Stay Tuned For Off-Season Coverage

Even though the Warriors season has come to an end, the Warriors Rundown will be going all summer long giving up to date news and information regarding player movements as well as draft coverage. We will also be writing up a Warrior Season Review in 2 segments in the coming days as well as covering some of the NBA Playoffs. So Stay Tuned as we try to expand and improve for the what promises to be another exciting 08'-09' season!!!

Warrios and Nuggets Sputter Toward Finishline

These last few weeks have revealed the Warriors as a fatigued unit. The starters are doing the best job they can in spite of Don Nelson playing them 40 minutes a game. (I refer specifically to Davis, Ellis, and Jackson)

They have been getting killed on transition defense. They push the ball up
at their usual lightning speed, but get got killed by Jason Kidd, Tony Parker, and Chris Paul on counter fast breaks.

Nelson has admitted the team is fatigued, but he still plays essentially a six man rotation. Azibuike has shown his versatility as a solid defender, a capable scorer, and aggressive rebounder. Nelson does not trust Barnes, Belinelli, Wright, or Watson. Pietrus was starting to come around as the X factor until this groin injury has sidelined him.

These West conference teams have too many weapons off the bench to wear down the W's. Thanks to Denver's lack of consistency, the Warriors are still tied for that final playoff spot. The biggest game of the season will be this Thursday, this is, if the W's can handle Sac at home.

"We Believe" in disbelief after tough road losses

The Warriors did not look like a team ready for Western Conference playoff competition in the last two days. The San Antonio game was not televised on the West coast and that was a good thing. San Antone closed the deal on a 19 point run up in the third. Its obvious that Avery Johnson has found answers for Don Nelson's undersized, athletic line up.

The three Texas teams, including the two that trounced the W's, all have enough depth to have different guys step up when the top players are having off nights. The Warriors bench is thin and the season is wearing on the starters. The W's need players like Pietrus to get back and Barnes to find a way to contribute. Brandan Wright will be a key factor in contending against these West teams that have offensive board crashers.

So that leaves the W's in a similar predicament to a year ago. They must win out the remaining games, which are at Memphis, at New Orleans, Sacramento at home, Denver at home, Clippers at home, at Phoenix, and Seattle at home.

It will be a seven game series they must sweep.

W's Blow 26 Point Lead, Yet Survive

No!...Yes! That's what Warriors fans were thinking when Stephen Jackson launched the first of two ice cold three point makes on the last two possessions of the game against the Lakers on Easter Sunday.

The W's proved again why they are the most excited team to watch in the NBA. They couldn't have played any better in the first half as they went into the locker room with a 23 point lead. They finished the half with a 13-0 run. Jackson went 4-4 beyond the arc in the first quarter and turned the Lakers over to get 25 points off the fast break.

If the first half was night, then the second half was day (or actually the third quarter) as a determined Laker team came out and played gritty defense. The Warriors fell into a pattern of settling for easy jumpers that didn't fall, lacked motion in the half court offense, let Derrick Fisher go 3-4 from three, and only scored 15 points.

The game was eventually drew even with about six minutes left and the W's picked their game back up and made some plays. The most crucial were the two three pointers by Stack Jack to close the deal. I don't think I've ever seen a player quite like Stephen Jack. He can be very hot or very cold during the course of the game, but when it comes down to the final minute, find him. He's got no conscience and believes in himself. Jack is a gambler, but has proven over and over, since winning a championship with San Antonio in 03', that there is no shot too big.

These teams will rematch tonight, this time at Oracle. It doesn't get any more playoff like than this. If the Playoffs started now, the Lakers would be the #1 seed and the Warriors would be #8. Get out the gold "We Believe' T's because things are looking a lot like last season. As Barnett says, the Warriors are "very capable" of taking two straight from the Lakers.

Briefly...Nowitski will probably miss the game at Oracle Sun. 3/30 with his left leg injury suffered against the Spurs. Sorry Dirk, but thanks.

