Kings 115 Warriors 98

Things are getting UGLY... fast!

Maggette and Harrington missed another game while the rest of the Warriors got creamed by another weak opponent 115-98. Each game is becoming more and more difficult to analyze because the team is just simply a lot weaker than what I've been giving them credit for (particularly before all the losses). Biedrins is an absolute monster, and he's consistently showing the league that he's one of the top young centers in the world. Period. We have some other solid players in Jackson and Azubuike, but this team is struggling to play consistent quarters game in and game out. Perhaps it has to do with Maggette and Harrington missing the past few games, but one way or another this team is drowning quickly. Here's a few thoughts from a depressing game:

I've been cringing to see Don Nelson use a 9 or even 10 man rotation. Tonight, the Warriors went 12-deep, but it certainly wasn't a good thing. By the time the 4th quarter arrived, the minutes were already meaningless. There were a few good things to take from the more meaningful minutes in the first half and beginning of the 3rd quarter:

-Marco had an excellent 1st quarter, and this is exactly what I've been looking for since the start of the season. Surprisingly, Don Nelson put him in about 4 minutes into the game, and he quickly racked up 7 points and really seemed to spark the game. The fact is, Marco is a very streaky shooter. He can have his good nights and his bad ones. Why not give him 3 or 4 jumpers in the first quarter to see what kind of night it is. If he's off then oh well, he took a few shots and not much harm is done. If he's on fire however, it's something that might last the rest of the game so it's definitely something we should continue to go to. Tonight, I was shocked he didn't play much after that excellent 1st quarter. What more was Don Nelson looking for? We'll have to keep an eye on these 1st quarter sightings for the next few games.

-On a negative note, our defense in the 1st quarter was absolutely ridiculous. How can a team playing on the road let so many easy layups and dunks go by in the 1st quarter. That's just asking for the momentum to be on the opponent's side. Maybe this is why I was happier starting Demarcus Nelson. He's really tough and sets the tone early on the defensive side of the ball. Obviously, he wouldn't solve everything. There was very poor screen reaction and guarding guys off the ball. For a team that focused their whole training camp on defense, this will certainly not do.

-The third quarter was ugly and ultimately led to our downfall tonight. As bas as our defense was in the first quarter, our offense was just as bad or worse in the 3rd quarter. Maybe this is where we missed Maggette. When those jumpers keep clanking off the rim we need to learn to penetrate and get to the rim. Also, our offense was pretty successful in the first quarter when we ran the offense through Biedrins. If I'm not mistaken, he had all 4 of his assists in the first quarter. I'd love to see us go back to this when the second half starts up again.

-Final thought. For a 19 year old rookie, Randolph sure isn't afraid to chuck the ball. For the second consecutive night, he's filled up the stat sheet (11 points and 7 boards in 13 minutes). I know he took a lot of shots but it's not like he was hurting the team doing it (he was only -3 for the game). He also got himself 10 FTs in 13 minutes. Any rookie who we can get that much production from in such a short amount of time is special.

Top Performances:
1. Andris Biedrins- I think this guy is going to be here every night. 16 points, 18 boards, and 4 big assists in the first quarter
2. Marco Belinelli- On a night like this, 7 points in 11 minutes will get you a top performance
3. Anthony Randolph- Ditto Marco Belinelli. He finished with 11 points and 7 boards in 13 minutes