SB Nation User Blog: Hash

RECAP: Warriors 88, Thunder 104 - More of the Same.

Hash — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:35:33 -0000

What a depressing display. This Warriors team is getting tougher and tougher to watch. Every time they show us a glimmer of hope in one form or another, they offset it by 2 debilitating actions. There is no two ways about it; we are moving backwards. Our players can't stay healthy, what's left of them can't string plays together; we are giving ourselves no chance to form any sort of team cohesiveness.

With the way the Thunder played tonight, they shouldn't have beaten us. They came out with a pretty poor game by most standards, yet they beat us by 16 points? Things are upside down in the world of the Warriors. Up. Side. Down.

Warriors vs Thunder boxscore

Open Thread (1300+ posts)

Warriors Web: Collapsed after Maggette's ejection

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

Freakin' wingspan of a pterodactyl on this guy...

Let's make this short and sweet. Hit the jump and let's take a look at some of the factors that led to another disappointing loss.

I have to say, the first half of this game really wasn't that bad. Granted, I might be jaded because the stink of the second half is still in my notsrils, but in the beginning the Warriors did a pretty solid job on the defensive end. This is something we simply don't see from this team, so it was refreshing to see our boys in the paint, knocking the ball lose and actually guarding jumpers. In the first quarter alone, the Warriors forced 9 turnovers and, despite a bucketful of turnovers ourselves, managed to close out the quarter up one point.

As we made our way into the second; that's when things really started to turn ugly. Amazingly enough, the strong D still maintained, but our offense melted away into the all too familiar one on one stop and pop shots. With our lethargic offense taking center stage, the Thunder tore off on a 14-0 run.

Our improved defense was the classic example of the Warriors putting something good on the table in exchange for 10 things bad. Today, where our defensive cylinders were firing, the Warriors gave up a ridiculous amount of points off of turnovers and allowing the Thunder to grab offensive boards. It was only by the good graces of their poor shooting that we ended the half down by only 1.

The third and fourth quarters? Man, I don't even want to talk about them. That might have been the Warriors at their worst (offensively speaking at least). It literally got to the point where Monta and, to a lesser degree Curry were the only two who could seem to score buckets. There were enough bricks from the Warriors in these two quarters to build a 3 story house. Add to that equation Maggs getting himself ejected for no reason and we ended up in the worst possible position in this game.

You think I'm talking about losing by 16, don't you? No. I'm talking about putting in Devean George. If that's not a white flag, I don't know what is...

If not Ellis, then who? While his game wasn't it's finest, there's no denying that Ellis was the only one who got things moving on an offensive side. And trust me, I do have conflicts about doling out the WW to someone who got 9 turnovers. So I'll at least tip my hat to Curry for dropping in a solid 22.

GAME THREAD #20 - Warriors @ Thunder - Battle For Our Mascot

Hash — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 04:29:51 -0000

by Sue Ogrocki - AP

Contain him and we can do this.

View full size photo »

They ain't all that good - but they're better than us! Welcome to Oklahoma.

Indeed, tonight the Dubs take the floor against the Oklahoma Thunder, a team full of seriously lethal young guns who are making a bid to make a name for themselves in the Western Conference.

Coming off of a loss to the mighty might Celts, the Thunder will likely be looking to treat this game like an ego booster; and why the heck not? So far this debilitated Warriors squad has played the role of a conference bottom feeder to a tee. While the glimmers of potential have popped up (hello Randolph v Orlando!) we have yet to establish any sort of consistent level of play.

Unless you count bad...

Warriors: 6-13

Thunder: 10-9

Tip-Off: 5:00pm PST

TV: CSN

Radio: KNBR 680

Blog Buddy: Welcome to Loud City

It's a 5-game road trip and it sure would be great to get it off to a winning start. Durant has historically proven that he can have his way around our soft Warrior defense so if we can cool him down, we might have a shot at this W.

At the very least, maybe we can take our mascot back.

