Warriors commentary: With Lee and Bogut out, W’s needs Barnes and Curry to ramp it up

by David Zizmor

OAKLAND–Talking about the Warriors last few games they lost to the Phoenix Suns 122-109 on Saturday night and then they beat the Chicago Bulls the game before on Thursday night 102-87. The Bulls aren’t that good of a team the Warriors should beat a team like the Bulls every time when their playing in Oakland, so it not surprising that the Warriors beat the Bulls.

Just from the fact that the Warriors are struggling a bit in general lately so any win is a surprise right now the way their playing. They had Phoenix on the road last Saturday, that’s not an easy game and everybody thought at the beginning of the season Phoenix was going to be one of the teams that was tanking. Turns out that’s not the case their quite good, the Suns would be a playoff team if the season were to end right now.

The Warriors should be able to make it competitive against a team like Phoenix for three quarters and that’s typically something that happens on the road. You would wonder what would happen to the Warriors if Andrew Bogut and David Lee had been playing, they were both on the sidelines with injuries on Saturday. That definitely had a big impact on the game.

Of course those two were also on the sidelines for the game against Chicago before the Warriors won the Suns game, so it’s a frustrating stretch that the Warriors have been going through. They still have a couple of games before the All-Star break one of them is in Oakland against Miami the defending champs.

That game should be a lot of fun and if you remember back a month or two ago, the Warriors went on the road to Miami and won in Miami during that big ten game win streak that they had and that six game road winning streak that was so impressive. The Warriors are a long ways from that team and their just not consistent on a nightly basis.

Part of the reasons the Warriors lost, the game against Phoenix was because the three point shots were not falling, not from Steph Curry or anybody else. When the Warriors are shooting from the floor their threes aren’t hitting. They can get in a little bit of trouble, let’s face it they’ve avoided crashing the basket. The W’s are not a team that can drive the lane a lot.

This is frustrating for the Warriors because their a team that could, Harrison Barnes’ skill set he could hit jumpers and outside shots. There’s no question but this is a guy who if he wants to be a unique player or a very good one has to be a little more agressive in charging the basket and until Barnes does that and until someone else on the Warriors does that including Clay Thompson the Warriors are going to have trouble if that shot is not falling.

David Zizmor covers the NBA for Sportstalk radio

Michelle Richardson on the NCAA: Fan gets pushed around not such a Smart move

Tori Eichberger/AP
Tori Eichberger/AP

by Michelle Richardson

Oklahoma State 61 (16-7) vs.Texas Tech (12-11) 65: I have to be honest with you the whole Marcus Smart of Oklahoma State is a bad situation all together. The critics are now trying to compare this pushing incident with a fan from last Saturday’s game with the Malice in the Palace incident which is really unfair and it didn’t warrant that.

This is the thing this is an older gentleman sitting behind the basket with a bunch of other fans and I get that fans will trash talk the players sometimes, but we don’t really know what really transended down there. Smart is saying he was called the N word by the fan. For Snmart this is not the first time he’s been called the N word and just because somebody has been called the N word before and walked away doesn’t always mean your always going to walk away.

There is going to be that moment in time that somebody is going to say the N word and that fan who alledgedly said that when the game was very tight, was very heated and very physical, that fan used that term. So again there’s a time for people to walk away and there is going to be that 10th time it’s that one time when people are not going to want to hear it.

Iowa State 84 (18-4) vs. TCU (9-13) 69: Your going to have to look at it like this the Big Ten is just one of those conferences that you can’t go to sleep on it. You can’t go to sleep on those conferences. Michigan is struggling. They were the top five just two weeks ago and they’re steadily coming down when they get into the heart of their schedule.

Michigan is going to be doing their home and home and Michigan is having a tough go at it but this is the thing I would rather have them have a tough go at it now then when their in March Madness when their really going to be fighting for seeding in the tournament. It’s just very hard.

Was Iowa State winning a big surprise? No, the Big Ten has a lot of talent, you have Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Indiana, just to name a few on any given day in college basketball one of those teams can beat the other. So if you go from top to bottom the Big Ten is not a horrible conference.

