PROSPECT PERFORMANCES - 02/18/09 & 02/19/09

02/18/09

Eric Maynor: VCU 78, Delaware 67
40 min, 10-20 fg, 4-6 3pt, 6-8 ft, 0 off, 2 reb, 10 ast, 1 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 2 pf, 30 pts

Nick Calathes: Florida 83, Alabama 74
33 min, 7-12 fg, 4-7 3pt, 4-5 ft, 0 off, 3 reb, 6 ast, 4 to, 5 stl, 0 blk, 2 pf, 22 pts

JaMychal Green: Florida 83, Alabama 74
32 min, 5-12 fg, 0-0 3pt, 2-6 ft, 8 off, 15 reb, 2 ast, 0 to, 0 stl, 2 blk, 2 pf, 12 pts

Cole Aldrich: Kansas 72, Iowa St. 55
27 min, 9-12 fg, 0-0 3pt, 4-4 ft, 2 off, 11 reb, 0 ast, 5 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 2 pf, 22 pts

Tyreke Evans: Memphis 90, SMU 47
27 min, 4-10 fg, 0-3 3pt, 5-5 ft, 0 off, 3 reb, 5 ast, 3 to, 1 stl, 3 blk, 2 pf, 13 pts

Tyler Smith: Mississippi 81, Tennessee 65
35 min, 6-11 fg, 1-3 3pt, 3-5 ft, 1 off, 4 reb, 3 ast, 3 to, 0 stl, 0 blk, 3 pf, 16 pts

Ty Lawson: North Carolina 89, N.C. State 80
35 min, 7-9 fg, 1-2 3pt, 2-2 ft, 0 off, 2 reb, 9 ast, 1 to, 2 stl, 0 blk, 2 pf, 17 pts

Tyler Hansbrough: North Carolina 89, N.C. State 80
33 min, 10-15 fg, 0-1 3pt, 7-7 ft, 1 off, 7 reb, 4 ast, 1 to, 2 stl, 0 blk, 2 pf, 27 pts

Wayne Ellington: North Carolina 89, N.C. State 80
36 min, 7-13 fg, 1-3 3pt, 1-1 ft, 2 off, 6 reb, 0 ast, 1 to, 1 stl, 0 blk, 0 pf, 16 pts

B.J. Mullens: Northwestern 72, Ohio St. 69
29 min, 3-6 fg, 0-0 3pt, 5-6 ft, 5 off, 11 reb, 0 ast, 2 to, 2 stl, 2 blk, 1 pf, 11 pts

Evan Turner: Northwestern 72, Ohio St. 69
37 min, 5-9 fg, 0-1 3pt, 4-7 ft, 2 off, 5 reb, 6 ast, 8 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 3 pf, 14 pts

Greg Monroe: Georgetown 65, South Florida 40
27 min, 4-7 fg, 0-0 3pt, 4-4 ft, 0 off, 10 reb, 2 ast, 5 to, 3 stl, 0 blk, 3 pf, 12 pts

DeJuan Summers: Georgetown 65, South Florida 40
25 min, 3-6 fg, 2-4 3pt, 0-0 ft, 0 off, 3 reb, 3 ast, 0 to, 3 stl, 0 blk, 2 pf, 8 pts

Jeff Teague: Wake Forest 87, Georgia Tech 69
25 min, 5-8 fg, 2-3 3pt, 3-4 ft, 0 off, 1 reb, 3 ast, 5 to, 4 stl, 0 blk, 2 pf, 15 pts

Al-Farouq Aminu: Wake Forest 87, Georgia Tech 69
29 min, 4-9 fg, 0-1 3pt, 6-9 ft, 1 off, 6 reb, 2 ast, 1 to, 0 stl, 0 blk, 1 pf, 14 pts

Gani Lawal: Wake Forest 87, Georgia Tech 69
29 min, 6-11 fg, 0-0 3pt, 1-2 ft, 4 off, 8 reb, 0 ast, 2 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 3 pf, 13 pts

Luke Harangody: West Virginia 79, Notre Dame 68
38 min, 10-20 fg, 0-2 3pt, 6-10 ft, 2 off, 13 reb, 2 ast, 2 to, 0 stl, 2 blk, 2 pf, 26 pts

Da'Sean Butler: West Virginia 79, Notre Dame 68
40 min, 5-17 fg, 2-10 3pt, 7-8 ft, 1 off, 4 reb, 4 ast, 1 to, 2 stl, 0 blk, 1 pf, 19 pts




