* The slaughter is set to take place. But I have an eerie feeling that the Warriors are going to win this game. Am I tripping?

* Nellie, because the Spurs go mostly small ball now, went with his smallest starting lineup yet.
Watson
Crawford
Jackson
Maggette
Biedrins

That means Biedrins is matched up against Tim Duncan one-on-one with no help. That’s perhaps not the best situation for Biedrins. Either he’s going to get in early foul trouble or Duncan’s going to go off.

* Talked to Nellie about how he thought Maggette was fiiting in. He said “good” and that he fit well. Hardly convincing. But then Nellie can be short some times.

* The Spurs had six assist on the first seven baskets (started 7 of 10), four by Manu Ginobili. They have already outscored the Warriors 10-2 in the paint. I guess I was tripping.

ADD: On the Corey subject, an interesting play happened in the first quarter. Maggette took a shot, came back down, took another shot. The rebound caromed back to him. Without so much as a blink, he took another shot. Jamal Crawford turned to the bench with a WITW (What in the world …) look before he ran down court on defense.

That game got ugly fast. The Warriors had no answer for Yao. So once Artest and Rafer got going from the perimeter, it was a wrap for the Warriors. I was thinking the losing streak would reach 10. Tonight vs. the Spurs will make nine straight, then OKC. I was saying that, but then the Thunder won at Memphis. That knocked out one of my components, which was the Thunders’ hunger. If they came into the game having lost close to 20 straight, they would’ve been famished and the Warriors would’ve looked like rare prey instead of a daunting predator. They still might, as the Thunders’ chances for victory won’t come very often this season. The Warriors are a team OKC might look at as a chance to get a win. Plus the Warriors’ are prone to give up runs and a big game. Kevin Durant might go off.
Anyway, back to Houston’s game:

*I can’t believe Artest’s dunk over Ronny made the top 10 on ESPN, but not Randolph’s dunk over Yao. It was nasty, the first one I mean. Randolph said he screamed at Yao after the sedcond one (drawing a technical foul) because he was irritated that Yao was throwing bows and had busted Randolph’s lip. He was releasing some frustration and got caught up in the moment.
To a man, his teammates loved it, so much no one minded the tech so much.

Jackson: “The tech? You got to live with those because that was an aggressive play. We don’t want him to get in the habit of getting technical fouls because that ain’t the way to go. … Let me get the techs.”

* I noticed something interesting after Nellie got ejected. Guess who the first player off the bench was? Brandan Wright. Yes, the same Wright who hadn’t played all game. Also, when the Warriors needed points, Keith Smart went to Anthony Morrow with no hesitation. Think there was a sublimenal message in that?

* Ronny Turiaf should be playing more. There’s just no excuse. This small ball lineup is not the Warriors best team. Turiaf needs to be on the court, and he needs to be next to Biedrins. Not only does he take the defensive pressure off of Biedrins, he adds a toughness and energy to the lineup that the Warriors need. He gets their break going because he can block shots (though Jackson or Maggette will almost assuredly kill the break with their sauntering up the court).
Don’t gimmie that offense pitch, either. It’s not that much of a sacrifice, plus the last several games have shown you can’t win without playing a little bit of defense.
And don’t gimmie that youngsters stuff, either. Ronny can still get minutes and the youngsters get action. Why can’t Ronny start at the 4, backed up by Randoph, and Biedrins start at the 5 backed up by Wright? If you think Wright can’t play 5, then Ronny can go to 5 when Biedrins comes out of the game and Wright can play the 4.
Why is it always feast or famine with the youngsters? They either play 30 minutes or 3. Set a rotation!
STARTERS (RESERVES)
Crawford (Watson)
Jackson (Morrow)
Maggette (Azubuike)
Turiaf (Randolph)
Biedrins (Wright)

When Monta comes back, then you can go small. But I wouldn’t be opposed to having Crawford and Ellis in the backcourt with Jackson, Turiaf and Biedrins on the frontline. Then you have Maggette and Azubuike coming off the bench.
Yes, Maggette can come off the bench. So what he got a $50 million.
Simply, there’s no reason Turiaf has to rot on the bench unless the Warriors are playing a really big team. You can play the most ready player and still get the youngster’s minutes. It would be best for them anyway if they had a regular pattern for getting in the game and playing.

* The Warriors played pretty well Friday night, just didn’t have enough in the end. They always say they can compete with anybody, and it seems they play good teams well. So, the question begs: should the Warriors be a better team, or is this about right? I go back and forth. Sometimes I think they should be somewhere between 8-11 and 11-8. Then sometimes, most times, I think they are this bad and I was right to think 25-30 wins. Which one is it? Are they playing down to bad competition or playing up to the good teams?