Wichita State (25-0) 82 vs.North Iowa (11-13)73: Wichita State has the confidence but really what it is for W State’s success is they have the anger. The anger is that their 25-0 and their only ranked number four in the country. Their angry and Wichita State is not getting the respect due to a team with that record.

I don’t understand how their 25-0 and Arizona is the number two team and Arizona is the number two team in the country. Arizona has lost and yet they play in the Pac 12 but Wichita State is still undefeated. So I don’t understand that and their playing angry and they want their respect.

They don’t feel like their getting the kind of respect that is due to them, they’re game against Northern Iowa and they haven’t gone to the tournament more than a few times by now. Don’t think that Nor Iowa is a chump team they came in and played hard too, they got some tremendous scoring production from their starting five.

Michelle Richardson does NCAA commentary each week for Sportstalk radio

Kings downtown arena: Old Sac biz leaders want Kings to switch game time to avoid messy traffic

Photo Courtesy SacBee
Photo Courtesy SacBee

by Ken Gimblin

SACRAMENTO-Business leaders in Old Sacramento have asked the Sacramento Kings to switch their tip offs to 7:30 PM instead of the usual 7:00 PM starting time. Business leaders say that dinner time is usually around 7pm and if the Kings tip is at 7pm too traffic would be a snarl going to Old Town, “Old Sacramento has very real existing transportation, parking, connectivitey issues, which the construction and operation of the arena will amplify” wrote Howard Skalet of Skalet Family Jewlers and Chris McSwain group executive director of 120 businesses that are involved with Old Sac.

McSwain and Skalet said a recent environmental report doesn’t include the issue of traffic tie ups at the 7PM hour and that the report being released without that information is misleading, “the (report) incorrectly and unfairly shifts the responsibility for negative impacts to Old Sacramento from nearly a half billion dollar construction project to small family owned businesses” concluded the report.

The Old Sac group is asking for 300 additional parking spaces to help allieviate the traffic near Old Town when the 7PM tip gets underway, the group also stated that they would be pleased when the Kings have their arena at the Mall location but Old Town is asking for some help in getting diners into Old Sac without fighting for parking and traffic access.

McSwain said the underpass that connects Old Sac to the Westfield Mall is not safe and the Old Sac group may ask for a safer passage way between the arena and Old Sacramento. Fans, diners, and tourists alike are being encouraged to walk to Old Sacramento and the new arena once everything is set up.

City Councilman McCarty says Kings investment group owners wanted more than claimed for arena deal: Sacramento Councilman Kevin McCarty made claim that in early 2013 the Sacramento Kings investment group had approached asking if the city would put up more than the $258 million public funds subsidy that the city was offering.

At the time those of the group were identified by McCarty as, Sacramento develper David Taylor, lobbyist and businessman David Anderson and Frank Quintero, and Southern California Billionaire Ron Burkle who had to later step down from the group because of conflict of interest issues.

The trio of Anderson, Quintero, and Burkle wanted more the from public subsidies than the $258 million figure at that time. Recently testifying at a closed door deposition for a lawsuit filed against the use of subsidies for the new Kings arena McCarty testified as read in the 133 page deposition that there were subsidies on the term sheet that were not accounted for, “I view that the city provided a normal of subsidies that weren’t properly accounted for monetarily in the term sheet.”

McCarty testified that the group wanted to inflate the $258 million another $125 million additional which the current Kings owners under managing partner Vivek Ranadive are reportedly asking for more in public subsidies, “so called whales lobbied me and other council members asking the city if they would contribute more than last year’s $258 million subsidy and using the number $125 million more because they were overpaying.”

Ken Gimblin is covering the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors new arena developments for Sportstalk radio

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: 1989 Oakland A’s World Series players reunion (at the Oakland Coliseum)

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

OAKLAND–The Oakland Athletics will have a 1989 World Series players reunion this 2014 season at the Oakland Coliseum.

Not many on the air today, called the 1989 World Series(The Loma Prieta Earthquake Series). Athletics vs Giants. I was lucky enough to have survived that event. As a matter of fact, as we get ready to go to Spring Training and to begin the 2014 A’S baseball season, only two A’s broadcasters today were there behind the microphone, Ray Fosse and yours truly.

