warrior woes

 

photo: AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn

it's been a season that's feeling much like last year.  hovering in and around 500.  clutched games squandered except for last night.  i watched thursday's heartbreaker and was generally happy with the effort.  podz has been getting a lot of hate from dub nation but its really looking like he has been turning it around.  less turnovers and better decision-making on the court.  jimmy butler has looked more aggressive as steph's production has been lower. de'anthony melton has looked meh and after the folks were saying he is carefully and doesn't turnover the much.  he looked like he was failing and I was shaking my head as he was in the final minutes. but rook will richard has looked great, with a great attitude coming off the bench after a several DNPs. i will say our b team is better than your's.  i know kerr continues to audition the starting line-up and this is probably why we have been inconsistent. i'm hoping something clicks soon because we NEED some continuity. 

waaaaarrrrriors

 

photo: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images

i know, i know it's way too early to get excited but i can't help it. the boys are 2-0, with probably the most complete team in recent years. starting five: steph, dray, jimmy, kuminga, and podz. a melding of experience and talented, athletic youth. frands, the bench is strong. big al (pictured above), gp2, buddy, gui, moody (who might start if healthy), and welcome back de'anthony melton. just sayin' b team is going strong in practice. kerr will manage minutes for his vets, with big al sitting out back-to-backs and won't be playing tonight against the blazers. it's important to stay healthy with the hoopla of this being steph's twilight season(s) and kerr's hope to bring another championship to the bay before his contract is up next year. it would be a fairytale ending to someone who was part of the last dance. there is still SO much of the season to play.  we've barely dented it, but it's hard not to dream with steph's magic.

finally...a play-in win

okay, i had to give myself time to recover from tuesday's play-in game versus the grizzlies. i've included the final 5 minutes of the game above to illustrate my need for rest.  it was torturous BUT we got that dub. playoff jimmy is a real thing and refs still hate on the warriors.  so in 48 hours time we will be playing the first playoff game of 2025 against the rockets. i'm feeling apprehensive, but confident that we can defeat the rockets IF we manage our turnovers AND play the championship defense that I know we can. we have a great bench of rookies and vets.  let's get it. 

steph vs sabrina

 

honestly the past decade has really come down to the three-point contest at nba all star week to provide the excitement. i can't even watch the slam dunk contest anymore. when the playful challenge sabrina ionescu threw out to steph curry after setting the all-time 3-points made record in a contest at 37 point out of 40 last summer became a thing, it was all anyone was talking about leading up to all star week. dame took the actual 3-pt contest with a total of 26 points. steph vs sabrina was saturday night's marquee event with arguably the greatest shooter vs the ny liberty's sharp shooter. sabrina's been a fan of steph and even got a high five from him as a ten-year old at roaracle. steph followed her career from her days as an oregon duck to her current spot on the ny liberty. jokingly steph and podz had a sideline pop quiz on all time scorer in a 3-pt contest.

leading up to the contest there was a lot a talk about how sabrina would shoot at a wnba 3-pt line and use a wnba ball. she nixed the wnba line and shot from the nba 3-pt line and scored 26, tying dame's winning score. steph prevailed in the clutch hitting his final money balls scoring 29 pts. it was lovely to see many nba stars rooting for sabrina, including steph's teammate klay thompson. the contest harkened back to the 1973 battle of the sexes with billie jean king defeating bobby riggs. steph is no riggs, and a kind competitor. it's interesting to hear a lot of fodder about how sabrina shot with a smaller ball and then there was kenny smith controversial thought sabrina should have shot from the wnba line. so much talk and already thoughts of if this unique competition will return. steph and sabrina are decidedly in, as next year's all star game will be in san francisco. the bay is home to both ballers. here's hoping for a team format with klay joining steph and caitlin clark joining sabrina. 

warriors resurgence?

 

photo: Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group

a week ago i wrote about my questions about my warriors, but after watching five consecutive games i'm believing again. we narrowly won against the nets and the blazers. then, i was ready to stomach a HUGE game versus the nba leading celtics, but the dubs pushed the former finals rival into overtime and won. what. a. game! i was yelling into the wee hours of the morning watching from brooklyn. friday we welcomed back jordan poole and his new team, the wizards. we won that game 129-118. 

last night, it was the blazers again but at chase. the young team came out blazing and we were looking slow out the gate after a back-to-back. we turned it around in the second quarter behind a vintage showing from the splash brothers, steph curry and klay thompson. however, across my viewing over the last week, the rookies - podz (brandin podzemski) and baby t (trayce jackson-davis) have impressed me the most. a friend made an astute comparison of podz to donte divincenzo for their similar energy and ability to be everywhere. podz has become a key offensive foul drawer too. then, there's my fav new rookie baby t, a nickname klay affectionately gave him since he has another trayce (his brother) who has top standing. baby t is a monster rebounder and provides the athleticism to go hard to the hoop. he has a keen basketball iq already in his first year. jk (jonathan kuminga) has excelled at knowing where to insert himself and earned his starting line-up spot. 

as we look ahead to tomorrow's other big game against the nuggets, can we take the recipe of this vintage and new blood roster to higher heights (pun intended as we head to denver)? andrew wiggins has been out for the past two games due to illness, but looked good off the bench in the games i did see him in. draymond is still serving out his indefinite suspension. i'm curious how his return will effect this winning formula. the bench performance has been giving me we believe vibes. we are above 500 and on a 5gamewin streak, but the nuggets are another big test. 

warriors wonder

 

i don't know what to think about the warriors this year, but i do know steph is having an amazing season so far.  he made his 3,500 three-pointer last night and i missed it.  sadly, any nationally broadcasted game i've caught they have lost.  klay has been klay.  inconsistent, but warming up his splashes last night. then, there's draymond who is on an indefinite suspension. it's hard to win without the heart and soul of the team off for most of the season so far.  wiggins seems off and don't know what it is. he was so fab in the playoffs last year after his considerable absence.  so i am left to wonder.  there is plenty of ball left this season, but the outlook is murky.  

warriors woes?

