Something to Believe In

Maybe it was a sign of what’s to come. When the Warriors announced Monday that season ticket renewal rates for the 2010-11 season would be decreased in every seating category from 8%-28%, future possibilities in Golden State became intriguing.

Is this Chris Cohan’s last stand as owner? Is he doing this for one more year in attempt to increase attendance and regain revenue before selling? Or is he trying to win back fans in his plan to retain the ownership position, mulling offers based on sheer intrigue?

It’s difficult to pinpoint which is more plausible; Cohan’s been the unpredictable type for 16 years as owner. However, he’s been in more dialogue than ever this past season, most notably with Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle Corporation. Coincidentally, Oracle sponsors the Warriors’ arena in Oakland. Oh, and Ellison happens to have some extra cash he’s willing to spend, and he might actually care about the team. In other words, option #1 is the most popular scenario for Bay Area basketball fans.

Once this news broke (and I speak for the majority of Warriors fans), it unequivocally sparked a sense of hope. The fact that something occurred that made selling the team more probable and something possible in the near future is enough to get the most passionate, dedicated, exuberant fans in the NBA excited again. When this news broke Monday morning, it seemed as though the organization had launched a prelude to a transition.

And once the Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers faced off that night, a transition on the court became evident as well.

The game began in ’06-’07, ’07-’08 Warriors fashion with a 39-32 first quarter score. The fans were shockingly quiet until the end of the half, which shows the significance and intolerance of the current ownership/management positions. But it’s the promise and hope that has risen – the bad that can be viably mended with a new ownership position and a trickle down effect of new general manager and coaching positions.

Let’s start with the bad that can be mended: the team is constructed horribly. Yes, injuries have been an enormous factor, but with extremes in unbalanced minutes for particular players and the lack of chemistry within specific lineups, predicaments materialize. An experienced yet aging coach in Don Nelson doesn’t have the patience to work with a team like the Warriors and augment chemistry progression. Instead, the obvious frustration of Nelson culminates in perplexing lineups.

This was most noticeable near the 5-minute mark in the fourth quarter of Monday night’s game. The Stephen Curry/CJ Watson/Devean George/Anthony Morrow/Anthony Tolliver lineup had been playing brilliantly for a solid stretch to begin the fourth. Curry was doing what he does best for the team in running the show, Tolliver had been playing solid all game with an exceptional first quarter, ditto for Watson with his explosiveness in the second, Anthony Morrow was keeping defenders at the perimeter and George was hitting big shots off dishes from Curry. Most of all, they were playing good defense, getting multiple fastbreak opportunities, and the half court offense was at its peak without Monta Ellis on the floor. Curry was not only keeping the Warriors in the game, but displayed he could do so at a more efficient level than with Ellis running the offense, as he has all season.

However, at that 5-minute mark, Chris Hunter would be inserted for apparent defensive purposes although the only Warriors capable of guarding Pau Gasol or Andrew Bynum were either in suits or not present in the arena, and Corey Maggette would obliterate the offensive flow with some errant drives to the basket in attempt to reach the free throw line.

With about 4 minutes remaining, the game appeared to be over. A 114-105 score, a perpetually disappointing crunch time team in yet another downward spiral. Fans began to depart, remembering last Thursday’s 9-point fourth quarter performance against Portland and knowing resiliency isn’t a typical attribute for this year’s squad. From ’06 to ’08, every seat in the stands would’ve still been taken at this point in the game.

Curry would hit a three and Kobe Bryant would answer back in typical Kobe fashion. 117-108. Now it’s over. Bryant had been playing at a mediocre level the entire game and made uncharacteristically bad decisions throughout. Although he finished with 29 points, he committed 8 turnovers and had trouble scoring from the perimeter for most of the night. As we all know, fourth quarter situations diverge from the rest when it comes to Kobe.

However, this is when things began to change.