I have been blowing chunks for much of the day. Something I ate, I am assuming … hold up … Ron Artest just banged on Ronny Turiaf. Wow. That was nasty. He came down the middle and threw it down with one hand. Turiaf was late with the help, but on time enough to get posterized.

Anyway. I some kind of blackened fish and I think there’s now a little alien growing inside of me. I said that to say I am half-here, half waiting for my next trip to the porcelain throne. So bear with me …

*Turiaf started and not Brandan Wright or Kelenna Azubuike. Ronny is guarding Yao and Biedrins is guarding Scola. Count me among the fans of the big lineup. The Warriors are best with Maggette at small forward. I say go small when you are getting a third guard like Monta Ellis in the lineup, not if Azubuike or Watson is the third guard.

* Jackson is being guarded by Ron Artest. Why are they isolating Jax? Is that not begging for a turnover?

* See that SI piece about how the Warriors are already regretting Maggette? More surprising to me was Kevin Garnett’s alleged comments. Normally the players stick together. The animosity ends as soon as the final horn sounds. For KG to get at Maggs like that, if he did, is shocking to me. That sounds like he doesn’t like the guy.

Nellie had a pretty good pre-game press conference (for a change). He stood strong on his stance about the Warriors not making the playoffs. My man Tim Kawakami has Nellie’s pre-game up already.

* Jack is in the mix again after missing last game with a sprained left wrist. But Azubuike is out with a sprained left foot). As a result, Brandan Wright is in the starting lineup again. BW is going to break a hip the way he keeps getting bounced around the rotation.

All I got this pre-game. I’m having computer issues!

I thought I posted this. I guess I forgot to press the “publish” button. I know it’s kind of old now. Oh well. …

Wow. Lost in the Warriors being the pawns in the Knicks’ celebration was the fact that the Warriors still could’ve won this game. Surely, that is partly an indictment on the Knicks, but also a symbol of this team’s resilience. I know it looks bleak now, but this team fights back. They aren’t good enough for it to matter much at this point, but it is certainly something to lean on. On with the observations …

* C.J. Watson is the best player on the team right now. He is playing lights out on both ends. If he only had some help.

* The frustration is starting to manifest in gestures on the court. There is no shortage of frowns and overt gestures when teammates make a mistake. Even guys who usually show no expression are starting to exhibit their inner-most irritation. For example, Corey Maggette had a 2-on-1 with Azubuike. Corey drew the defender, but didn’t kick to an open Buike.
Maggette missed the layup and Buike sighed and ever so slightly shook his head. It was just a quick moment, but it was a rare expression of any kind of emotion from him, let along a disapproving gesture. That means, as I step into my psychology background, that it’s been building up.

*Crawford got a warm reception. There were cheers when his name was announced in the starting lineup. Then during a timeout, they had a video tribute of his big shots as a Knick which was followed by a mild standing ovation. Crawford didn’t waive at the crowd or didn’t even acknowledge the gesture. The Warriors were in a timeout and Nellie was drawing up something. I don’t know if he was really so focused he didn’t recognize, or he did but chose to act as if he was too focused to recognize. Either way, it was good judgment. I was expecting him to waive in the middle of the huddle, and he didn’t. Even when he walked onto the court, he didn’t soak up the attention.

*Belinelli started. He played five minutes, made one of his two attempts, and was yanked for poor defense. Twice he failed to close out on the shooter. You could see the irritation on Nellie’s face as he told Morrow to go sub for him. Or, Nellie could have been irritated by the Belinelli fan club right by the bench.
There were a couple of occasions where Belinelli played some Euro defense. The Knicks were on fire from 3, and Marco just waives at the guy instead of closing out. But even more of a crime, to me, is his lack of aggression on offense. He KNOWS they aren’t going to look for him. He KNOWS he only gets a few minutes here and there. Why is he not making it happen??? It is amazing how many times he pump fakes himself out of a shot and pass the ball. He needs to eat a confidence bar or something.

*Though Morrow can’t hit the side of barn right now, I love how he works through his slump. He didn’t keep jacking up 3-pointers even though his shot is off. He passed up three pointers and took dribbles in. He crashed the offensive boards, got himself to the line. That’s the sign of a smart player, someone who understands a good shot is not a shot you can make, but the shot that gives you the best chance of making it at the time.

*A funny moment that illustrated the state of the Warriors. Remember when Randolph got dunked on by Tim Thomas? Well, moments later, the Warriors were forced to call a timeout to stop a Knicks run. The bench players normally go high five the players coming off the court. This time, Jackson, who all night was one of the first off the bench to greet his teammates, took a stroll away the huddle and onto the court toward the free throw line area. He was shaking his head in disgust. Tim Thomas, walking by on his way to the bench, looked at Jackson. He clasped his hands, like he was praying, and mockingly said “I’m sorry Jack. I’m sorry Jack.” Jackson smiled and continued shaking his head as he returned to the huddle.