The Warriors are sending one of their rookies to the NBA Development League. Forward Chris Wright – and not Jeremy Tyler – is head to play for the Dakota Wizards.

Wright, signed as a free agent on Dec. 12, has appeared in just five games this season. He totaled 5 points and 4 rebounds in 16 minutes. It makes sense that the rookie out of Dayton is headed to the D-League. A super athlete who has the raw skills the Warriors like, he needs game experience more than anything.

Tyler, on the other hand, has game experience having played in Israel and China. What he needs is to learn the NBA game. Coach Mark Jackson said he has been happy with Tyler’s progress, which is why he rewarded Tyler with a season-high 8 minutes on Wednesday. The way Tyler played, I wouldn’t be surprised if he saw more such spurts.

Game Story For Tomorrow’s Paper

Spend enough time around the Warriors and you’ll hear talk about how great they are on offense. Wednesday night against Portland, it actually was the truth.

Point guard Stephen Curry scored a game-high 32 points to go with seven assists and forward David Lee totaled 26 as Golden State bested the Blazers 101-93, rebounding from Monday’s embarrassing collapse against Memphis.

“We weren’t stressing about it at all, we just knew that we had an extreme lapse of play last game,” Curry said. “We know when we have the opportunity that we are capable of closing out games.”

The Warriors set season-highs with 33 assists and 11 3-pointers while snapping a three-game losing streak and getting their first win against a Western Conference opponent. The Warriors offense, which shot 51.9 percent, was clicking well enough against the Blazers that guard Monta Ellis didn’t even need to score.

Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s something to watch for tonight: Joe Lacob and Peter Guber dancing on the sidelines.

Not because of a Warriors’ victory, but because their investment in the Warriors is turning out pretty good. Forbes put the Warriors’ current value at $450 million, which makes Golden State the eighth-best value in the franchise. That’s got to be good news since they’re only about a year and a half in and haven’t yet executed most of their plans for increasing the franchise value (including a new stadium).

In the 2011 list, Golden State was No. 12 at $363 million – behind the likes of Toronto

Of course, in the past, I’ve heard Warriors’ executives (ex-team president Robert Rowell) rip the Forbes valuations as inaccurate.

Below are the top 10.

Read the rest of this entry »

Warriors guard Nate Robinson exuded more energy and resolve in his post-practice interview Tuesday than the Warriors did in their collapse against Memphis.

ROBINSON: “We’ve got all the talent, all the skills in the world. We’ve got guys who can play … We’ve just got to be a little bit tougher. That’s the only thing we need is toughness. It’s just a matter of how much they believe and how much they want it.”

 

Coach Mark Jackson admitted he should have played Robinson more down the stretch. He said he took Robinson out because of a few careless mistakes. But in hindsight, Jackson said Robinson brings what the Warriors’ needed: toughness, hustle, experience.

So, in essence, the Warriors need more players like Nate Robinson. Imagine that.

Read the rest of this entry »

GAME STORY FOR  TOMORROW’S PAPER

OAKLAND — Monday’s game showed exactly why coach Mark Jackson still believes the Warriors are a playoff team, as they dominated a legit contender in Memphis.

Monday’s game also showed why some think Jackson is crazy for such belief. Golden State squandered a 20-point lead in an epic collapse, losing 91-90.

“First thing that comes to mind,” forward Dorell Wright said, “is unacceptable.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Here is the statement from NBA.com/official
“With 5.4 seconds remaining in the Indiana-Golden State game on Jan. 20, Pacers guard George Hill intentionally kicked the ball away from Warriors guard Monta Ellis during his cross over dribble. According to rule no. 10, Section IV.b, kicking the ball or striking it with any part of the leg is a violation when it is an intentional act. The officials missed the kicked ball violation which should have resulted in a deadball situation and Golden State inbounding the ball on the sideline nearest the spot of the violation.”

UPDATE: After an informal poll of the reserves, it seems their favorite is T-Money’s “Dub-Stitutes” (though several got a good snicker out of “The Starters”).

The biggest fan was probably Dominic McGuire. Of course, that’s all it takes because whatever McGuire says, people agree with. Including me.

*******************************************

Certainly, if you’ve watched Warriors’ games lately, you’ve noticed the reserves come to play. Arguably, the brightest spot so far is Golden State’s depth.

Judging by +/- statistics, the Warriors’ best five-man unit is Nate Robinson, Brandon Rush, Klay Thompson, Dominic McGuire and Ekpe Udoh. Certainly, +/- has it’s question marks as a reliable stat. But what is not questionable is the reserves are rounding into a nice unit.

It’s fitting that this collection of outcasts and doubted have given coach Mark Jackson something to work with. The energy, versatility and grit they bring are proving more and more valuable to Golden State.

DOMINIC McGUIRE:  “We’re out there getting after it. Everybody sees it. We’re coming out there hungry.”

But this group is lacking one thing: a nickname.

So far, they’re going with Bench Mob. But that’s been used several times. That’s where you come in. What’s a good moniker for the Warriors’ reserves?

I’ve got a few ideas.

Read the rest of this entry »

If the Warriors’ win tonight atNew Jersey, they will finish 3-1 on this four-game road trip. And while considering the competition that shouldn’t be a milestone, it actually is a relatively significant accomplishment.

The last time Golden State won at least three games on a four-game road trip was in March 2008. They had a four-game stint in the Southeast Division –Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami and Orlando. Oddly enough, the one loss was to Charlotte.

That year, the Warriors went on to win 48 games and miss the playoffs.GoldenStatewent 21-20 on the road that year. Since then, they’re 26-100 on the road (entering this current road trip). So going 3-1 on the road, even if three are the teams are below .500 and the other at .500, is something to raise a glass over.

Here are some things to watch for tonight.

Read the rest of this entry »

CLEVELAND — He scored a game-high 29 points. He put up 13 points in the fourth quarter, including a shot clock-beating, nail-in-the-coffin 18-footer with 44.8 seconds left.

But the scoring star of the Warriors’ 105-95 victory here Tuesday night wasn’t who you might expect.

“It wasn’t my night,” guard Monta Ellis said. “It was David Lee’s.”

Ellis had one of his worst offensive performances of the season. He made just 2 of 12 from the field and finished with 10 points.

He left the game with 35.2 seconds left after taking an elbow to the nose from Cavaliers big man Anderson Varejao. With the game was already decided, Ellis didn’t return. X-rays were negative as he suffered just a cut.

With Ellis having an off night, and point guard Stephen Curry (sprained right ankle) in street clothes for the seventh consecutive game, the Warriors (5-8) still managed enough offense to outscore the Cavaliers.

You can thank Lee, who also had nine rebounds as Golden State won back-to-back games road games for the first time since November 2010.

Tuesday night continued a torrid stretch for Lee. Over his last five games, Lee is averaging 24.6 points on 64.3 percent shooting. He’s also averaging 11.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists.

Read the rest of this entry »