As a preface, watching Warriors games with Monta Ellis upping his ego in crunch time situations and performing terribly has been a frustrating sight. Throughout his absence due to injury, the team had undoubtedly been easier on the eyes and much more promising.

Chemistry was beginning to grow, Curry was gaining a feel for Nelson’s free-flowing system and began orchestrating a controlled yet fast-paced offense similar to the way Baron Davis did a few years ago. Excitement was resurrecting, and the fact that a 22 year-old rookie was the source of this made things even more promising.

Which is why Ellis has become a burden to the team. Ellis regained the spotlight after injury and things just weren’t the same. The egotistical shot selection returned and Curry was jettisoned and positioned back in his role in the passenger’s seat.

Backtracking to the trade deadline, the proposed Ellis/OJ Mayo swap seemed like the perfect move. There was no way it shouldn’t have been done. Curry is a willing distributor that obtains the tools to eventually do it all from the point guard position. Does a player like Ellis help his progression? Absolutely not. He demands the ball and commands the offense on too many occasions to fit with a player like Curry. Mayo, on the other hand, fits like a glove. He can create his own shot, but doesn’t demand the ball like Ellis and hasn’t experienced the luxury of a free flowing offense with a centerpiece like Curry creating greater offensive opportunities.

OJ Mayo’s field goal attempts per game this season – 14.7. Monta Ellis’ – 22.

Hard to argue the better fit there. Monta Ellis doesn’t attain the capabilities to be an alpha dog on a successful team. On the flipside, Curry has that potential, and OJ Mayo has the potential to be a sidekick in that notion. But that’s what happens when an owner is thinking about ticket sales rather than benefiting the team.

Despite all of this, Ellis showed an unprecedented form of awareness that hadn’t been displayed all season with 3:39 remaining in Monday night’s game. Once Bryant matched Curry’s three to give the Lakers a 117-108 lead, Ellis received the inbound and immediately passed the ball back to Curry and let him take the ball up the court. Ellis had taken his position in the passenger seat with Curry as the alpha dog.

Curry had the hot hand all night, running the offense superbly and making big shots in key moments (finished with 29 points, 9 assists), and Ellis, for the first time, was cognizant of it. At this point, if you were watching this team from afar, it would feel as though Curry was Batman and Ellis was perfecting his role as Robin. Curry was hitting the big threes, and Ellis was driving to the basket when necessary. With 30 seconds remaining, Ellis would swipe an incredible steal from Kobe Bryant and subsequently hit a transition three to put the game at a 121-119 score.

At this point, it felt like 2007 in Oracle Arena. Once Kobe shockingly missed his first of two free-throws to seal the game with 8.6 seconds remaining, anything felt possible.

What would follow leaves Warriors fans such as myself torn to a great degree. Kobe would make the second free-throw and put the game at a 124-121 score. The Warriors would come out of a timeout and inbound the ball from half court. Curry threw in the pass, made a beautiful move to acquire an open shot and execute what was virtually the perfect inbounds play, hauled in the pass in sound catch-and-shoot position, and missed the game-tying shot off the back iron.

It was disappointing yet exciting at the same time. I was shocked yet actually felt gratification as a fan. The most fascinating revelation from being at this game and witnessing this particular sequence in person: once Stephen Curry caught the pass, I was 99.9% sure he was going to make it. Once the ball was in the air, I was nearly 100% sure it was going in. And I was expecting this clutch form of compelling heroics… from a rookie.

This was Curry’s first opportunity in his young career to hit the big shot against a formidable opponent in the big moment, and I was expecting him to pull it off. If that’s not a promising place to be in, I don’t know what is. Monta Ellis finally realized it, and the fans should inevitably begin to do so as well, as the ownership transition ostensibly begins to take place and Curry slides into his role as the face of the franchise.
It’s hard to explain such a unique situation where gaudy yet failed expectations coalesce with future optimism. Maybe it’s a good thing. Maybe it’s something we can eventually look back on as the beginning of a new era for the Golden State Warriors. Maybe it’s a sign of what’s to come.