Yes, I remembered too well, when they installed my then broadcast partner Evelio Areas Mendoza(retired living in Nicaragua) and yours truly inside a very small box next to the roof of Candlestick Park, that faithful 17th of October 1989 around 5:05pm when the earth shook. I was the Spanish play by play announcer for the Oakland Athletics and the games aired on KNTA radio 1430AM, San José.

Minutes after the earthquake I became a hard news reporter, as the Latin American media present from other countries, and the United States, interviewed me about the event. Just minutes after the quake, Manolo Alvarez, from WQBA AM in Miami(later he became a color analyst for the Florida Marlins, when they first played in 1993)Alvarez asked me in Spanish, “are there more earthquakes coming?” He was from non-earthquake places, from Florida, born in Cuba, but had never experienced such a tremor under his feet, Alvarez was terrified.

It took me almost four hours to get back to my home in Fremont, (a normal drive on 880 between Fremont and the Oakland Coliseum is 25 minutes)bridges were closed, part of the Bay Bridge collapsed, and that with the fire in the Marina district of San Francisco, plus the Oakland Cypress freeway that also collapsed, made news worldwide. It was really hell. Originally was announced as a 7.1 in the Ritcher Scale, then later downgraded to a 6.9, still it was a very good jolt for a few seconds that for many seems like many minutes.

The A’s won two more games to register the sweep against the San Francisco Giants, in the only World Series, that featured and earthquake in the middle.

Fay Vincent, MLB Commissioner interrupted the ’89 World Series for eleven days, he was a good steward for the game and showed real leadership.

To this date, and during my close to 40 years career in broadcasting Major League Baseball, this was one of my most memorable memories, one that I brought to life during my induction speech in 2010 into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame(BARHOF).

Memories!

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does New and Commentary each week for Sportstalk Radio

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: A’s Fanfest will see a reunion of great A’s stars from World Series teams of the 70s

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

OAKLAND–The San Francisco Giants had 35,000 fans at AT&T Park last weekend for their Fanfest day that was a big success and the A’s might have that many for their Fanfest but their going to have a big crowd maybe with 15,000-20,000 and I’m going to be part of that, the A’s asked me to be a master of ceremonies for the Yoenis Cepedes question and answer session in section 105 at the Coliseum in Oakland.

The time for the show to begin is between 1-2pm at the Coliseum, you’ll see such former A’s stars there such as Vida Blue, Blue Moon Odom, Campy Campaneris, alot of the old A’s players are going to be there of course some of the current A’ who will be playing this season will be there.

Campaneris lives in Scottsdale and we usually see him in spring training, last year he was signing autographs with Rollie Fingers and other ex-A’s players of the 70s and 80s. Campy is a great guy, probably the best shortstop they’ve ever had because Miguel Tejada only played a handful of years and Campy played the bulk of his career with the Oakland A’s. He was a real great player as a matter of fact in 72, 73,and 74 is when they won the World Series.

Reggie Jackson said our real MVP was Campy Campaneris when he got on base things happened. He was a terrific player, a great shortstop, and a great teammate. One year Campy hit over 20 home runs and he had a little pop and a little power and he was never a power hitter but he got on base. He stole a lot of bases, he hit for average, sometimes he bunted, he was a great bunter, by the way that’s a lost art.

Today you don’t see many players bunting the ball, Campaneris was a great player and he was nicknamed the Roadrunner by former A’s radio announcer Monte Moore, the A’s honored him a few years ago and they should retire his number, number 19 why not? The old A’s of the 70s who are coming back to visit the Coliseum and the fans remember there wasn’t the marketing there was like now and the salaries were not much.

Campaneris didn’t make much not even a $1 million not even close, I doubt it, it was a different type of baseball, it was not the power game that it is today. Campy right now will be a very good player but still he’s not a slugger, so he probably wouldn’t make the $15-20 million a year like some of these other players make.

Everytime I see him now I said to him he would make $5-10 million, he would say, “don’t tell me that” but it’s true Campaneris in today’s game he would make $5 million a year. With all respect to former owner Charlie Finley may he rest in peace, I think he wouldn’t give a dollar in the Salvation Army bucket outside of Macy’s during Christmas time. He was really a tight man, and he didn’t want to spend any money at all.

