48minutes.net

By Geoff Lepper
48minutes.net

There’s been a fair amount of statistical data collected that shows the Warriors have fared better in the short stints where they’ve played their two centers, Andris Biedrins and Ronny Turiaf, together on the floor.

That’s why, in Golden State’s 131-112 loss to Houston on Friday, Rockets center Yao Ming tried to break that pair up as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, Turiaf helped Yao push him to the six-foul limit.

Turiaf lasted only 22 minutes, and Biedrins 32, before they both fouled out. In the 17 minutes and 35 seconds Biedrins and Turiaf were able to team up, the Warriors outscored the Rockets, 39-34. In the remaining 30:25, Houston topped Golden State, 97-73.

Warriors coach Don Nelson made clear earlier in the week that he wanted to use Biedrins (who is not very effective when giving up a large weight difference) on Yao only as a last resort. So it was no shock that Turiaf earned his second start of the season and drew the unenviable duty of serving as Yao’s speed bump.

But the fact that Turiaf had five fouls in the first half — and was done for the night with 21:30 still to play — was not entirely attributable to the bulk of Yao. Some of it was Turiaf — who averages 5.7 fouls per 36 minutes over the course of his NBA career — not being able to contain himself.

Here’s a breakdown of Turiaf’s six infractions:

First quarter, 6:08 remaining: Turiaf defending on the right block behind Yao, who takes an entry pass from Rafer Alston. Corey Maggette and Stephen Jackson both come on a double/triple, but Turiaf it whistled for bodying up too hard.

First, 1:49: Alston loops around the backside of an inattentive Jamal Crawford to steal the ball, setting off a 3-on-2 break with Crawford and Turiaf as the defenders. Turiaf fouls Carl Landry on the trial layup try.

Second, 7:54: Von Wafer rebounds Crawford’s missed 3 from the left corner and dribbles into the frontcourt. With Crawford (who toppled backwards into the Warriors bench after the miss) late getting into the play, no one steps up to stop the ball and Wafer slices straight down the middle of the lane. Turiaf eaches in with a no-hope swipe at the ball and gets caught. Turiaf was pulled at that point, but came back in after a rest of only 2:15.

Second, 3:00: This was probably the one foul Turiaf could most legitimately complain about. Yao posted him on the left block, took the ball and just basically backed down Turiaf, who did a good job maintaining his vertical plane. Yao then made a half-turn over his left shoulder (paying no heed to Maggette’s attempted double-team), shoveled up a prayer when he felt contact and was rewarded with a cheap whistle at Turiaf’s expense.

Second, 0:51.7: Rafer Alston, having blown right by Jamal Crawford without hint of interference, missed an 8-foot running finger roll in the lane. After boxing out Yao, Turiaf went up late for the rebound, which Luis Scola already had collected, and needlessly drew foul No. 5

Third, 9:10: Yao gets Turiaf trapped on the left block, so Jackson comes down on the double team to deliver a foul and keep Turiaf in the game. But instead of keeping both arms straight, Turiaf — the league’s leading shot-blocker, on a per-minute basis — can’t help himself. He brings his left arm down and clearly whacks Yao on the wrist. Despite Jackson putting his arm up and attempting to claim responsibility, Turiaf’s evening is over.

The first foul was a judgment call on the referee’s part. The second foul was a good decision, making Landry prove that his early-season leap in FT% isn’t just a fluke. The fourth was a cheap call that Turiaf didn’t deserve.

But fouls No. 3, 5 and 6 . . . those are all fouls that represented mental errors Turiaf’s part, errors the Warriors couldn’t afford, not on a night when they needed Turiaf to play as close to 48 minutes as possible.

(11:22 am ADD — I should have mentioned this but forgot: You could make a pretty compelling case that Turiaf shouldn’t even have been on the floor for the second and third fouls. Yao came off the floor with 2:27 left in the first quarter and didn’t return until the 7:24 mark of the second, when Rick Adelman called him in to take advantage of the fact that Turiaf had drawn his third foul and was forced to the bench.)

Would the Warriors have won if Turiaf hadn’t picked up those extra fouls? Probably not. The fact that Houston shot 13-for-21 on 3-pointers had very little to do with the Turiaf/Yao battle and much more to do with Golden State’s inadequacies on the perimeter. But it would have given them a chance. Once Turiaf was through, they had none.

