Final Boxscore  |  Open Thread (675+ Comments)

Back and forth, back and forth this game went. The Golden State Warriors hung in there and kept the Chicago Bulls close the entire game. It never got far enough away from the Warriors, but in the end they just didn't have enough stops to pull out a win.

Shorthanded Lineup
Kelenna Azubuike was injured tonight so someone else had to step up to replace his production. Anthony Morrow and CJ Watson would get more minutes as would Marco Belinelli and Marcus Williams. Consider the Warriors going from Baron and Monta last year to CJ and Morrow this year and yet they're hanging tough in games and keeping it interesting. It's a testament to those guys' talents, Nellie's coaching ability and schemes, and the improved play of the 3 veterans, ^^^^, Corey Maggette, and Stephen Jackson.

Hit the jump for thoughts on the game...

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Originally posted: Nov 21, 2008 12:00 PM PST

Remember last year when the Bulls came to Oakland? Noooo? Oh you'll love the video then.

Warriors (W-L): 5-6
Bulls (W-L): 5-7
Time: 7:30 PM PST
TV: CSN
Radio: KNBR 680

So when can we get Jamal Crawford in uniform? The big news of the day of course is the Al Harrington for Jamal Crawford swap. I'm not quite sure how this benefits the Knicks other than the mantra, "Never trade big for small". Hopefully Al resurrects his game out in NY and Crawford finds Nellie's offense just as conducive and perhaps more to his scoring abilities. All in all, this should inject some new life into the team.

The Chicago Bulls (Blog-a Bull) just got waxed by the Portland Trailblazers (Blazers Edge) 116-74. Yup, that's not a typo, that's a 42 point difference. What can we expect from the Bulls tonight? Well as long as they start Aaron Gray and Larry Hughes again, this should be an easy win. But I doubt it. Rarely do decent NBA teams play so poorly on consecutive nights. We'll see what kind of team the Bulls are tomorrow. Will they come out angry and aggressive or will they play like they want this road trip to be over? I'd say the Dubs come out strong and lead the entire way but it'll be close the entire way.

It's Filipino night at the arena tomorrow and Tony.psd will be reppin' his roots. He's got his entire family there - brothers, sisters, parents, uncles, aunties, cousins, 2nd cousins, 3rd cousins, you name it. Look for Tony and say whassup.

Predictions

• Warriors by 8
• ^^^^ starts another double double streak
• Jax drops 30
• Brandan Wright DNP-CD. ^^^^ isn't going to get into foul trouble.

Hit the jump for things to watch for.

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Okay bad story title, but if you haven't had enough of news about Anthony Morrow, I've got you covered. He's the latest buzz around Warrior circles so get your fill of Morrow news.

What the Morrow will bring

The most amazing part about Anthony Morrow’s performance Saturday was that it wasn’t that amazing. Sounds like a contradiction, right?

How Morrow could change the Warriors assuming that wasn't a fluke 37 points

It happened. In the NBA. With NBA players trying to guard him, well, except for the times Baron decided not to. Morrow did this in summer league. He occasionally does this in practice.

HE CAN SHOOT THE BALL.

The lost Morrow tapes? Nah but he had confidence before training camps

Seems like the perfect time to go to the tape recorder and transcribe that Anthony Morrow interview from back in training camp.

And a recap of the Warriors-Clips from the blog Clips Nation, Golden State 121 - Clippers 103

One thing is certain. Fringe players throughout the NBA are, as we speak, checking the schedule and circling the dates against the Clippers. Because it's their best chance to score a career high, and probably go for 30.

Final Boxscore  |  Open Thread (800+ comments!)

This was a crazy up and down game, a roller coaster ride of a game. With the Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves being two young teams, that's to be expected but I might need some Rolaids if this continues the entire season. Guess who the Rolaids man was tonight? The veteran, Stephen Jackson.

In the beginning of the first quarter the Timberwolves looked like the dominant team only to have the lackluster Warriors turn it around, show some life and tie the game at the end of 1. Then at the start of the 3rd quarter  the Warriors looked like the dominant team only to have the Timberwolves come back and take the lead. They held that lead all the way until about 4 minutes left in the game. All of a sudden, the Twolves couldn't hit a shot! The starters were back in and Nellie made the proper adjustments on defense to prevent Al Jefferson from continuing his dominance in the paint. The Warriors closed the 4th with a 9-0 run to send the game into OT.