02/19/09

Gerald Henderson: Duke 76, St. John's 69
37 min, 4-12 fg, 0-2 3pt, 11-13 ft, 0 off, 4 reb, 3 ast, 1 to, 0 stl, 0 blk, 1 pf, 19 pts

Kyle Singler: Duke 76, St. John's 69
30 min, 5-6 fg, 4-5 3pt, 1-4 ft, 0 off, 3 reb, 4 ast, 5 to, 1 stl, 0 blk, 5 pf, 15 pts

Austin Daye: Gonzaga 91, Loyola Marymount 54
26 min, 5-8 fg, 1-1 3pt, 2-2 ft, 3 off, 7 reb, 1 ast, 4 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 3 pf, 13 pts

DeMar DeRozan: USC 61, Washington St. 51
36 min, 2-8 fg, 0-0 3pt, 4-7 ft, 2 off, 5 reb, 1 ast, 0 to, 1 stl, 2 blk, 0 pf, 8 pts

Jrue Holiday: UCLA 85, Washington 76
28 min, 4-8 fg, 0-2 3pt, 2-2 ft, 1 off, 4 reb, 1 ast, 2 to, 0 stl, 0 blk, 1 pf, 10 pts

Darren Collison: UCLA 85, Washington 76
33 min, 6-14 fg, 1-3 3pt, 4-4 ft, 0 off, 0 reb, 5 ast, 3 to, 2 stl, 0 blk, 3 pf, 17 pts

REST-OF-SEASON WISH LIST

1. Limit Jackson's minutes to 30 per game with occasional days off (vs. weaker teams)
2. Limit Crawford's minutes to 30 per game and pull him out if he gives poor defensive effort
3. Feature Maggette to increase trade value
4. Play Belinelli 25 minutes per game
5. Play Morrow 25 minutes per game
6. Play Randolph 25 minutes per game
7. Start Wright and have him play at least 30 minutes per game to evaluate him and increase his trade value
   
8. Experiment with a big lineup featuring Randolph, Wright, and Biedrins
9. Keep playing Ellis to gauge whether he'll ever regain his explosiveness and whether or not he can handle the PG duties
10. Play Belinelli and Ellis extensive minutes together to determine whether or not the Warriors should make acquiring a true PG top priority
    
11. Shoot for a top 6 slot in the lottery - it seems to be a lucky spot in terms of moving up into the top 3 (current standings)
12. Try to draft Rubio or Harden. Use depth at SG/SF, Wright, or Pick to move up in the draft if you have to

Possible Warriors Core
PG: Ellis/Belinelli
SG: Harden
SF: Jackson
PF: Randolph
C: Biedrins/Turiaf

POLL RESULTS: TANK VS. WIN

Should the Warriors try to win at all costs (play the veterans extended minutes) in order to make an improbable run for the playoffs or tank the rest of the season (rest the veterans and focus on developing the youngsters) to get a higher draft pick?

Win: 32 votes (34%)
Tank: 62 votes (65%)

DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN

This seems all too familiar. The Warriors don't know how to tank even with the fanbase's acknowledgment that a losing record is acceptable in light of the Monta Moped incident and all the other injuries. Jackson continues to log 45+ min per night, Monta was brought back early for ticket sales, Nellie continues to play politics and mind games throughout the year, and the early season transactions limit future roster flexibility in an economic climate that would allow fiscally responsible teams to reap the rewards of future salary dumps.

All signs point to continuing on the same path of mediocrity.

It'll be a tough decision to renew season tickets, but if Jackson and the vets take turns getting shut down and the young guns are allowed to finish off the season in order to gain experience/chemistry/evaluation, then many have reason to reconsider despite the floundering economy. I have high hopes for Randolph and Wright and the Warriors need to find out if they are truly the answers to their frontcourt woes. Belinelli is looking promising and they need to find out how he and Ellis play together. Morrow and Watson are more than scrubs. Azubuike and Turiaf are great signings. Fans and GM's around the league already know who Jackson, Crawford, and Maggette are - let's see who else has value.