Predictions:

Randolph keeps the momentum alive. Double double for him.
Curry dishes out 8+ dimes
Monta - 30+ points.
Warriors by 5

Recap #17: Warriors 107, Nuggets 135 - Predictable Pain

Hash — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 05:11:23 -0000

Originally posted Dec 1, 2009 9:53 PM PST

First and foremost, a huge thanks to IQofaWarrior for stepping up at the last minute to create an Open Thread. Without it, many of you may not have had a place to vent your pain and would no doubt be sitting atop clock towers right now. And speaking as someone currently up there, let me just say you don't want to be anywhere near here. It's cold, drafty and I have no idea what time it is. I guess I could lean over the side to see the clock but I might fall. Plus it would be upside down and I'd have to do that whole upside down clock re-arrangement in my head.

Frankly, after watching four quarters of this debacle, I just don't have it in me.

And this was when we were trying to play defense...

Open Thread (800+ Comments)

Warriors Web: What did you expect, a win?

Warriors vs Nuggets boxscore

Save the efforts of the first quarter, there wasn't really a whole lot that went right during this game. Hit the jump and let's talk a little bit about the bad, the bad, and the ugly.

Before we begin, let's get the obvious out there. The Warriors were sporting a roster 8 players deep (which, sadly, is the most we've had in a while) just came off of an energy depleting game in the Bay the previous night and flew out to play a team whose cheerleaders are taller than our backcourt.

...Ain't no way we were walking away with this one.

That being said, there's no avoiding the fact that the Warriors simply didn't look like they wanted to be out there playing tonight. Despite the fact that we were almost neck and neck with Denver on turnovers by the final whistle, many of our errors came off of lazy passes and severe miscommunications. At some points in the game it appeared that the Warriors were expending more energy chasing each others' passes that Denver was trying to score. Of course, it's not like Denver has to expel that much energy to score with the defensive effort we put forth...

(Intermission to pat myself on the back for that clever segway.)

Honestly, we're not the strongest defensive team out there (understatement) but tonight was just...well... horrendous. Specific references of the Nuggets dancing down the paint aside, we gave up back to back 44 point and 38 point quarters! Halfway through the second quarter the Warriors collectively decided to throw and and all defensive fundamentals out of the window and to just start doing their own thing. It's too bad Nellie wasn't there because he would have been flashing some serious Nelliebelly.

Trust me. When this thing comes out heads are about to roll.

At the end of the day it's really disheartening. I'm not even really referring to the loss, I'm more downtrodden about the manner of loss. With the Warriors coming off of a great 2nd half against the Pacers yesterday, one would hope that they would have tried to use today to start up a little momentum. Right now, with the state of our team, that doesn't have to mean a win. It could just mean our squad going out and showing that they know how to play together and putting up a solid fight against a better team.

Unfortunately, the only thing we had going on in unison tonight were the jerseys on our backs. And even those were different. What with everyone wearing different numbers and all.

Worst recap close ever. Fitting of the display we saw tonight I guess. (Hey, I think I just rescued it! Damn.)

Hey now Morrow! Tonight he dropped in a cool 27 to once again make the opposing team wonder who the heck he was. Not that I mind Morrow taking threes (as he actually makes them) but it was nice tonight to see most of his points come from the inside. Granted this wasn't for lack of trying from beyond the arc. Take it down A-Mo and lets put this game securely where it belongs. In the past.

RECAP: Warriors 108, Cavaliers 114 - A Victorious Loss

Hash — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:15:18 -0000

More photos » by Mark Duncan - AP

That about sums it up right there...

Browse more photos »

Despite the obvious loss tonight, I pretty sure I'd be hard pressed to find anyone who has been watching the Warriors this year who wouldn't be pleasantly surprised at the display we put forth. Usually, losses are pretty tough to write on. This is especially the case with the Warriors because losses are usually coupled with an excess of embarrassing preventable mistakes.

We knew we were outmatched in this game from the moment that we saw it on our schedule. Add to the mix the fact that the Warriors had to approach this game with only 7 healthy players (one of them suiting up in a Dubs uniform for the first time ever) and we had a recipe for a smack down.

But tonight, we saw something different. We saw one of the NBA elite teams look at each other in amazement, wondering why they couldn't extend a lead. We saw Ellis and Curry dishing the ball with flare. We saw Maggette hitting up the floor, fighting for boards and fighting through gauntlets for points. We saw Morrow draining tres in the face of the bewildered Cavs...

