By Geoff Lepper
48minutes.net

If the Warriors were hoping that Tuesday’s return of Stephen Jackson would be the end of the now-ex-Captain Jack saga, they were sorely disappointed.

Just like “The Pirates of the Caribbean” movie series, there are still plenty of sequels that lie in wait for Golden State.

Jackson reported back to the team after a two-game suspension and left no doubt with his quotes that the status is still very much quo: He wants to be dealt, he wants to be dealt now, and he won’t be doing anything above and beyond fulfilling the bare minimums required by his contract.

That whole listening to Don Nelson thing once the game is over? Yeah, you can forget about that. Oh, and your captaincy? Thanks but no thanks.

Scott Ostler said in today’s San Francisco Chronicle that Jackson’s complaining had drastically decreased his trade value, but he already had no trade value — that evaporated the moment he was handed the $27.8 million extension.

Since that deal makes him prohibitively expensive for contending teams that would have been calling after his services, Jackson has been trying to apply pressure on the other end. He wants to make the Warriors so uncomfortable that they feel like they have to deal him, even if it is for a fraction of his worth — i.e., a player of far lesser skill with a similarly outsized contract.

Read the rest of this entry…

So, there’s an aside at the end of Mitch Lawrence’s column in the New York Daily News today that says “Earl Watson wants out of Oklahoma City.”

First reaction: Who doesn’t?

But seriously: Earl, your team took Russell Westbrook with the fourth overall pick in this summer’s draft. Now, even though he’s more of a combo guard than a straight point, and even though Darren Collison ran UCLA’s offense instead of Westbrook . . . They took him fourth! Fourth! They’re a young team that is — unlike the Warriors — is choosing to give the kids’ experience, regardless of the outcome. What did you think was going to happen?

If you didn’t want to play behind him, you should have had your agent tell Sam Presti to deal you instead of Luke Ridnour.

End of rant. Beginning of picks:

Warriors (2-4) at Kings (2-4), 6:05 p.m.
Pick: Kings -3.5
The death match for 11th place in the Western Conference is SO on.

Raptors (3-2) at Bobcats (2-3), 10:05 a.m.
Pick: Raptors -3.5
Larry Brown’s not-so-merry band continues to befuddle me when it comes to this exercise.

Jazz (5-0) at Knicks (3-2), 12:05 p.m.
Pick: Knicks +4
This could be a nice milestone in the Knicks’ rebirth under Mike D’Antoni, even if Utah is missing Deron Williams.

Mavericks (2-3) at Clippers (0-6), 12:35 p.m.
Pick: Mavericks -4
I was going to say, “well, at least the Clips have their health going for them.” And then Tim Thomas had to go and screw up even that little slice of good news.

Celtics (5-1) at Pistons (4-1), 3:05 p.m.
Pick: Celtics +1.5
Part of me wants to stay home and watch this game, instead of driving to Sac.

Hawks (4-0) at Thunder (1-4), 4:05 p.m.
Pick: Hawks -4.5
Can Atlanta continue without Josh Smith in the lineup?

Grizzlies (3-3) at Nuggets (2-3), 5:05 p.m.
Pick: Denver -8.5
I’m hoping the Warriors’ power as a transitive property — GSW beats Denver, Memphis beats GSW, ergo Memphis beats Denver — has been drained.

Rockets (4-2) at Lakers (4-0), 6:35 p.m.
Pick: Rockets +7.5
Houston’s two losses this season have come by a total of six points. If the oddsmakers are going to cover that whole total, how I can I pass up such hospitality?

Yesterday: 3-2-1
Season record: 39-44-1

– Geoff