Even with the media Finley used to serve Kentucky Fried Chicken to the media every single game, year in year out all 81 games a year. God Bless him, that’s the way he was and he knew the game but he never paid anyone any big money and that’s why he lost all his players in 1976.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk radio

Warriors arena at piers 30-32: Warriors back to the drawing board;voters avalanche City Hall with height control ballots

by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–Warriors spokesman Nathan Ballard said it best this whole new arena idea about building on a few deteriorating pylons at Pier 30-32 wasn’t going to be the slam dunk as the NBA basketball team thought it would be. The drawing of what the UFO looking saucer arena would be with a bay window that would put any see through glass around here to shame overlooking the bay, Bay Bridge, and what would be the Warriors former home the East Bay was rejected for it’s size by registered voters in San Francisco in the size of 20,000 ballots whom have spoken loudly asking for a measure that asks voters to control the height of a new Warriors arena.

The main protest is that San Francisco residents do not want any of the proposed projects by the Warriors to block or be over sized in blocking the waterfront bayviews, “it’s difficult to build an arena over the water when we’re replacing two crumbling piers that are dilapidated and falling into the bay, we never said this was going to be easy” said Ballard. A San Francisco ballot measure that asks city voters should there be height control to not only the Warriors proposed 12 story new arena but also the planning of a 17 story luxury condo and ten story hotel to be built across the street from Piers 30-32 at the Embarcadero.

Jim Stearns spokesman for the height control ballots says any confusion over this issue between voters and City Hall should be cleared up after more than 20,000 ballots were double the minimum of 10,000 to qualify to get the measure on the ballot, “there’s been a disconnect between City Hall and the voters about waterfront height limits. We’re confident the voters want to have a say in what is developed there” said Steans.

Some of the voters or city residents do not want a Warriors arena at the piers at all but at the very least they want an arena with limitations to what was proposed in the original Warriors blueprints. The drawing of the structure left very little doubt that the hotel, condo or the arena should have height limitations according to those who signed the ballots. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee who called the new arena “a legacy” to his administration has backed off that stance and has recently said that it is up to the voters of San Francisco what the future of the waterfront should look like.

After the realizing the city voters are ready to squash any over sized building at the piers the Warriors go back to the architect and will redesign a new arena that will hopefully satisfy the residents height issues. The Warriors were hoping to have the arena done by 2017 but now have set their completion date at 2018 by that time it is expected that the Warriors will have both sides of the argument on board fully.

The Warriors have met with community leaders for and against the project on Tuesday at Pier 1 showing the Warriors schedule and the steps to be taken over the course of the months between now and 2018 on the development of the arena, condos, and hotel. There is little doubt after the Warriors backtracked on a new completion date that they will also introduce new height sizes for the three buildings.

The Warriors are concerned that the size reduction might cut into their business profits as the hotel and condo were designated to off set the new arena costs. While Ballard said piers 30-32 were dilapidating the Pier 1 meeting no doubt will aim to settle the arena being built at piers 30-32 regardless of the piers condition.

Meanwhile the ballot measure that will ask voters if there should be a height limitation on any new buildings at the pier 30-32 site will be on the June 2014 election ballot. It might be all for not as the Warriors sound like their prepared to adjust the size to satisfy the voters and waterfront residents so they can get the downsized project off the ground at a shorter version. The Warriors want to get an idea of when groundbreaking day is going to be they might have to go to the voter to find that out.

Ken Gimblin is covering the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings arena developments for Sportstalk radio

Morris Phillips and Michael Duca on Cal basketball: Bears get mojo back on Cobbs buzzer beater;Look forward to big game with Cardinal at Haas

by Morris Phillips and Michael Duca
Cal basketball commentary special to Sports Radio Service

BERKELEY–Boy howdy, what a difference a few days and games make for the Cal Golden Bears and for Justin Cobbs last Saturday night in that unforgettable buzzer beater with 0.9 second left to tip the undefeated Arizona Wildcats really put this team futher out on the map. A criple layup on a steal against Arizona State and missed the final shot that would have won the game in regulation for Cobbs.

