Posts tagged ‘baron’

This clip of Baron ruthlessly roller boogie-ing from that Framed deal on IFC is all over the Web so I figured it might as well go up here.

I think it’s a great gauge of your insecurity level - I personally can’t make it past the opening graphics.

Your Warriors got it cooking in Hotlanta, bagging another win and gorging themselves on points.

Box Score

The Dubs won another shootout in decisive fashion. The first half was a gluttonous offensive orgy with both teams shooting lights out and no trace of D on either end. Joe Johnson led the way for Atlanta, scoring 29 points in the half on 11-16 shooting and looked unstoppable going to the basket as well as from downtown. Baron was automatic, putting up 18 in the first quarter and 24 in the half. The Hawks were not shy about playing at the Warriors’ reckless pace and pushed the ball as well if not better than the Dubs, ending the second with a slight lead.

In the second half the Warriors turned up the heat and the Hawks wilted. After only turning the ball over 4 times in the first, Atlanta completely fell apart when the Dubs got up on them, coughing it up 14 times in the second half. Pile on absolutely merciless shooting from Captain Jack (22 points in the half/29 total), and Peety, as well as more excellent work from Monta (20 points, 7 boards total) and you’ve got a blow out win.

Things are clicking for the Warriors at just the right time. They seem to have been able to shed their lacadaisical attitude when playing lower level competition and the role players are chipping in big time. Peety looked fantastic again, hitting his threes and snatching 12 boards. There hasn’t been much work for CJ Watson, as Monta and Jack have been handling the point well when Nellie rests the Boss.

Tonight was the fourth win in a row for the suddenly dependable Dubs and they’re sneaking up on the Mavs for the 7th spot in the West. Let’s see if they can keep the energy high against J-Rich and the Cats tomorrow.

After another lazy start, your Warriors put on their second half hard hats, listened to their Uncle Austin, and went to work.

Box Score

The Warriors gave another first half away to another sub-par team. They came out looking stiff and scattered, allowing the Sonics to get up 13-4 before getting their heads into the game after back to back steals from Baron, and Brandan Wright. The Sonics feasted on dunks and lay ups, and Kevin Durant was a highlight reel. The Sonics’ lead shrank and grew but was never erased. Baron and Monta did all of the work on offense for the Dubs. Both guards were aggressively driving the ball and they kept the Warriors in the game while Al and Jack struggled.

Uncle Austin Croshere was in the starting line-up for the second half, and was the difference for the Warriors in this game. He’s a smart, grizzled veteran and does all of the basic things that the rest of the squad can’t seem to. Mainly, he boxes out, rebounds, and consistently is in the right place at the right time.

With Cro leading the charge, the Warriors steamed back into the game in the third. Earl Watson was out for Seattle due to a respiratory infection, so the Sonics’ only real point guard was Luke Ridnour. Whenever PJ rested Ridnour, the 6-7 forward Mickael Gelabale handled the point…poorly. The Warriors robbed the Sonics blind in the second half. Everyone harrassed their assignments and slapped the ball loose whenever it came near them. Steals for the Warriors is like blood in the water for sharks, it gets them very excited. The fast breaks started flowing and the lead changed hands for good with a little over 3 minutes left in the third. Jack, Al, and Peety got into the spirit of things in the fourth, poured on a few threes and sealed the win.

Defense drove this Warriors’ win. When they got into their opponents’ faces and start challenging every possession the game opened up and they were able to get running on offense. The young, undermanned Sonics were low hanging fruit for this type of game plan.

Austin Croshere: Plays hard and smart. His back is beyond wonky and we won’t be able to depend on him, but just like he did in Minnesota earlier in the season, he was able to infuse the team with confidence after making some good, tough plays against an inexperienced team.

Monta Ellis: Was back after a rough (for him) game against the Hawks. Before the Cro show started he and Baron were the only Warriors scoring consistently. His nutty FG line is back too, 14-22.

Baron Davis: Went for the throat on steals, picking up 7 against the clumsy Sonics. He also scored 20 and dished 10.

Brandan Wright: Appeared to have some rookie jitters early in the first but played within himself and contributed a bit in his short minutes. His face-to-face block on Durant in the second was possibly the lankiest thing I’ve ever witnessed. Nellie rewarded his good play from the Hawks game with minutes, hopefully he earned some more this time around. I like how he looks in the line up.

