By Geoff Lepper
48minutes.net

OAKLAND — Anthony Randolph may have stood alongside the Warriors’ four other rookies Sunday as they delivered an off-key, warbling rendition of Stevie Wonder’s arrangement of “Happy Birthday” to guard Monta Ellis, who just turned 23 years old. But that was about the only time Randolph resembled a rookie during Golden State’s annual open practice.

Randolph started early during the scrimmage session by dunking with relish over veteran Al Harrington. Later, he threatened to deliver a knee to Harrington’s sternum while swooping in for a layup. Finally, he shot a withering look to second-year guard Marco Belinelli when the Italian and he got tangled up filling the same lane on a fast break.

So much for rookies not making an impression.

Warriors captain Stephen Jackson helped keep Randolph in check by juking past him from the right wing and flushing a two-handed jam as the 19-year-old tried vainly to block it.

“They only remember the last dunk, so Jack got that,” Randolph said. “I got him. (Revenge) is coming. Y’all might not see it, but it’s coming.”

For his part, Harrington chalked up Randolph’s successes to a veteran’s prudence.

“I wasn’t trying to block the shot,” Harrington said of Randolph’s tomahawk. “That was fake hustle. You know that. Everybody knows that.”

And as for the retreat on Randolph’s knees-up drive?

“I got out of the way on that one,” said Harrington, who attempted to take a charge on Randolph earlier but was whistled for a block instead. “I could have got another (charge), but these refs probably would have called a blocking foul. He probably would have kneed off of me and dunked. It would have been all bad.”

** A team source confirmed the examiner.com report that rookie forward Rob Kurz will officially become the Warriors’ final cut Monday, an unsurprising move that secures a roster spot for fellow rookie guard Anthony Morrow.

It looked like Kurz might have been informed of the move prior to practice; his most memorable sequence involved getting blocked in quick succession by Kelenna Azubuike (while trying to exploit his size advantage in the low block) and Andris Biedrins.

** Ellis came dressed in an almost entirely monochromatic outfit (his sweatpants had white stripes on the outside), but unlike Johnny Cash, this Man in Black had nothing to say.

Ellis, moving briskly on crutches and wearing regular sneakers, walked past the assembled media outside the Warriors’ locker room (since it was still considered a practice day, the media was not allowed inside) and declined multiple requests to stop and take questions regarding his 30-game suspension in the wake of trying to cover up the August moped accident that shredded his left ankle.

[EDITED 10/27/08, 2:27 a.m. for clarity] A Warriors spokesman said his department has tried on numerous occasions to get Ellis to meet with the media — a situation that would afford him the opportunity to follow through on his September pledge to explain, after any potential disciplinary action had been handed down, what happened in his accident.

But Ellis still has not done so, and his explanation for the continued silence — delivered through the spokesman — is that the situation is not yet resolved. That leaves the distinct impression that Ellis and his agent, Jeff Fried, are still planning on filing an appeal to the Warriors’ unilateral ban.

** Marcus Williams went off for the second team in the Blue-White scrimmage, scoring a team-high 24 points for the Warriors’ reserves, 16 in the third quarter alone. But he also showed exactly why fellow rookie DeMarcus Nelson has jumped so far ahead of him on the Golden State depth chart: Despite getting explicit instructions from White team coach Sidney Moncrief to duck under opposing screens, Williams kept getting picked off with ease, leaving the man he was covering plenty of room to wreak havoc.

Nelson, on the other hand, consistently went over the top of screens with success, something the Warriors have been lacking at the point guard position for a long while, at least on a consistent basis.

** Corey Maggette did not participate in practice because of his strained right hamstring, and it’s becoming a more realistic possibility that he won’t be available for the Warriors’ regular-season opener against New Orleans on Wednesday. It’s likely that he won’t practice Monday and Tuesday and will test the leg at Wednesday’s shootaround to determine if he’s OK to play.

“It’s still not ready yet,” Maggette said. “We’re just waiting. . . . I’m hopeful every day. I’m trying to rest it and get the soreness out, be able to run and explode. If I can’t do that, there’s no point trying to get on the court.”

Contact: geofflepper@48minutes.net