Comments on: Warriors Targeting Al Thornton for Bench Help

By: JimPunkrockford

JimPunkrockford — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 20:18:58 +0000

i must admit, i too really liked his game whan he was part of the shawn livingston clipshow. i think adding powe would of filled a more urgent need but i like thornton

By: Lunchpail Smith

Lunchpail Smith — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 18:05:49 +0000

Looking at Thornton’s stats this year, and only once does he break 10 points in under 24 min. a game. Currently, he needs the ball and time on the floor to be comfortable. How will he fit in with the reserve unit? It does seem an inexpensive upgrade to our bench, which has been playing much better recently – Acie Law included. This year and next I’d like to see more consistent subsitution patterns, which has happened more of late. It seems Smart needed over half a season to begin to thaw after coming out from Nellie’s influence.
Udoh is not a bust. He has very much impressed me with what isn’t in the boxscore. His presence is felt in the paint and he decreases the opponents shooting percentage. No one on the Warriors has done that since Manute Bol. Greg Monroe does not do this, at all. And he does seem a bit rushed when he has the ball in the post or an open 10 footer, but the stroke is there.
One more thing, I’d like to see Smart make the focus of practice for the rest of the season two things:
1. ball denial/aggressiveness on help defense (which I’ve seen happening more in the last month than in the past three years) and
2. Getting people the ball in their favored spots early and often in games.
Monta: mid-range jumper.
D. Wright: 3-ball from the corner.
Curry: drive to the lane and step-back rainbow jumper. But most of all…David Lee: 14 footer from the elbow. One pump-fake like he’s going to drive to the hoop and then stroke it. He hasn’t been taking this shot with confidence. (tooth fragments still in the elbow?
If David Lee hits this shot once a quarter then the entire dynamic of our offense and floor spacing changes…lanes open up for Curry to drive and dish. We begin to win close games. Against tougher teams. On the road.
And we miss the playoffs by only two or three games!

By: Yoda

Yoda — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 15:48:17 +0000

You can separate Jamison from those other two. Jamison would have been a cap move. The other two are cheap, though if I ever see Nate Robinson in a W’s uniform I’ll drop the team like a hot rock.

By: W's in 2010

W's in 2010 — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 05:33:44 +0000

BTW, shouldn’t we be worried by the type of guys we’ve been targeting of late? Jamison, Al Thornton, Nate Robinson… these are score first types who play little D. What happened to the emphasis on defense??

By: W's in 2010

W's in 2010 — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 05:31:37 +0000

I’m not a fan of the Thornton signing but the reason they dumped him was because they have a guy making over $20M/yr(Shard) and Josh Howard playing the 3.

By: Ron

Ron — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 22:32:21 +0000

Washington is pretty bad and they basically cut Thornton, so how exactly is he going to make us better? Now if this bumps Biedrens to the bench I am all for it!

By: Bill

Bill — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:58:47 +0000

None of this addresses the major problems in our interior game. With Biedrins we play 4 on 5 night after night. Udoh, sure, he needs minutes, but is he really a center? Thornton is just showcasing himself here to get a contract elsewhere; the Warriors are notorious for letting themselves be used to jack up the price somewhere else. He doesn’t add what we need although maybe he can make a layup since obviously Amundsen can not. Azubukie? Love him but chances are he will never be the same player after that atrocious injury. And as for the suggestion that we look at Jeff Van Gundy? God. I will shoot myself. He is an idiot almost on the level of the “Czar” Fratello. And Mike Brown. They know about much basketball as Michelle OBama. Biedrins has to go. Has to. He is, not to be too crude, a pussy—too nice to survive in this league. Return to Latvia, hit the weight room, count your money, but my goodness Smart you can not start a player who gives us NOTHING> What a waste of time it is to watch him stroll around the court fixing his arm band. Lee has heart but not the size to be a 5. Curry and Monta are reasons to buy tickets but maybe that one writer is right when he says we should start Dorell, especially considering that Curry is often benched for long stretches anyway while Smart burns Monta to the ground with extensive minutes. The guy is tired; Atlas even shrugged. Thornton? He’s Carl Landry in disguise. A knucklehead who wants shots. The beat goes on.

By: Jet BlackBeard

Jet BlackBeard — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 19:18:21 +0000

I like Buke as much as anybody, but he is not playing this year, so there’s no point in anybody picking him up now. Anybody with interest will look at him during the off-season.

Regarding something unrelated, does anybody else thing we should drop Acie Law? This losing streak has coincided with his return. Maybe Arroyo would be better, but I would at least play Lin before Law.

By: Josh

Josh — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 18:41:27 +0000

The Warriors would be better off picking up Azibuicke and waiting for him to heal. Thorton is Maggette .5. Meaning just as bad on D and half as good on offense but thinks he is as good.

By: philb

philb — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 18:08:10 +0000

Not a bad pickup for the Dubs. Al will add some scoring punch to the 2nd unit, take some of the pressure off of Reggie Williams and provide a backup for Dorell Wright. He’ll also have a chance to lockup a roster spot in the offseason, which is probably why he’s specifically requesting the Warriors. It would be nice if he could defend opposing small forwards every now and then but oh well it is what it is…