82 and 0

Basketball season is about to start and since I've spent the last two months boring you with political blogs, I'll now bore you for the next 6 months with Warriors blogs. Ask Erin, the season goes on forever. Actually, the start of the basketball season always comes at a convenient time. In 2004 the season started the day after the election. It was a good thing too, as it's probably the only reason I didn't fall into a deep depression. In honor of the new season here is a preview of the Warriors 08-09 team.

A few years ago when the Warriors won their season opener against the Spurs I called my friends to celebrate. What I remember most is my buddy Scott Eanes' famous prediction for the rest of the season, 82-0. (For those of you new to the NBA, there are 82 games in a season).

This season, I honestly don't know what to expect. My gut tells me not to be too optimistic though. Don't get me wrong, I'll watch all 82 games, but my expectations aren't high - which is a good thing for Warriors fans. There are a lot of new faces this season (and some notable missing ones) so I thought I'd introduce you to a few of them.

No longer with the team:
Baron Davis, Matt Barnes, Patrick O'Bryant (and probably some others that aren't important enough to remember). It's going to hurt not having Baron. I'm pissed that he opted out of his contract one year early. I would have liked one more year, but I'm glad from a financial stand point that we didn't sign him to a long term contract. Too injury prone, too three point shooting prone. With that said, Baron did a ton for the team and I'll miss him. When he's motivated he's a top player in the league, and it's going to suck watching him dominate the Warriors four times a year (assuming he's healthy).

Kelenna Azubuike

I'm excited to have 'Buke back on the team. He's a poor man's Jason Richardson at 1/3 the price. He can take it strong to the basket and has decent range. Plus he's not such a super star that he skips out on defense. A team of 5 Bukes wouldn't be very good, but you need at least one. Plus, here's an interesting fact, his nickname is "London Gentlemen" from the fragarence in Anchorman (because he's from the UK).

Andris Biedrins (Beans)

If I were to buy a Warriors jersey (which I won't do, because that means the player will get injured or traded) I would probably buy a Beans jersey. I try to model my basketball game after him. On the team I play with I'm the tall one, I'm not asked to shoot and as long as I play good defense, rebound, and get shots for the little guys on the team everyone is happy. And it doesn't hurt when I get some points cleaning up boards and on the fastbreak. The good news for the Warriors is that I expect Bean's offensive game to open up even more now that Baron Davis's 20 shots per game are missing. I'm excited to watch the big Latvian play.

Corey Maggette

When the Clippers signed our best player (Baron Davis) we panicked and signed their best remaining player, Corey Maggette. I'm a little conflicted about Mags. On the plus side, he is a very efficient scorer, makes his free throws, and looks like Xzibit. On the negative side, he's never played for a good team, is injury prone, and I'm not sold on him sacrificing in any way to make the team better. I hope I am wrong, but I just don't see the Warriors being succesful if he's our first or second best player. I bet he scores a ton, doesn't do anything bad off the court, and yet leads us nowhere near the playoffs. (Optimism, it's what a new season is all about). At least between him and Buke we'll have the most ripped players.

DeMarcus Nelson

Let me introduce you to our starting point guard. We've gone from Baron to someone I have barely heard of. I know just a little more about him than I did about Sarah Palin when she was named VP. At least she's second string, this guy starts. DeMarcus is a rookie and he went to Duke, that's all I know. I'm not even sure the picture I posted is really him. However, from the preseason reports, it sounds like he's a monster on defense and that would be a first for a Warriors gaurd. Also, I don't think he shoots a lot of threes which is a nice change. It's possible the Warriors will have great ball movement and a smooth offense with this guy. It's also possible that the complete lack a point gaurd will doom us and we win 18 games. I'm praying it's option 1.

Anthony Randolph

AR is part of the reason I have hope for the future. We picked him at #14 in the draft this year, and I don't know how he fell so low. He's tall, athletic and seems to have the mindset to a be a superstar. I guarantee at least 10 teams will be kicking themselves that they didn't pick him. There are two reasons to be cautious in his rookie year. First, he's almost 7' tall and barely weighs 200 pounds. He's going to get pushed around a lot. The saving grace is that because he's so athletic he can play smaller players instead of banging around with the power forwards and centers. The other problem is that coach Don Nelson never plays rookies. Let's hope Nellie gives him time to develop because let's be honest, we aren't winning the championship this year. If he does get time to play, he'll be exciting to watch.

Ronny Turiaf

In a surprise move, the Warriors have signed The Predator to be their backup center/power forward. Oh just kidding, it's Ronny Turiaf (who played for the Lakers last year). I actaully love the signing. Turiaf is one of those players that you hated when he was on the other team (especially when that team is the Lakers), but he's gonna be a fan favorite in Oakland. He brings a ton of energy and the size/strength to match up with the other big players who usually dominate us. He's not a superstar, but he's a great guy to have on your team.

Monta Ellis

Have you noticed that I haven't written about a superstar on the Warriors yet. Well, the closest thing we have to one is Monta. Unfortunately, that was before his tragic moped acident this summer that destroyed his leg. I can't get over this, it's not possible. I genuinely think I could have talked myself into the Warriors have a good season if Monta had been healthy. It's much more difficult now. He's out for at least three months, and possibly the whole season. All we can do is hope that next year he comes back with the same explosiveness that made him one of my favorite players to watch.

Al Harrington

I'd write something about Al, but he's going to be traded so why bother. I will say that he looks like a ninja turtle, though.

Don Nelson

As long as the Warriors have Nellie at the helm I'll be excited. When the Warriors signed him a couple of years ago I remember thinking that there wasn't another player they could have signed that would have made me more excited. Nellie is best when he has to experiment and tinker with a squad that on paper won't cut it. Well, he has that squad and if anyone can make them exciting to watch, and maybe even a playoff team it's him. Another reason I like Nellie, he once owned a pig as a pet - I've always wanted a pet pig.


Well, I'm not going to promise that team will win a championship, or even make the playoffs. However, I hope I've helped you find someone on the team you can take an interest in. When you watch the team for 82 games you get to know them pretty well and I looked forward to having an addition 15 guys in my extended family for the next 6 months. Erin on the other, not quite as excited.