Notes
Anthony Randolph’s dunk and screaming staredown of Yao? Sick, just sick. Totally worth the technical. . . . I understand there were foul issues that partially forced Keith Smart’s hand, but it was truly hilarious to see that Brandan Wright was never going to get a shot until Nelson was tossed from the game. . . . Nelson made it clear earlier this week that he doesn’t think rookie bruiser Richard Hendrix is anywhere near being ready to contribute at the NBA level. But if you’re going to have Marco Belinelli pull yet another DNP-CD, wouldn’t you be better served by having Hendrix on hand in case, you know, both of your centers foul out trying to guard Yao? . . . The Warriors were 2-for-2 using a side screen-roll play on the left wing where Jackson — so often the ball-handler in these situations — instead would set the screen for Crawford. I expect to see more of that play in the future.

The Lineup Project
We’ve already discussed the Turiaf-Biedrins combination, but the numbers still jump out off the page:

Lineup              GS    OPP    Time
Large                 2        7        1:55
Turiaf-Biedrins     39      34      17:35
Medium              64      74      24:02
Small                 7        16       4:28

Without Monta. . .
The Warriors held steady, as I had this game in the “SAFE LOSS” category. Golden State is on pace for a 7-19 record on Dec. 17, when Monta Ellis’ suspension is slated to end.

Contact: geofflepper@48minutes.net

By Geoff Lepper
48minutes.net

OAKLAND — Warrior fans were treated to a tantalizing glimpse of the future Friday — at least until a couple of deficiencies dredged up from the past blotted out the landscape.

The sight of second-year player Brandan Wright and rookie Anthony Randolph holding down the power forward slot in the absence of veteran Al Harrington (sore back) was a welcome one to fans who want to see the team build around those two potential stars.

But a 55-41 rebounding deficit and 13 missed free throws — hallmarks of Warriors losses from throughout the 2000s — cost Golden State in a 109-104 loss to Memphis.

“That’s a game we could have won,” guard Kelenna Azubuike said. “We’ve just got to take care of the little things down the stretch. We’ve got to knock down free throws, play defense. You can’t win like that. It’s that simple.”

Fourteen offensive rebounds and 11 second-chance points in the first half served as a lifeline for the Grizzlies, who shot 37.5 percent from the floor but still were down just 50-48.

That half nevertheless featured the first significant playing time for Randolph, who made his NBA debut Monday in Memphis with a meaningless 87 seconds. He came on with 4:24 left in the first quarter in place of Wright. He missed his first shot, a 19-foot jumper, and was called on the next possession for a foul trying to push Hakim Warrick off the block.

“I was over excited,” Randolph said. “I’m not even sure how to describe it. It was more than excited. . . . I was probably having a little panic attack.”

Randolph calmed down enough to collect eight points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes. After struggling with his outside shot for much of the exhibition season, it was gratifying for Randolph to gather all four of his buckets between 17 and 21 feet from the basket.

“I thought he looked pretty good tonight,” Warriors coach Don Nelson said. “He had some nice moments, and he definitely has a presence to his game. . . . He got some consistent minutes and made his presence felt a little bit.”

Wright, making the first of what’s expected to be many starts as the Warriors hand him the keys at power forward, finished with only six points, two rebounds and one chipped tooth in 21 minutes.

Nevertheless, the framework was laid in place for a Wright/Randolph partnership.

“I think once me and Brandan grow as players, we can be great defensive players, because we’re both so long and athletic,” Randolph said. “We complement each other. You take one out, it’s not like you’re losing anything.”

** Nelson said he went small in the third quarter in response to the Grizzlies’ shorter front line of Warrick, Rudy Gay and Darrell Arthur. And while Memphis did outrebound Golden State 16-11 in the period, that was more a byproduct of the Warriors’ inability to create any offense outside the paint. They were 1-for-9 beyond 10 feet, shot 39.3 percent total and collected only two assists as a team.

** Nelson has said for weeks that he doesn’t want the Warriors to take as many 3-pointers as they did last season. Now we see why. With Stephen Jackson’s 0-for-6, Golden State wound up going 2-for-12 from distance. That drops the Warriors’ season totals to 34-for-119 (28.6 percent), putting them squarely in the bottom third of the league.

** So much for the idea that Warriors rookie Richard Hendrix might provide some beef to bang with Memphis’ Marc Gasol: Nelson said that Hendrix will be making the Patrick O’Bryant Memorial Pilgrimage to Bakersfield, and soon.

“I don’t think that he’s ready yet, and I’m going to put him in the D-League, probably for most of the year,” Nelson said. “I think that would be good for him, and then we’ll take a look at him. I don’t see that he’s going to be NBA-ready for quite a while.

** Corey Maggette is still hoping to play Sunday in Sacramento, but it sounds like Nelson would rather err on the side of caution after letting him back into the game at Memphis on Monday with negative results.