3-1 is not bad for the road trip to the Southeastern part of the country. Disapointing was the loss the the Bobcats, as the beloved J Rich singed the W's for 42 points. Harrington had only 6 points that game which is not enough. Harrington is a barometer for the GS offense. If Harrington can give the W's 20 points, there is a good chance they will win. Impressive was the win in Orlando on the second day of back to back games. The play of Mickael Pietrus has no doubt been a factor in Warriors winning ways. He is playing for a contract, so whether he comes back or not, he will be trying to show reason for GM's to give him a look. Thats just fine as long as it translates to helping the W's win games.

The Warriors exercised the option in Don Nelson's contract to bring him back next year. Should he accept, Nelly will make over 5 mil. Warrior fans most likely won't get an answer until summer as Nelly will consult his wife, Baron Davis, Stephen Jackson, and the rest of the team. (SF Chronicle, David White, Mar. 12, 2008)

Tonight the W's have Toronto at home and tomorrow travel to Phoenix to take on the Suns.

Warriors take first of two against Portland

Beating the Blazers yesterday was necessary to avoid being on the short end of a tie breaker if the Blazers were to catch up. by season's end. The two losses to the Blazers happened in Portland to a talented young team playing with confidence in a friendly environment. During the Blazers' 13 game win streak in January, most of the success came at home. The Blazers are tremendously talented, but lack experience. This youth shows in the disparity between their stellar play at home and anxiousness when closing out on the road. Steve Blake missed two critical free throws down the stretch and the Blazers offense was obviously bothered by the noise level at Oracle.

Brandan Wright has stepped in nicely for Biedrins and made a strong campaign for Coach Nelson's trust. Wright is earning experience and will hopefully stay in the rotation when Biedrins returns.

Warriors Battle Injuries at a Critical Point of the Season

The win against the Celtics could have been the most impressive win of the Warriors' season in terms of drama and quality of opponent. The win against New Orleans on the road stands out as well, but the Warriors beat the Celtics without Stephen Jackson.

The W's have been terrific all year with a roster full of healthy players, but recently health has been an issue. Captain Jack has been ailing from an ankle injury since Feb. 9 against the Kings and Andre Biedrins is recovering from his appendectomy. Baron seems to be dragging that left knee a bit after giving the team some serious minutes throughout the year. Monte has kept this team in the hunt with his stellar play throughout February and Webber seems to be playing better. He rarely logs more than 20 minutes a game, but his floor time has been improving. He defended well against Kevin Garnett and is starting to get on the same page with the offense. Biedrins could be out another week or more and we know the Warriors are not the same without Jack in the game. He was just starting to heat up as he notched a season high 41 Feb. 11. Brandon Wright will be called upon pick up for Biedrins and Pietrus will have to contribute for the W's to stay alive during this rough period.

Before the All-Star break, it was a tight race between three teams for the 7th and 8th spots in the Western Conference, but Houston has just won its 12th straight tonight and are looking like they could beat anyone in the West. They have finally got all of their weapons healthy, as in Tracy McGrady. They also got deeper at the point by adding Bobby Jackson, who has playoff experience with Sacramento, who was coached by Rick Adelman, who is the current Rocket coach.

As February comes to a close, March will bring some critical games directly affecting the playoff campaign. These are four games coach Nelson has circled in red ink. Mar. 2 versus Portland at home. The Blazers won the first two out four total meetings, both up in Portland. The W's will be anxious to even the score and stop the Blazers from sneaking up from behind. The second meeting is also at Oracle on Mar. 27. Also critical home game comes on Mar. 21 when the W's host Houston for the fourth and final meeting of the season series. Houston crushed the W's in the first half of the last meeting in Houston, but the W's made a valiant comeback effort in a loss. The fourth critical game will be on the road in Denver Mar. 29. It looks like the Nuggets are the closest competition for the W's unless the Rockets cool off considerably or Portland gets back on track. Taking three out of four from the Nuggets would make life much easier. Oh yeah, and they need to weather meetings with Phoenix, Dallas, and back to back with the Lakers.