 

Image: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

we haven't been able to win a road game and all the pundits are calling this the last dance. bandwagon fans have moved away but the stalwarts are giving their two cents on klay's slump and jordan poole's under performance early in the season. james wiseman to the g league? i haven't been able to see many games live but did stay up to watch the suns and knicks games. the suns match up had me questioning the dubs heart (steph is excluded here since he is putting up mvp stats). the knicks game last night gave me the glimmer of potential. more even production from the core curry, thompson and wiggs. as i've been telling my core dubs viewing crew, it's still early, but yes it'd be nice to get our first road win of the season in houston.

the last dance

note: best read listening to the spotify playlist for max 90's vibes. 

so if you haven't heard of the last dance, you truly live under a rock or really dislike sports. with the absence of live sports during rona times, folks have been relishing in past recorded sporting events. i'm not big on recorded sports and thrive on the live nature of a sporting event if i can't be there in person. i stumbled on a re-air of this year's super bowl and no thank you. i don't need to relive that heartbreak. when my not-so-sporty friend recommended the last dance i dove in, largely because it was a docu-series and fav coach steve kerr would be getting a segment. i love that kerr sports his dubs gear prominently during his segments. if you needed more reason to love a guy that took a punch from michael jordan and didn't back down, this reporter's story will undoubtedly have you lauding kerr as the kindest dude.

in the 90's, i was a sad warriors fans. one shining moment was when chris mullin was part of the dream team, but largely it was disappointment from talented players that wouldn't get their true due: tim hardaway, chris webber and latrell sprewell. we didn't really get a glimmer of hope until the late aughts with the we believe team. i still obviously watched the nba finals in that decade. it was crazy how many nostalgic feels i had for players who lost to the bulls: isiah thomas (does another remember the mary thomas movie?), charles barkley, john stockton, mailman karl malone and reggie miller. also, i forgot how physical it was in those early 90's and the pistons were no joke. 

i will probably get a lot of beef for making this comparison, adding loose comparison.  there's no doubt that bulls are the all-time greatest team, but the recent kerr-helmed warriors aren't too shabby. they did take away the all-time regular season wins record from the bulls, but yes they didn't get that ring in 2016. draymond!!! draymond is the dennis rodman, with the fire and basketball iq. dray has more heart for the team than rodman did, but they were both the key defensive piece on their championship squad. next loose comparison, klay thompson is scottie pippen, taking a backseat to the star, however integral to the core efficiency of the group contributing with clutch shooting and defense. quiet and stoic. trade rumors. big difference is that klay got paid and scottie didn't get his due monetarily.  ok truly, no comparison for jordan, but if we look at the star of the team that'd be steph curry although he is like a million times nicer and less salty than michael. then, turn to compare to kevin durant and that explosive, nike toting athlete does have a stronger thread, but he wasn't franchise player like michael was and steph is. the key to a comparison is the link that is steve kerr, who was part of both teams and translated that triangle offense to the warriors. 5 back-to-back appearances in the nba finals with 3 championships, albeit not a 3-peat. draymond!!!!! this season was a wash, but perhaps warriors will return stronger than ever with th core intact - steph, klay and dray. missing my sixth man, andre iguodala. ido feel he would come back if the right dominos fell into place. until the nba season resumes, i keep believin'.

welcome kd!

when rumors floated near post-season about kevin durant's possibility of join golden state, i quickly dismissed them. durant's loyalty to okc seemed inevitable, so when news broke this afternoon that he was signing with the warriors. we say goodbye to bogut and barnes to welcome kd.

welcome back steph!

steph shook off the cobwebs and it took him a bit to get his rhythm. boy did he find it in the 4th and into the overtime. needless to say he is back and dub nation is happy for that. 

73 + 400

it was the wee hours of night when the dubs broke the record for most wins in a regular season and nearly passed out on my couch i celebrated a coast away. congrats to the dubs and steph for shooting 401 threes this regular season. insane!

onto the playoffs for the ultimate goal. first up the houston rockets. 

dubs open with a dub

flipping between the world series (so sad the mets dropped game 1) and the warriors season opener. i didn't stay up for either, but happy to wake up to some delightful chef curry highlights. i did watch all of the 24pt first quarter and marveled at how steph hasn't skipped a beat in the off season and his busy tour schedule with under armor. 

273+

congrats to steph for breaking the nba record 3-pointers made in a season season. he is up to 276 with three games left to play in the season. splash, splash, splash!

west coast fan

it's been late nights keeping up with my dubs. tuesday night it was the clippers and last night was the nail bitter against the suns. totally worth seeing the curry salsa live.



i also witness the chirs paul's knees breaking on account of the sweet skillz of chef curry.

congrats steph!

Photo by: LA Times

13 threes in a row to close out the win. sorry steph for no being in town while you lit it up in my backyard. see you back at barclay in march. 

we believe redux

i still remember the energy from the city by the bay when the warriors upset the #1 ranked mavericks in the 2007 nba playoffs. it was glorious, so when stephen curry dropped 30 last night to tie up the series against the denver nuggets i couldn't help but believe again. sure, i had my doubts with that heartbreaking opening lost after steph curry tied it with a clutch 3 only to have it followed up with andre miller laying up for the game winner with only 1.3 ticks left. shar was sad. very sad, but steph brought the magic last night taking a nice road win. friday night. oracle arena. we believe.



shar loves that pharcyde is name dropped multiple times in this espn highlight reel.