Yeah!
Great finish at the O last night. Monta saved the day, Baron, and possibly the season.
I've watched him play a lot this year, and while he has his faults and shortcomings, there are a few things I do love about him.
Seems to me that everytime he comes into a game, he almost always hits his first shot. As a bench player at any level, you don't have time or the luxury as a starter to let the game "come to you." You have to "get in the game." Monta does this extremely well. I'm continually impressed by the way that he
A. Turns the corner
B. The lift on his jumper
Monta made a bunch of great plays last night, and he will certainly be remembered for the shot he made to win the game, but how many people will remember the layup he converted at the end of the 3rd quarter? He got the ball with about seven seconds to go, raced up the court, turned the corner on the ancient Cliff Robinson (a former Dub Fav) and layed the ball in with .8 seconds to go. This was a huge basket because it cut New Jersey's 6 point lead, to 4 to start the 4th.
Last night's 1st quarter was extremely difficult to watch. First off, the Dubs made Mikki Moore look like an all-star. The Dubs were called for traveling on 3 of the first 4 possessions and if you ask me, the Sarunus/Baron back court should be ditched forever. What made it worse was Vince Carter was doing whatever he wanted. Last night was the 3rd time I've seen him play in person, and the first time that he has been completely healthy. Let me just say this. The hype is real. Carter's main flaw is that his motivation is not the same as a Kobe or Wade. His skill set is just as good if not better, and he can certainly still jump out of the gym. On his jump shot, the ball comes out of his hand effortlessly with perfect rotation. He took two 3's in the quarter, and both were nothing but net. In the second half, Nelson was smart and the Warriors double teamed him everytime he touched it. No matter, Carter finished with a career high 13 assists. If only he could find a way to play motivated night in and night out. Oh well though, thats not my problem.
Back to the Dubs. While Stephen Jackson had his second tough outing in a row, Al Harrington was again, offensively awesome. 29 points on a variety of scoring moves. The best of which was a reverse spin dribble around his man and finish at the tin. The antithesis of DunMurph...if you will. Harrington also got himself to the line, and his clutch free throws with 27 seconds to go put the Warriors in the position they needed so Monta could make the final shot. I think Harrington is going to be a 20+ guy a night in a Warriors uniform. The Warriors need his low post moves, and when the offense is stagnant, or needs production, especially in the half court, I think they may have found a consistent option. Granted he is still in his Eastern Conference body, but once Nelson gets him to lose some pounds, he is only going to get better. I'm getting more and more excited watching his play with every game that goes by. As Nelly pointed out, if he can only improve his rebounding numbers, he is going to be awesome.
As Kawakami pointed out, the win last night could have saved the season. Mid January is a bit early to be issuing such bold statements, but had the Warriors dropped last night's game (at home) they would have fallen 5 games under .500 instead of the 3 they are now. A win Saturday is very conceivable, and then, 5 games into the trade, the Warriors will hit the road to play six very beatable Eastern conference teams including my (newest) most anticipated game of the year, the Warriors vs. the Indiana Pacers on monday February 5th. For now though, Ellis can bask in the glory of his clutch game winner, and then Emeka Okafor and Charlotte Bobcats come to town on Saturday night.
I've watched him play a lot this year, and while he has his faults and shortcomings, there are a few things I do love about him.
Seems to me that everytime he comes into a game, he almost always hits his first shot. As a bench player at any level, you don't have time or the luxury as a starter to let the game "come to you." You have to "get in the game." Monta does this extremely well. I'm continually impressed by the way that he
A. Turns the corner
B. The lift on his jumper
Monta made a bunch of great plays last night, and he will certainly be remembered for the shot he made to win the game, but how many people will remember the layup he converted at the end of the 3rd quarter? He got the ball with about seven seconds to go, raced up the court, turned the corner on the ancient Cliff Robinson (a former Dub Fav) and layed the ball in with .8 seconds to go. This was a huge basket because it cut New Jersey's 6 point lead, to 4 to start the 4th.
Last night's 1st quarter was extremely difficult to watch. First off, the Dubs made Mikki Moore look like an all-star. The Dubs were called for traveling on 3 of the first 4 possessions and if you ask me, the Sarunus/Baron back court should be ditched forever. What made it worse was Vince Carter was doing whatever he wanted. Last night was the 3rd time I've seen him play in person, and the first time that he has been completely healthy. Let me just say this. The hype is real. Carter's main flaw is that his motivation is not the same as a Kobe or Wade. His skill set is just as good if not better, and he can certainly still jump out of the gym. On his jump shot, the ball comes out of his hand effortlessly with perfect rotation. He took two 3's in the quarter, and both were nothing but net. In the second half, Nelson was smart and the Warriors double teamed him everytime he touched it. No matter, Carter finished with a career high 13 assists. If only he could find a way to play motivated night in and night out. Oh well though, thats not my problem.
Back to the Dubs. While Stephen Jackson had his second tough outing in a row, Al Harrington was again, offensively awesome. 29 points on a variety of scoring moves. The best of which was a reverse spin dribble around his man and finish at the tin. The antithesis of DunMurph...if you will. Harrington also got himself to the line, and his clutch free throws with 27 seconds to go put the Warriors in the position they needed so Monta could make the final shot. I think Harrington is going to be a 20+ guy a night in a Warriors uniform. The Warriors need his low post moves, and when the offense is stagnant, or needs production, especially in the half court, I think they may have found a consistent option. Granted he is still in his Eastern Conference body, but once Nelson gets him to lose some pounds, he is only going to get better. I'm getting more and more excited watching his play with every game that goes by. As Nelly pointed out, if he can only improve his rebounding numbers, he is going to be awesome.
As Kawakami pointed out, the win last night could have saved the season. Mid January is a bit early to be issuing such bold statements, but had the Warriors dropped last night's game (at home) they would have fallen 5 games under .500 instead of the 3 they are now. A win Saturday is very conceivable, and then, 5 games into the trade, the Warriors will hit the road to play six very beatable Eastern conference teams including my (newest) most anticipated game of the year, the Warriors vs. the Indiana Pacers on monday February 5th. For now though, Ellis can bask in the glory of his clutch game winner, and then Emeka Okafor and Charlotte Bobcats come to town on Saturday night.
posted by DailyDub at 2:06 PM
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