...we saw our boys play like Warriors.

Warriors vs Cavaliers Boxscore

Open Thread (980 Comments)

JUMP!

First and foremost, let's talk about the newest addition to the club. I have to say, I'm not all that dissappointed with Vlad's performance out there tonight! Is he going to be a point for point replacement for Stephen Jackson? No, probably not. But it was nice having a 6-10 shooter show some efficiency (at least in the first half) With enough training in Nellie's system, Vlad can trim down his shot selection and make a nice addition on both sides of the floor.

Plus he's not crazy. That kind of goes a long way.

All said and done, we've only seen half of what this trade had to offer. Unfortunately, that's going to be the case for a long time. So hell with it, let's make some proverbial lemonade. Not too Vlad at all if you ask me.

Moving onto the game - it was nice seeing such a depleted roster come out with such a strong offensive start. One could only hope that this type of offensively display would be complimented by some defensive output, but sadly this was not the case. Despite some great shots (and a great drive by Steph Curry that is worth noting), LeBron and Hickson (hello Warrior Killer!) did a tremendous job tearing up the Warriors inside. By the time the quarter ticked down, the Dubs had 30, but found themselved to be down by 5.

Defense was certainly happening on the Cavs side however. The first half gave way to some incredible swats by Cleveland. Well, if you were the Warriors, change that "incredible" to "embarrassing". Right out of the gates the Cavs increased the lead to 11 and were well on their way to running away with this game.

Now this is when it happened. Ordinarily, the Warriors (especially the Warriors with a 7 man rotation) would have accepted their fate and begun the beloved ritual of hurling up long bricks. But that's not what we saw. It all started with Morrow heating up from beyond the arc, nailing 3 tres in the 2nd quarter alone. This was enough to prevent the Cavs from running away with the lead, but unfortunately, not enough to chisel into it either. Honestly, it was nice enough seeing us hang with a team at a notch above us. But how long could it last?

Third quarter. Where Morrow's shooting cooled, Mags started up on the hustle. Where Vlad's midrangers started bricking, Monta's took over. Only at the end of this quarter did LeBron take over enough to stretch the lead back out to 11. So this was it. LeBron was about to take over the game and finally put the Warriors in his rear view mirror.

Enter the fourth. As the fatigue set in for the Warriors, Anthony Randolph stepped in and completely turned his dismal game around. Scoring most of his 13 points in the 4th quarter alone, Randolph came out with a fire unseen in the previous three quarters. As the back and forth continued, the Warriors actually managed to chisel the Cavs' lead down to 1 off of a ridiculous three from Morrow.

In the end, LeBron did what LeBron does. A few timely dishes and scores padded the Cavs lead with the right amount of time on the clock and the Warriors came away with another loss. But the Cavs have to be wondering how 7 scrappers from the Bay had them on their toes for 48 minutes. I know I am.

All 7 of our players scored in the double digits. We out-rebounded the Cavs and dished out the same amount of dimes. Given our limitations, the Warriors were on form tonight.

Yes. A loss is a loss. No way around it. But in the chaos of this one comes a glimmer of hope. Maybe this team can pay together. There certainly was some inspiring ball movement that led to some pretty innovative scores tonight. Could they do this again? Does this have anything to do with the departure of Jackson's stop and pop style of play?

It sure would be interesting to see what this team does when it gets a little healthier...

Gotta go with Monta on this one. With 23 points and 8 impressive dimes, Monta was doing it from all ends of the floor all night. Where our other players suffered through hot and cold streaks, Ellis served as the go to guy to keep our offense flowing.

Game Thread #10: Warriors @ Cavaliers - Behold the King

Hash — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:28:14 -0000

Originally posted 4:30 AM PST

Uh oh. These guys are the real deal aren't they?