“I think what I learned from the game in Memphis was that if he’s suffering in the first half, it’s better for me not to play him,” Nelson said. “Because first of all, he doesn’t play worth a shit when he’s trying to play hurt. And then it probably keeps him out an extra game afterwards, so it’s a lose-lose. So if he’s tender in those areas at halftime, and he wants to give it a go, I’m going to say no, let’s wait. I think that’s better for him and better for us.”

** As posited in this space earlier Friday, C.J. Watson did indeed start, although it was such a late change that rookie DeMarcus Nelson, who started the Warriors’ first five games at the point, was announced on the main scoreboard with the other four starters.

Watson finished with eight assists, eight rebounds and no turnovers, but shot 1-for-7 from the floor and had three of the Warriors’ six misses from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.

** Larry Riley, the former assistant coach who was booted upstairs Thursday to replace Pete D’Alessandro as assistant general manager, will miss the creature comforts of traveling with the team in its chartered Northwestern jet. All except for one, that is:

“I won’t miss those doggone card games with Nellie,” Riley said. “He’s killing me. He’s just killing me. So that’s something I can give up.”

Said Nelson, a bit wistfully: “I don’t know who I can find to be that bad at gin rummy.”

Contact: geofflepper@48minutes.net

The changes for the Warriors aren’t just limited to the front office.

Brandan Wright will start this evening at power forward, replacing veteran Al Harrington, who was set to see a doctor Friday afternoon for an MRI on his sore lower back, which he said has been hurting him since training camp.

And Kelenna Azubuike will open on the wing in place of Corey Maggette, who still holds out some hope that he might be able to go Sunday in Sacramento. Maggette’s right hamstring, which he originally hurt in China, is now healed. The left one, which he strained in Memphis last week, is still questionable.

(As a funny aside, Maggette can practically qualify as an M.D., at least in hamstrings, after injuring them twice last season and twice more this season. “I’ve learned how to read my own MRIs,” Maggette said. “The doctors come in, and I say, ‘Those white lines (micro-tears in the muscle fiber) don’t look good.’”)

Harrington said he tried to keep his own injury quiet early on so it wouldn’t jeopardize any potential trade opportunities, but “since the trip to Toronto (Oct. 31), it’s been killing me.”

It also wouldn’t shock me to see C.J. Watson, who played 42 minutes in the 111-101 win over Denver on Wednesday and provided 14 points, five rebounds and four assists, replace DeMarcus Nelson in the starting lineup, although coach Don Nelson has declined to discuss any potential changes there.

Don Nelson did allow that guard Marcus Williams has “made weight” and will suit up, so the inactive list looks like it will be Maggette, Harrington and mostly likely either Richard Hendrix or Anthony Morrow.

After the 7-1, 265-pound Marc Gasol just toyed with the Warriors in the paint on Monday, this seems like the right time to finally deploy Hendrix. After all, if you’re going to have a (team-high) 255-pound plodder on a high-tempo team and you don’t use him in this situation, then why on Earth is he here?

– Geoff

By Geoff Lepper
48minutes.net

OAKLAND — While Baron Davis and his Clippers were getting waxed from the get-go by the Lakers on Wednesday, the Warriors really could have used his expertise in the final moments at Oracle Arena.

Tied with 1:56 to go, the Warriors were outscored 7-2 the rest of the way.

Golden State missed its last five shots, had a critical possession go awry when it couldn’t complete a simple inbounds pass and watched the New Orleans Hornets take a 108-103 victory to begin the 2008-09 2007-08 season.

A year ago, the Warriors’ plan would have been simple: Put the ball in BD’s hands and get the hell out of the way. Golden State went 9-2 in games decided by three points or less last season using that M.O.

This time . . . not so much.

“We went where we got decent looks. We didn’t make them,” Warriors coach Don Nelson said. “Last year, Baron made all of them. That doesn’t happen all the time, either. . . . I thought we just had one of those years last year where we made all of them. I think we won six or seven games with game-winners and probably only missed one.”

The Warriors didn’t get that chance Wednesday. Down 104-103 with 14.2 seconds left, a clearly fatigued Stephen Jackson tried to inbound the ball to Corey Maggette, only to have it bounce out of bounds, allowing the Hornets to build their lead to three points. Al Harrington up-faked Chris Paul out of the way to get an open look at a 3-pointer, but it missed. And that was the end of the Warriors’ chances.

** So much for the deeper, more talented Warriors bench. Jackson played all 48 minutes — guarding Paul, then Tyson Chandler and everyone in between — Kelenna Azubuike was on for 43, and Harrington for 42. The Warriors only used two reserves for any length of time. Brandan Wright, the second-year forward who allegedly had earned a place in Nelson’s rotation, was nowhere to be found, along with Anthony Randolph, Marcus Williams and Marco Belinelli.

