In 1975 The Golden State Warriors were on top of the basketball world.
The Warriors had swept The Washington Bullets to win their second
championship in The National Basketball Association albeit the games
were seen on tape delay. Since that time The Warriors have consistently
teased their fan base in The Bay Area. In the following season, The
Warriors won 59 games in the regular season only to lose in The Western
Conference Finals to The Phoenix Suns. The late 80’s and early 90’s saw
the “run-and-gun” system of head coach Don Nelson which produced “Run
TMC” consisting of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond, and Chris Mullin. As
exciting as those Warriors were, they were never able to get past the
first round of the playoffs. Nelson returned to Golden State in 2006 and
he engineered an epic upset in The 2007 NBA Playoffs. The Dallas
Mavericks won a league best 67 games and they appeared to be on track
for a second consecutive trip to The NBA Finals until they faced Golden
State in the first round of the playoffs. Between his two stints with
Warriors, Nelson was the architect behind making The Mavs into a
contender. Nelson’s Warriors dispatched of Dallas in six games.
becoming a force in The Western Conference in the early stages of the
season under second-year head coach Mark Jackson. Through 22 games this
season, Golden State’s record is 15-7 as they are only one game behind
The Los Angeles Clippers for first place in The Pacific Division. Afterfour consecutive losing seasons under three different head coaches, the
people of Northern California are actually thinking about the postseason
even in the early stages of the season.
enjoyed a 17-year NBA career as a point guard. Jackson was a first round
pick of The New York Knicks in 1987, but his career was highlighted as a
member of The Indiana Pacers where he made a trip to The NBA Finals in
2000. Jackson’s 10,334 career assists are third on The NBA’s all-time
list only behind Jason Kidd and John Stockton. The native of Brooklyn is
now bringing his same toughness to The Warriors. The Warriors are
currently on a seven-game road trip that has seen them post a record of
5-0 so far. The trip has been highlighted by The Warriors 97-95 victory
over the defending NBA Champion Miami Heat last night. The Warriors have
two games remaining on their current East Coast trip against The
Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks. The importance in this is that Golden
State has not posted a winning record on the road in four seasons.
The Warriors turnaround began when former teamgeneral manager Larry Riley signed free-agent power forward David Lee in
the summer of 2010. Lee was an under utilized player with The Knicks.
Golden State saw the potential in Lee as he is an unselfish basketball
player that does not require having the basketball in his hands to be
effective. As a result, Lee received $80 million over six-years from The
Warriors. Lee is averaging 19 points per game this season along with
11.3 rebounds as he is arguably Golden State’s best post-presence since
Chris Webber. Last season saw shooting guard Monta Ellis traded to The
Milwaukee Bucks for center Andrew Bogut. Bogut has only played in four
games this season for The Warriors, but the trade of Ellis has allowed
second-year swingman Klay Thompson to have a bigger role in the offense.
Thompson and starting point guard Steph Curry have combined to average
36 points this season which gives Golden State one of the fiercest
backcourts in The Western Conference. Thompson and Curry both have
basketball in their blood as Thompson’s father (Mychael) and Curry’s
father (Del) both played in The NBA.
Myers brought in a veteran presence that fits the mold of this team.
Backup point guard Jarrett Jack was acquired via a three-team trade.
Jack is averaging 10 points per game along with 4.6 assists this season.
Jack came up big in the victory over Miami as he dropped in 20 points
and 4 assists. His biggest assist came in the final stages of the game
as he found rookie forward Draymond Green under the basket for a layup
with 0.9 seconds remaining. Prior to the season, Myers also signed
veteran forward Carl Landry. Landry is well traveled during his NBA
tenure, but he has averaged 12.2 points per game for his career which is
right under his average of 12.9 on this campaign. The Warriors have a
star in the making in the form of rookie forward Harrison Barnes. Barnes
was the seventh overall selection of last summer’s NBA Draft after he
spent two years at The University of North Carolina. Barnes is averaging
9 points per game on the season, but his season has been highlighted so
far when he dropped in 20 points in a 105-101 victory over The Denver
Nuggets on November 19.
turn the calender to 2013. Of those nine games, five are against teams
that are currently posting losing records including the surprising Los
Angeles Lakers at 9-14. The Warriors start the new year with a
home-and-home series with The Clippers as both teams will have their
eyes set on first place in The Pacific Division. These Warriors have
come out to play and they have their sights set on the postseason.
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