Maybe we can get another crack at Sacramento? Eh? Eh? No? Okay, what about the Clippers? I mean, c'mon - that was a fluke! We can take those guys! No? Can't do it? Okay fine. I see you're going to be like that. No problem. We'll take Indy on again. There you go, you win! You win and we lose. We'll just hop on this flight to Indiana and -

What?! No?! No Indy? I daresay you're being unreasonable sir. But fear not, we are flexible. Alright fellas you heard them! No Indy! Everyone head over to Gate C31 I think there's a flight to Milwaukee boarding. Grab your bags everyone, Gate C31. Yo rookie! CURRY! Take those headphones off and grab my bag. Maybe they can book us back at that Doubletree. They had pretty good mints, right Andr-

What?

Seriously?

...we HAVE to play these guys? Contract? I see. Well, what if I- Lawsuit you say?

Hey isn't the Rock and Roll Hall of fame out there? Cleveland it is.

Their numbers are many.

Warriors: 3-6

Cavaliers: 7-3

Tip-Off: 4:00pm

TV: CSN Bay Area

Radio: KNBR 680

Blog Buddy: Fear The Sword

Okay maybe I'm being a little pessimistic. After all, we do have a few new bullets in our chamber, don't we? I mean, think about it, as long as Bell and Vlad the Impaler don't go a combined 4-14 in 45 minutes of play, we're on the path to coming out on top! Hahaha; aaaaaaaah bitterness. Sorry Stephen, I was just playing around there.

No I wasn't! HAHAHAHAHA!

No but seriously, we're in for a train wreck tomorrow.I for one will be looking for some good initial chemistry between our new guys and old (relatively speaking) and hoping for the best as we take on King James and company in their own palace.

C'mon Warriors. Surprise me.

Predictions:

Raja Bell gives us an efficient 15+
James drops over 30.
Warriors um... by... uh... The Warriors have a good time. And what's more important than that?

GAME THREAD #7: Warriors @ Pacers - ROAD TRIP!

Hash — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:24:02 -0000

Minnesota or not, Monday's game was a great way to close off our West Coast stand and head off for battles on the East Coast. Every now and then it really comes in handy to have a sacrificial lamb to beat up on.

Kind of the rest of the league is looking forward to doing to us...

But hey, the season is young and we're only two games out of .500. So let's pack our bags and head to Indiana to visit a few of our old friends, shall we?

LET THE ROAD TRIP BEGIN!

Remember this guy?

Warriors: 2-4

Pacers: 2-3

Tip-Off: 4:00pm

Radio: KNBR 680

TV: CSN Bay Area

Blog Buddy: Indy Cornrows

Here's a decent test in consistency. One peek at the posts at our friends over at Indy Cornrows, and you would think they were talking about the Warriors. Injured players. Slow start. Lots of panic. Sound familiar?

Despite the fun we always get seeing our friend Dunleavy and Murphy again, we may not be treated to their presence on the court. Dun is out with a knee injury, Murphy is listed as day to day. Add to that the fact that Danny Granger is out with a bruised heel and we're going to be up against a limping opponen.

Not that that has stopped them before...

JUMP!

Indiana, New York, Milwaukee, Cleveland, then Boston.

Some potential good games, some potential bad games, and some potential UGLY games. But yes, I'd say that we are capable of walking away from this journey with 3 out of 5 W's. I'm sure you can guess where they will come from.

That being said, today is one game that we really should be able to put away if we are as good as we would like to think that we are. One can only hope that the team chemistry we saw against Minnesota will display itself as we square off against this incomplete Pacers squad.

Win or lose, we're going to be in for a treat. GSoM friend Feltbot has stepped in to cover the recap on today's events. While we're not going to get any classic Funleavy Foto Fun, rest assured you're in for some quality analysis.

(Hopefully it's in the wake of a win)

Predictions:

Monta goes for 25+
Randolph pulls in a double double
Warriors by 5

Poll

Would you trade Captain Jack back to Indy for Dunleavy?

Yup

363 votes

Nope

622 votes

985 votes | Poll has closed

GAME THREAD: Preseason Game #2- Golden State Warriors vs LA Lakers - Take Two.

Hash — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:05:11 -0000

Originally posted Oct 9, 2009 1:05 PM PDT

Did I say Warriors by 3?! Nah. Couldn't be. You must have misread the prediction.

No need to scroll down. Trust me. It was you.

"HMMMMMM. No sir. I don't like it."

(Bonus points if you get that reference.)