“I told the subs that I’m not going to be able to play these guys this many minutes on this next road trip or for long periods of time, so we’re going to use our bench more as we move on,” Nelson said. “I chose really just to play six or seven guys most of the minutes tonight. I thought we needed to do that to have a chance to win this game.

“(Jackson) missed a few assignments because I think of fatigue, and it was just one of those things I thought I’d go with him the whole way. I thought about resting him for a few minutes here and there, but I didn’t want to do that tonight. I wanted to win this game for the fans.”

** The screen-and-roll remains better named hit-and-miss, something Nelson knows must change if the Warriors are to stave off mediocrity: “We just don’t run the screen-and-roll as well as we did when Baron was here. And that was a huge weapon for us. We’re going to have to have it before too long into the season, but I didn’t have enough confidence to run very many of them tonight, and until we get a little better.”

** The DeMarcus Nelson Era got off to a rough start. With Jackson shadowing Paul, Nelson had to guard Peja Stojakovic, who straight-up abused his ridiculous height advantage to score six of the Hornets’ 10 points in the opening 2 1/2 minutes.

** Don Nelson commented a couple of times recently about his concern for his team-wide ball-handling and passing abilities, pointing to the Warriors’ 20.7 turnovers-per-game average in the preseason (second-worst in the league). Wednesday, they did a good job keeping hold of the ball, limiting themselves to 13 turnovers even though Jackson played the point for 33 minutes.

** Jackson went 5-for-12 on 3-pointers, but some of his misses were straight out of the Davis playbook, such as the pull-up 3-point air ball with 18 seconds left on the shot clock after the Warriors had opened an 11-point lead in the second quarter.

** Monta Ellis was on the inactive list with Anthony Morrow and Richard Hendrix. According to a team spokesman, after three games on the IL, the Warriors can transfer Ellis to the suspended list for the remainder of his 30-game ban. That means Golden State can sign an extra player and keep them until Dec. 15.

Somewhere, Rob Kurz’s phone is ringing.

Contact: geofflepper@48minutes.net

By Geoff Lepper
48minutes.net

OAKLAND — Turns out there was a reason forward Corey Maggette didn’t play up to par Tuesday in the Warriors’ 126-106 win over Lietuvos Rytas.

Maggette suffered a strained right hamstring during Golden State’s trip to China and it’s bothering him enough that the coaching staff told him Wednesday to take a couple days off to try to get it straightened out.

And Maggette’s not the only Warrior heading to the doctor’s office. C.J. Watson also sat out practice on Wednesday with a sprained right elbow, courtesy of a swan dive over an empty row of baseline seats and onto a concrete walkway after getting bumped while scoring a layup on Tuesday.

Both players said they would be ready for the Oct. 29 regular-season opener against New Orleans, although each was scheduled to undergo an MRI exam Wednesday afternoon to make sure there was no serious damage. Results were not expected until Thursday.

Maggette said he incurred the injury during the Warriors’ second game in China when he dove after a loose ball. Wednesday, he did cardio work on an elliptical trainer, then shot free throws and assorted jumpers for so long that he was the last Warrior off the practice court. But he avoided any cutting or contact at the direction of the training staff. He is expected to sit out tomorrow and the team is scheduled for an off day Friday.

“I was a little slower than usual yesterday,” Maggette said. “I don’t think I was at my full strength. Towards the second half, I kind of felt it more.”

Maggette missed a total of six games last season — four in November and two in April — because a strain in the same hamstring, but said those problems were located in a different spot, lower in the muscle than this injury. He also sat out a handful of games due to hamstring problems in 2005-06 and 2003-04

“Hamstrings are probably the trickiest injuries, because the only way they get healthy is by rest and ice and stim,” Maggette said. “All I can do is just be patient about it and try to get ready for Wednesday.”

Watson was hurt after he tried to break his fall with his right hand and then landed on his right arm.

“I felt it pop a little bit when I fell, but I just tried to play through it,” said Watson, who missed three of four shots after the injury. “I think the adrenaline helped me go through the game, so that’s why I didn’t feel a lot of the pain until this morning.”

NOTES: Backup point guard Marcus Williams just can’t catch a break. He built upon Monday’s strong practice with another solid performance Wednesday, only to get poked in the eye by a defender just before the end of the scrimmage. He is not expected to miss any time. . . . Center Andris Biedrins sat out the latter portion of the scrimmage suffering from dizziness after cracking heads with rookie Richard Hendrix. “I got two holes in my head, from Hendrix’s teeth,” said Biedrins, who was not scheduled to see a doctor.

Contact: geofflepper@48minutes.net