per game, but every minute that Duncan doesn't have to play in the regular season allows his body to be that much more rested for the postseason.

They drafted DeJuan Blair who should be able to step in right away and give Tim Duncan a quick breather every now and then. He's got the girth to take up space in the lane, grab boards, and maybe get some easy, garbage buckets.

All in all, these moves reshaped the supporting big man cast around Duncan. He's got some better players down low to help him out and give him a breather. It's all about keeping those minutes down for Timmy.

But all those moves still may not be enough to take down the Lakers.

Which brings me to the big concern I have about the Spurs. They're one injury away from not being a title contender. We saw that with the Manu injury last year. He played just 44 games, missed the postseason, and they got bounced in the first round in just 5 games. The trade for RJ will help if any injuries happen, but that just puts them on par with where they were at last year. The problem with that is the top Western teams have all got better than they were last year, so staying on par is not going to help their title chances.

If the Spurs can stay healthy and Tim Duncan's production doesn't slip (too much), then they'll be in the Western Conference finals facing the Lakers. If things do not go perfectly for this team though, they might find themselves in another early postseason exit.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Keep eating them apples.

For more on the San Antonio Spurs check out Pounding the Rock:

Poll

Will any of the Spurs stars miss the postseason?

Tim Duncan

43 votes

Manu Ginobili

147 votes

Richard Jefferson

18 votes

Tony Parker

14 votes

None

125 votes

347 votes | Poll has closed

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Will any of the Spurs stars miss the postseason?

Tim Duncan

Manu Ginobili

Richard Jefferson

Tony Parker

None