Warriors (Preseason W-L) - 1-1

Lakers (Preseason W-L) - 1-0

Blog Buddy: Silver Screen and Roll

Tip-Off: 7:00 PM PST

TV: None Scheduled

Radio: KNBR 680

Lakers v. Warriors. Take 2! JUMP.

The Good

Randolph looked great out there last game. 4 blocks = BEAST.
Nice offensive showing by Morrow.
Nice surprise from Acie Law. I'll take it!
Team went 31-35 from the charity stripe. Free points! Get your free point here!!

The Bad

Monta injuring his ankle before the season? At least it was playing basketball this time.
Kelenna riding pine.
Wright riding pine.
Turiaf riding pine.
Devean George. 'Nuff said.

The Ugly

6 turnovers for Curry
5 turnovers for Mags
Stephen Jackson - 1 for 9. Uncross those eyes fella.

Predictions:

Ellis (listed as probable) plays. Drops 20+
Acie Law does NOT drop 16 again.
*ahem* let's try this again! WARRIORS BY 3!

GAME THREAD: Preseason Game #2- Golden State Warriors @ LA Lakers - Meaningless Wednesday Fun

Hash — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 22:39:36 -0000

It's going to be big trouble in little L.A. tonight! The big bad Warriors are coming to town in a showdown that carries about as much weight as I do at the gym.

The answer you were looking for is: Not much.

It's okay. I know I'm weak. I'll impress the girls with my Mario Kart skills.

Crap. This guy is going to be there, isn't he? We're toast.

Warriors (Preseason W-L) - 1-0

Lakers (Preseason W-L) - 0-0

Blog Buddy: Silver Screen and Roll

Tip-Off: 7:00 PM PST

TV: None Scheduled

Radio: None Scheduled

Yahoo! LIVE Box Score

Make the jump to see what we may be in store for in tonight's meaningless battle down south!

What's in store for us? Likely, a beat down.

Positivity is all well and good, but this offseason the league's best actually got better. With the addition of Ron Artest, this squad boasts some serious defensive capabilities to add to their already impressive offensive forces. There is little reason to believe that this team isn't headed back to the Western Conference Finals (if not beyond).

That being said, it certainly would make a great statement to come out against a team this stacked and walk away with a W. Preseason or not, the Lakers will be looking to stretch their wings in their first preseason game.

Let's give them a run for their money.

GO WARRIORS!

Predictions:

Curry dunks on Kobe.
Kobe dunks on everyone else.
Warriors by 3.

Corey Maggette - The 6th Wonder of the Oracle :: 2009-2010 Golden State Warriors Player Recap and Previews

Hash — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:55:15 -0000

Sure he's a little overpaid... maybe a lot overpaid. But the real question is, what is in store for Corey Maggette this year?!

Hopefully 70+ games. Please please please 70+ games...

*clunk* "Ahhhh! My head!" Out 10 games.

Okay, all joking aside. If we can manage to have Maggette on the floor for the better part of the season, we're going to have a powerful scoring backup forward that knows how to get to the line. And I have no problem with that.

Check out some Maggette after the jump!

Like his heavy contract or not, it's tough to deny that Maggette isn't a offensive force. Last year Mags averaged 18.6 ppg, and 5.6 boards per game, a considerable contribution for our leading non-starter.

The issue with Mags is, is he capable of making a bid for more? Before the dabaucle that was media day, Nellie had already come out and said that Maggette will be starting the season in the role of 6th man again.

Corey Maggette will be the sixth man. If Curry starts, Ellis plays the 2; if Azubuike starts, Ellis plays point and Jackson plays the 2; if Morrow starts, Ellis plays point and Jackson plays 3; and if Wright starts, Randolph moves to the 3 and Jackson plays the 2.

That's a lot of options. All of which put Maggette at the six.

It's clear that Nellie is going to bring in his scoring capabilities when needed, but the priority this season will be building up the young guns to run this team. Poor Maggette. But then again, just because he's paid $9 million doesn't mean we're going to get $9 million worth of talent, right?

Corey Maggette travels six times in 1 play (via srntv)

That's an average of $1.5 million per travel!