Chris Webber: Is doing what all the coaches said he wouldn’t, slowing the Dubs down. He kills the team’s energy when he’s on the floor. His lack of movement completely negates the scramble that fires up the Warriors D and he gets burned consistently. He might be able to help here and there as a sub, but he’s only hurting at this point.

Stephen Jackson: Had a pretty off night offensively, and his ankle doesn’t look good, but he’s still an anchor for the team and they need him on the court to bring a bit of order and execution.

Al & Peety: Al had a bad shooting night. Pietrus was bouncing off the walls as usual. He got some points and steals, he got a lot of fouls, and he almost took some poor woman’s head off with his crotch while diving out of bounds for a ball that had just slipped out of his hands (after making a clean steal!). I think that pretty much sums up his game: occasionally-thrilling-and-useful-dumb-out-of-controlness.

We’re right on the inside of the bubble, sitting at 8th, 1 game up on Denver. See you on Friday for some Philly Soul staring Iggy and the Sixers.

exclusive postgame audio

Don Nelson

Monta Ellis

Austin Croshere

Baron Davis

Monta may be the current employee of the month, but Baron is still the boss at the Oracle.

Box Score

The big three were in the building and there were ugly patches of green scattered amongst the Warriors faithful. The mighty Celtics had come to town.

The Warriors opened with a brand new starting five, made necessary by Jack’s severe ankle sprain. Nellie threw out a squad of Baron, Monta, Pietrus, Biedrins and C-Webb to face the green monsters.

The first quarter started out rough. The Celtics charged ahead to a nine point lead. The Warriors picked up the pace and got back into the game behind some nice passing from Monta to Beans, a rare made three by Pietrus and some strong finishes from Baron and Monta. The intimidation factor wasn’t present and the Warriors were up three going into the second.

32-29 Warriors.

The loss of Jack really started to kick in during the second quarter. When Nellie rested Monta, the Dubs’ game faltered. Barnes was off and the turnovers started piling up. The Celtics had no such problems and were able to go on a couple of runs with Garnett and Ray-Ray resting behind some great shooting by their other Allen - Tony.

Celtics up 57-50 going into the half.

Play got very physical in the second half. The players started bumping, banging, and shoving, slowing the game down considerably. Ray Allen’s shooting was so pretty it made me sick. The Warriors got down by 12 before stepping up the D.

They started slapping the ball away and the refs were letting both teams play after a lot of contact. Pietrus stepped up big time and looked better than he has all season. Late in the third quarter, he soared in for a giant putback dunk after a missed three from Baron and then stole the ball from Pierce for an uncontested dunk on the very next play. The Warriors were back in the game and the stage was set for a huge fourth quarter.

84-82 Celtics.

The Celtics did not play much defense on this night. They had successfully shut Monta down in the third with tremendous pressure whenever he handled the ball, keeping him from scoring a single point. Ellis started the fourth determined to breakout and he got hot. He and Al stepped up, hitting their jumpers and drawing fouls while attacking the rim. Ray and Tony Allen went on a tear of scoring for the C’s and matched every Warriors run.

Baron had played his heart out all game and looked tired. He passed the ball to Monta early for most of the possessions, leaning on the young man to make the right decisions. The lead swung back and forth all quarter with both teams battling for every rebound and loose ball. Pietrus and Baron put the Warriors up 112-107 with made free-throws, but Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo shot the C’s back into the game.

114-113 Warriors with 1:28 left to play.

Once again it’s up to All Day Monta in crunch time. Al found Ellis open off of a low screen by Beans and the kid drilled a mid-range, baseline jumper to put the Dubs up by 3 with under a minute to play. Baron added a free throw after Rondo fouled him and the Warriors were up four with 38 seconds left.

Pierce sank two sets of free throws (one after Matt Barnes completely blows a play and airballs a floater - which Nellie harps on in the postgame below), and the game is tied with six seconds left.

After a time out, the Warriors inbounded the ball into Baron. He lowered his shoulder and started to drive, putting Tony Allen back on his heels. At the last moment, BD pulled up, stepped back and nailed a 20 foot jumper with .3 left on the clock. The massive crowd goes berserk, the bench goes berserk, I go berserk, you go berserk, the Celtics go home.

It was a wonderful showing by almost every player.

Baron is the boss, don’t mess with the man in his house.

Monta fought through some intense pressure and had yet another huge night. With Jackson out, he dished out a career high nine assists, many of them to Biedrins on pick-and-rolls and picked up 12 of his 26 points in the hard fought fourth quarter.

