The AP reports: O.J. Mayo is making a quick adjustment to the NBA. “At the end of the day it’s just basketball,” Mayo said after scoring 20 points and grabbing a career-high nine rebounds in the Grizzlies’ 109-104 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Friday night… Mayo had 11 points, two assists and two rebounds in the third, while Rudy Gay added six of his team-high 23… Hakim Warrick had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Darrell Arthur had his second double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Grizzles, who beat Golden State for the second time in five days. Stephen Jackson had 27 points to lead Golden State, while Andris Biedrins had 23 points and 12 rebounds.
Category: Golden State Warriors Blog
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Warriors name Larry Riley assistant GM
The Golden State Warriors have named Larry Riley Assistant General Manager, it was announced today by President Robert Rowell. In a related move, Pete D’Alessandro has been relieved of his duties as Assistant General Manager.
Riley, 64, has spent the last two-plus seasons as an assistant coach on Don Nelson’s staff with the Warriors. He has accumulated over 20 years of NBA experience, including stops in Golden State, Dallas, Vancouver and Milwaukee. Overall, Riley has amassed 37 years of basketball experience in various coaching and administrative positions.
Riley, who will cease his duties on the coaching staff, will report directly to Mullin and assist in the overall day-to-day dealings in the Warriors’ Basketball Operations Department.
Nov 5: Warriors 111, Nuggets 101
The AP reports: Stephen Jackson had 29 points and seven assists and Golden State overcame a poor first quarter and some sloppy second-half play to beat the Denver Nuggets 111-101 on Wednesday night… Carmelo Anthony had 28 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the Nuggets, who couldn’t do enough on offense without departed playmaker Allen Iverson despite jumping out to a quick 17-4 lead behind seven points from Dahntay Jones… Nene added 19 points and 15 rebounds in Denver’s first game since dealing Iverson to Detroit on Monday for Chauncey Billups… Kelenna Azubuike added 22 points and eight rebounds off the bench and reserve Brandan Wright scored 14 of his career-high 18 points in the first half to keep Golden State close. He also had a career-best 13 rebounds and three blocks. The Warriors were within 59-58 at the break.
Early Warriors struggles
The San Francisco Examiner (Matt Steinmetz) reports: 1) Where are the young ’uns?: Don Nelson talked all summer of using Brandan Wright and Marco Belinelli. He also talked up the talent and skill level of rookie Anthony Randolph. Through four games, Wright has played 24 minutes, Belinelli four minutes and Randolph a minute-and-a-half. That’s not good. 2) Corey Maggette’s start: It hasn’t been a good beginning to his Warriors career. He’s shooting terribly from the field, and his hamstrings are acting up. Certainly, Maggette’s field-goal percentage is going to improve, but he hasn’t proven he can score meaningful points or get to the line and convert in critical situations. 3) Point problem: DeMarcus Nelson is doing everything he can. Watson is giving you exactly what you’d expect he give you. And Marcus Williams has been buried.
Baron Davis Clippers losing early
The Los Angeles Daily News (Ramona Shelburne) reports: New Clipper Baron Davis, disappointed after the team’s season-opening 117-79 loss to the Lakers on Oct. 29, tried to keep things in perspective during postgame interviews. The Clippers, after all, were playing together for basically the first time that night, against one of the best teams in the league. “Did I expect to lose like that? No. Do I expect us to go 0-7? No,” Davis said… “A win would help,” Davis said. “A win would defintely help lift our spirits. We need to figure out what a win feels like as a unit. “We’re a work in progress, so it’s going to take some patience. No one is in panic mode yet.” True, but there is a sense of urgency. Davis himself felt that Monday night against Utah, when he decided to play on his badly bruised hip about five minutes before tipoff.
Nov 3: Grizzlies 90, Warriors 79
The AP reports: The Golden State Warriors should have paid more attention to Memphis rookie Marc Gasol. While the Warriors were worrying about high-profile Grizzlies Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo, Gasol had 27 points and 16 rebounds to help the Grizzlies beat the Warriors 90-79 on Monday night… Gasol went 9-for-11 from the field and the free throw line for Memphis, which ended a seven-game skid in the series against Golden State. The rookie also blocked three shots… Andris Biedrins had 16 points and 22 rebounds for Golden State. Stephen Jackson finished with 17 points and Corey Maggette scored 13 despite sitting out the second quarter with an injury… Rudy Gay scored 14 points and Mayo added 13 for Memphis. Kelenna Azubuike scored 10 for the Warriors, who shot 34 percent from the field.
Warriors sign Rob Kurz
The Golden State Warriors have signed free agent forward Rob Kurz, Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Mullin announced today.
Kurz appeared in four of Golden State’s six preseason games, averaging 4.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 14 minutes per game. He was originally signed as a free agent training camp invitee on September 9 and subsequently waived on October 27.
To make room for Kurz on the 15-man roster, the Warriors have transferred guard Monta Ellis to the suspended list. Kurz will wear uniform #31.
Nov 1: Warriors 105, Nets 97
The Warriors had three players score 20 or more points and got to the free throw line 52 times in beating the Nets. For Golden State, Stephen Jackson had 23 points, 5 rebounds and 8 assists. Andris Biedrins (8-of-11) had 23 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Corey Maggette (just 3-of-13) had 20 points, 10 rebounds and 2 steals. The Warriors hit just 34 of their 52 free throws. The Nets went 21-of-28 from the line. For New Jersey, Vince Carter had 20 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists. Starting center Josh Boone had 17 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks. Devin Harris (just 3-of-12) had 13 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists. Ryan Anderson scored 12 off the bench. Brook Lopez had 10 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks off the bench.
Marcus Williams reflects on Nets
Marcus Williams was a backup point guard on the Nets and didn’t play tons of minutes because extremely good players were always ahead of him. Now he’s barely playing for the Warriors and the point guards ahead of him are lucky to even be in the league. Here’s the New York Daily News (Julian Garcia):
As for what went wrong in Jersey, Williams said playing behind a legend after being drafted in the first round of the ‘06 draft made it tough for him to get anything going personally. “I played behind Jason,” Williams said. “Obviously that prevented me from playing as much as I wanted to. And then they brought in Devin, and Devin was having a career year. You can’t really stop a guy from playing who’s having a career year. So I think situations and opportunities weren’t here.” Williams had a reputation for being out of shape while with the Nets, and not necessarily working hard enough to get into shape. He also suffered several injuries along the way that prevented him from earning steady playing time.
I don’t see Williams falling out of the league anytime soon. He’ll have a few more seasons to prove himself worthy of a job before that would happen.
Oct 31: Raptors 112, Warriors 108 OT
The AP reports: After coming up short for the second time in as many games, Al Harrington said the Golden State Warriors should have been working harder during the preseason. Chris Bosh scored 31 points, Anthony Parker had 23 and the Toronto Raptors beat Golden State 112-108 in overtime on Friday night. Andrea Bargnani had 19 points off the bench for Toronto (2-0), while Jose Calderon had 16 points and 13 assists. Jamario Moon added 11 for the Raptors. Harrington led Golden State (0-2) with 26 points, adding 11 rebounds, while Stephen Jackson finished with 19 points. Andris Biedrins had 17 points and 13 rebounds for the Warriors… Jermaine O’Neal shot 2-for-10 and finished with five points and six rebounds, but made three blocks.