After a thrilling win, I feel like being optimistic again, but then I remember that it took a big comeback and overtime to overcome one of the worst teams in the league. Winning is fun, but let's not get carried away. The Warriors still have some major flaws.

J-U-M-P

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And you thought it couldn't get worse than it is right now

Warriors (W-L): 2-5
Twolves (W-L): 1-5
Time: 7:30 PM PST
TV: CSN+
Radio: KNBR 680

If the Warriors can't beat the Twolves, turn the SNES off, take the cartridge out, blow on it, and stick it back in. Maybe it'll work better the next time.

Oh how much fun it is to be a Warrior fan. Makes you wish that good 'ol Dun Dun was back here just so we could have some more Funleavy Foto Fun to pass the next 13 years until we make the playoffs.

Two of the NBA's worst teams square off and it's going to be a great game to watch if you're a fan of bad basketball. Right now, the kiddies just aren't ready to play big minutes. Unfortunately, with Monta playing Evil Knievel, Harrington having some "injury", and Maggette taking his usual 10-12 games off, the kids are forced to play in larger roles than what they're capable of handling. And so we're left with ugly basketball. The kids will make a nice play every now and then but more often than not they'll make a mistake by missing a defensive assignment, turning the ball over, or just being in the wrong spot on offense. It's the best way to learn but not the best basketball to watch. I don't mind seeing 1 young guy play, but playing 4 non-NBA caliber players at once is quite painful. There's really no other option right now unless Mullin trades for Duncan, does a 3 way for Gerald Wallace, swings a deal for AI, or goes and gets JRich or Boom Dizzle. Wait, I have the perfect trade, Wright and Randolph for Kobe. But if they ask for Marco, it's too much.

FJ's Bitter Predictions

• Grizzlies by 7
• Al Jefferson vs Andris Biedrins = Battle for empty numbers
• Don Nelson and a Monta Ellis suspension: Where Rob Kurz happens.
• Now we get to see what happened behind closed doors at Laker practices. It's what you've been waiting for: Ronny Turiaf vs Mark Madsen. Not in basketball, I'm talking about dancing. I don't really know if they played together on the Lakers, I just imagine these two having a dance off. Oh the hilarity. My money is on the Frenchman.
  
• Kelenna A-za-BOOOOO-ke dunks on somebody because he can.
  
• I turn the tv off after halftime because my eyes turn backwards and refuse to watch anymore. Apologies if the recap only covers the first 24 minutes. 

Be sure to check out fellow SB Nation hoops blog, Canis Hoopus, for all your Twolves related inquiries. Their season can be summed up in the title of one of the posts there, "Pathetic". Also go see what birthday present Craig Smith got from CH.

Hit the jump for more...

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Final Boxscore | Open Thread (584 Comments)

Welcome to the Bay!

The Golden State Warriors went toe to toe with the 2nd best team in the Western Conference and arguably 3rd best team in the league and nearly came away with a win. They matched the Hornets blow for blow all the way down to the wire and started off this season with a lot of excitement. Some questions were answered about whether or not this team would be competitive but there are lots of open questions about leadership, rotation, and big shot capability. Despite the loss, the Warriors showed they could hang with the elite teams - definitely encouraging for the fans.

The Warriors staged a nice comeback after the game seemed to be slipping away. After being down 6 with 5 minutes to go, with some nice defensive plays and key shots, they were able to grab the lead with 28 seconds left. But alas, the Hornets were just too good. Well, Chris Paul was just too good as he drove by Jax for the layup to take the lead for good.

Hit the jump for some more thoughts on the game...

Update: Also check out SB Nation's New Orleans Hornets blog , At The Hive for their recap.

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It's gotta start somewhere right?

Warriors (W-L): 0 - 0
Hornets (W-L): 0 - 0
Time: 7:30 PM PST
TV: CSN Bay Area
Radio: KNBR 680

Finally! Game day is here. After watching other teams playing in the posteason, going through a wild ride of an offseason, trying to get excited about summer league, and covering the preseason games, the Golden State Warriors' 2008-2009 season kicks off tonight! Despite all of my pessimism towards the team's chances of success, I'm excited for another season of hoops. And I'm especially excited for GSOM Night 5 tonight. I hope to see lots of you around, wearing the Tony.psd designed Nellie shirts - this one's an instant classic.

As far as the game, hit the jump for some thoughts and predictions...

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