Al added 22 points and 12 rebounds coming off of the bench, and played stellar D against Perkins, Pierce and at times Garnett. His drives were under control and he didn’t try and hit every three–pointer he saw.

Pietrus had what was by far his best game of the season. He was all over the court as usual and came up big on several possessions offensively and defensively. Life would be a lot better for everyone if he could do that kind of thing more often.

Andris threw in a fat double-double with 21 and 13, a steal, and a monster block.

C-Webb watch: 20 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks. He’s looking better each game. He got severely scorched on D by the smaller guys and Garnett but those three blocks are a good sign.

Some mellower games coming up with the Hawks on Friday, and the Sonics on Tuesday. But if you know the Warriors, you know something nuts is going to happen.

exclusive postgame audio

Baron Davis

Al Harrington

Stephen Jackson

Don Nelson

Celtics audio:

Ray Allen

Kevin Garnett

Paul Pierce

Doc Rivers

Your Warriors showed the Suns how it’s done.

Box Score

From Al’s opening jumper to Baron’s final layup, this game was a classic. In this small-ball, uptempo war of offensive gladiators, the Suns and Dubs slugged it out in the middle of the ring until the final bell.

It was a flurry of drives, some acrobatic (Monta), some brutal (Baron), smooth pull up jumpers, tight passes on the break and crowd-rocking threes. No team took any substantial lead and both shot over 50% for the entire game.

No one seemed to be able to miss in the first quarter and the score going into the second was a gaudy 38-32 Warriors. The footrace stayed close throughout the rest of the game with each team answering any type of run with their own offensive onslaught. The highlights came fast and furious and only a turnover or block here and there pointed towards any sense of defensive pressure. Jeff Van Gundy, who was calling the game for ESPN, struggled to keep up. He admitted that the pace was making him dizzy, and that he couldn’t even tell who had the ball. His fourth quarter exclamation of “I don’t want this game to end! Keep playing through the All-Star break!” was right on. This is the most entertaining match-up in the entire league.

Despite JVG’s wishes, the game had to end. Baron made sure it ended right. Monta had been the star for the Warriors all night, but BD took the game into his hands with 2:31 left to play and the score tied 113-113. Baron reeled off six unanswered points off of two tough drives and a trademark step-back jumper to give the Dubs a precarious lead.

Phoenix answered back with four points of their own, but Amare couldn’t make both his free throws to tie it up. Monta made one of his to maintain a two point lead, and Barbosa barely missed a open, game winning three at the buzzer. Warriors win - the third in a row against the Suns - now everyone breathe.

The stars on both teams showcased their best offense and did nothing to silence the critics of their defense. Steve Nash was quietly amazing with his precise passes and rare, effortless drives and shots. Amare Stoudemire was a brute in the paint, gobbling up rebounds and destroying his defender on isolation plays. Grant Hill was everywhere, snatching boards (15 total!) and draining jumpers. Barbosa was his usual speedy, consistent self, hitting threes and skittering his way to the basket for pretty finishes.

For the Warriors, it was a battle for the spotlight between Baron and Monta with Jack, Al, Matt and Kelenna contributing at just the right time.

Baron

Brooding over hurt feelings? Secretly injured? Exhausted and shutting it down? Not tonight. Baron was back on point and hungry for the big plays. He’s a Hollywood dude and although we’d all like to think that every game means as much to him as it does to us, the case is that ESPN had their cameras and mic on him all night and he played better than he has all month. He was after the ball on defense and drove hard rather than settle for jumpers. When the Warriors needed the killer plays, Baron pulled the trigger.

Monta

All Day is the toast of the town. The ESPN guys couldn’t get enough of him. His jumper is so clean and automatic that I’m genuinely surprised when he misses. Every drive seems to involve a highlight finish, and his rebounding is off the charts for a guard. His defense and foul shooting needs cleaning up, but there’s no way to not love this kid. Last year, people were hoping that Monta could evolve into a Barbosa-like player. At this point, Barbosa should aspire to be more like Monta.

Monta’s shooting numbers for February:

Date FGM-A PTS

2/01 vs. CHA 7-10 21

2/07 vs. CHI 11-12 25

2/09 vs. SAC 12-15 34

2/11 vs. WAS 9-18 22

2/13 vs. PHX 18-27 37

Soak it in, 50% for 22 points against the Wizards was an off night for our third year guard straight outta high school. With all respect to LeBron, we are all witnesses.

Enjoy the high note going into the All-Star break. Go J-Moon!