There is a lot to be positive about, but unfortunately, at the moment, the veterans, Nellie's pursuit of the 'Wins' record, and management's thinking that meaningless wins will bring back season ticket holders are the things that are standing in the way of a more productive use of a lost season. Do the Warriors have enough to make it deep into the playoffs in the coming years? If so, stand pat and rely primarily on internal development. If not, use your depth and youth to land a guy that will put you over the top. We won't know which is true unless the question marks are given significant time to show what they can really do in real game situations. Whichever way it turns out to be, the higher the draft pick the Warriors end up with, the better. Playing the veterans 40+ min. per night without playing the young players is counter-productive. Hopefully, the Warriors realize this soon.

THE MAGIC NUMBER

28 games left
12 games behind Jazz (series tied 1-1 with 2 more meetings)

Magic Number is 41
(That number means how many wins your team needs, or losses to the other team. so if you win and they lose, you can subtract another 2.)

Good luck with that.

PROSPECT PERFORMANCES - 02/16/09

DeJuan Blair: Pittsburgh 76, Connecticut 68
38 min, 10-17 fg, 0-0 3pt, 2-4 ft, 6 off, 23 reb, 2 ast, 3 to, 0 stl, 1 blk, 2 pf, 22 pts

Sam Young: Pittsburgh 76, Connecticut 68
33 min, 8-13 fg, 4-6 3pt, 5-6 ft, 0 off, 3 reb, 0 ast, 0 to, 2 stl, 0 blk, 5 pf, 25 pts

Hasheem Thabeet: Pittsburgh 76, Connecticut 68
23 min, 1-5 fg, 0-0 3pt, 3-6 ft, 2 off, 4 reb, 0 ast, 3 to, 2 stl, 2 blk, 5 pf, 5 pts

Damion James: Texas A&M 81, Texas 66
30 min, 6-12 fg, 1-3 3pt, 3-4 ft, 4 off, 11 reb, 4 ast, 4 to, 0 stl, 0 blk, 3 pf, 16 pts

PROSPECT PERFORMANCES - 02/15/09

Kyle Singler: Boston Coll. 80, Duke 74
37 min, 8-17 fg, 3-6 3pt, 6-8 ft, 7 off, 8 reb, 1 ast, 0 to, 2 stl, 2 blk, 4 pf, 25 pts

James Harden: Arizona St. 65, USC 53
40 min, 5-6 fg, 0-1 3pt, 3-5 ft, 0 off, 5 reb, 3 ast, 2 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 3 pf, 13 pts

DeMar DeRozan: Arizona St. 65, USC 53
40 min, 7-14 fg, 0-2 3pt, 2-4 ft, 6 off, 10 reb, 1 ast, 3 to, 1 stl, 0 blk, 0 pf, 16 pts

Gerald Henderson: Boston Coll. 80, Duke 74
36 min, 8-21 fg, 0-2 3pt, 4-4 ft, 0 off, 4 reb, 3 ast, 3 to, 4 stl, 0 blk, 1 pf, 20 pts

Earl Clark: Louisville 99, DePaul 54
32 min, 5-12 fg, 1-5 3pt, 1-5 ft, 3 off, 11 reb, 8 ast, 4 to, 2 stl, 2 blk, 0 pf, 12 pts

Samardo Samuels: Louisville 99, DePaul 54
20 min, 6-9 fg, 0-0 3pt, 0-0 ft, 1 off, 3 reb, 1 ast, 3 to, 1 stl, 1 blk, 1 pf, 12 pts

SO LONG JAMES HARDEN

The Golden State Warriors seem to have decided that it is in their best interest to win as many games as possible despite the near impossibility of a playoff berth (if they miraculously make it in, they'll get their asses handed to them in 4). Monta Ellis was brought in earlier than expected - clearly not even close to 100%. Jackson is averaging nearly 46 min. per game in the month of February, on pace for a late season collapse just like last year. Morrow is getting DNP-CD's. Randolph is getting more time, but not enough considering he's one of the teams best rebounders, hustles, and is a key component to the future. Tank is not an option and keeping the casual fan's interest seems to be their mission to close out the season.

Sure wins are fun. No argument there. But will you remember these games next season. Will it even matter. Wouldn't it be better for the franchise to land one of the few impact players in the shallow pool of talent in the 2009 NBA Draft? Wouldn't it be better to get the highest pick possible just for the simple fact that owning a high pick make it more valuable and could be used to facilitate a deal?

Wouldn't you rather have Griffin (Boozer), Rubio (Nash), Harden (Roy), Thabeet (Mutombo), #5, #6, or #7 pick (w/ a legit chance to move up to the top 3) as part of your assets to keep or trade? I know I would.


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