All in all, nothing much has changed in the world of Corey. As an inside bruiser, we can only hope that he can stay healthy for more than 51 games (last year) so our go-to-guy off of the bench isn't *shudder* Devean George.

C'mon Mags. Tough it out! We need you!

2009-2010 Golden State Warriors Preview

Anthony Morrow: Ammo + Chocolate Rain
Stephen Jackson: O Captain, My Captain
Speedy Claxton/ Devean George, Acie Law: Wouldn't Count on It
Brandan Wright: Injury Prone
Stephen Curry: Let There Be Hope
Monta Ellis: Back in the Saddle
Kelenna Azubuike
Corey Maggette
Andris Biedrins
Anthony Randolph
Ronny Turiaf
C.J. Watson
Mikki Moore

Coming 10.26.09 to a web browser near you...

Golden State Warriors 2k9-2k10 Super Preview Blowout Special!

Stephen Curry - Let There Be Hope :: 2009-2010 Golden State Warriors Player Recap and Previews

Hash — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 18:45:47 -0000

And now we come to the new kid on the block. One thing we have to give this Warriors organization is their ability to pick up raw talent and allow it to blossom (before trading it away). Unfortunately, our current batch of raw talent hasn't yet learned to play cohesively enough together to form any kind of consistency, but it's tough to argue that players like Ellis, Biedrins, and Randolph haven't had the room to discover themselves.

As I was talking with Atma the other day, I shared a concern I've had with Nellie in recent years. What if Nellie sees a potential successful season in front of him without letting Curry stretch his wings? Atma brought up some solid points in this realm. Historically, if Nellie hasn't let a rookie or new addition to the roster breathe (POB, Diogu), they haven't really moved on elsewhere in the league to excel. If the talent is there, Nellie has and will let them cultivate their skill on the Arena floor.

That being said, we're going to be seeing a lot of Curry at the Arena this year.

Wrong Curry. But equally as exciting!

Make the jump and let's check out some of the reasons why this kid might change the course of this already tumultuous season.

Okay. Before we begin, I would be remiss to not mention that if you have any percentage of South Asian blood in you, or if you just happen to like Indian food, go out and buy a Curry jersey. Long after this kid starts to average 25 ppg and goes to another team for $20 more because Rowell refuses to match the offer, a jersey that says "Curry" on the back will bring you endless joy. Also, discounts among Indian restaurants across the greater Bay Area. It's really the gift that keeps on giving.

Now - if you got excited by that, check this out:

Stephen Curry Mix (HQ) (via pennixballer92)

Sick.

No doubt. It's always tough to focus on a college phenom and predict his success in the bigs, but so far all signs point to yes. According to Marcus Thompson at the San Jose Mercury:

It's too early, by most accounts, to give him a thorough analysis. But rookie guard Stephen Curry has members of the Warriors organization feeling good about his development.

"He's holding his own very nicely," coach Don Nelson said Wednesday.

Let's look at reality though. Despite Monta being out of line with his claims that he can't play with Curry in the backcourt, having the two of these guys together really can lead to us getting bumped and bruised around. What happens when the Warriors are put into this position? Historically, three point shot after shot after shot. Morrow aside, we haven't proved to be a team good enough to rest our game on the long bomb.

Curry's real value as a point is going to be getting the rock to our ever growing big guys. I predict that Biedrins, Randolph, Turiaf, and now, Mikki Moore will eventually come to enjoy a player of this nature who can has the ability to develop his passing as well as the rest of his game.

Not that anyone in the Warriors organization is going to mind if he takes a shot or two.

Despite the rough introduction to the NBA, Curry doesn't seem to be losing confidence. He's usually running the point when he's in the game, and the Warriors have encouraged him to continue being aggressive looking for his shot, and he's followed orders.

But at the end of the day, year 1 in this league is exactly what it is. Year 1. Right now our very own organization isn't even sure how they want to use his talents, which will make it extremely tough to cultivate his game in any sort of focused direction. Perhaps this kind of breathing room is needed, however. Am I expecting big things out of this kid? Yes. I am. Am I expecting it in the first 30 games of the year? No. But it sure would be nice!

Will this be the year of Curry? DISCUSS!