For Cobbs to come back and get redemption against the the number one team in the nation the Bears have to feel extrremely good and in fact I know it did because we talked with Cobbs exclusively after that game. It wasn’t just that final shot, he was the only Cal Bear to score in the final 11:30 of that game.

Arizona who could have dominated or took a lead for most of this game could and was expected to be the winner of this match but they lead for only 16 seconds in the first half and for about 48 seconds in the second half. It always felt like this was Cal’s game. The question was whether or not they were going to hang on because what I expected was that game was going to be a parade to the foul line.

Arizona had all 16 of their free throws and they beat Stanford the other night by getting to the free throw line over and over again. This is what was concerning was whether they were going to win the game while the clock was running because Arizona wasn’t going to win the game when the clock was stopped.

Cal didn’t have a particularily have a great game against the Wildcats, they had to know there was a lot of speed on the court and the Bears didn’t react to it until the second half and they had a spectacular game plan against Arizona. They were able to compete with them somewhat on the floor, and they were unfortunate in that the Wildcats had a miserable shooting night.

At one point the Wildcats were shooting 26% in the first half which about the only way you could survive when you give a team 11 offensive rebounds in one half. Cal on their behalf was shooting 50% and everything was falling the way it needed to but it was particularily intriging by the way Cal head coach Mike Montgomery had three freshman out on the floor just eight minutes into the game.

Montgomery pointed out given that Arizona State’s seven foot center hit a basket low post and he had to have a guy who looks like someone that will be able to guard him, it’s when the big men start moving around and are fluid on the floor that looked like the defender had problems keeping up with him because he was really quick. You have to credit Montgomery for his scouting, for seeing where Cal could exploit certain weaknesses that Arizona had and for going out and doing it and executing it perfectly.

Morris Phillips and Michael Duca do Cal basketball commentary each week for Sportstalk Radio

Larry Leavitt on Sharks hockey: Sharks wrap up first half on SAP ice; should be a war these last two games

by Larry Leavitt

SAN JOSE–The San Jose Sharks who came off an amazing victory in a shootout with the Chicago Blackhawks last Saturday night it was basically a puck possesion team versus a puck possesion team with a surprisng short handed goal from the Sharks Joe Pavelski. Then right away Chicago answered back to tie it up.

The interesting part of last Saturday’s game was the shootout the Sharks are now eight for nine in their last shootouts all eight of those victories were shootout victories which in the beginning of this year the shootouts weren’t going as well. Take the point while you can get them. Their stealing them now.

The Sharks who had come into that game with a three game losing streak and it was not so much the losing streak that was important and that would bother you because your going to lose some, it’s the team your playing at the moment. They were playing Chicago and they came out with the tie and the one point in the shootout. which was a big moral victory.

If the Sharks face Chicago again it would have to be in the Fianl Four round of the Stanley Cup playoffs and the Sharks have to be glad they got this one under their belt. The Sharks can always to refer to the Blackhawks who were an unbeatable team that won the Stanley Cup a few years ago. They have a chance this year and it gives you a lot of confidence when you go into those finals.

The Sharks played the second of four home games with Philadelphia on Monday night at the SAP and the games on Saturday and Monday were battles, one thing the Sharks did right was they keyed up the fans and they really have had three good games this week. It started wtih Philadelphia on Monday night, then they will host Dallas on Wednesday night, and wrap up the first half of the season with a finale before the All-Star break with Columbus on Friday night.

There’s that two week Olympic break coming, their going to see a big push here, the big concern is they have Jason Demars out, he was scratched last Saturday night with multi scratch injuries last game for the Sharks, we hope to see Demars get some ice time. You have to be excited about these three games finishing out before the Olympic break. That means your going to be that much closer to seeing Logan Courture coming back.

There is not a lot of word on Tomas Hertl but the Sharks are very fortunate to get as far they have and the people that they’ve called up have done a really good job an admirable job and it’s not like their pulling their weight but their not Logan Couture. Their not that top light and as much as I’ve given them credit for he’s done a great job. He still has a little ways to go to fill those Olympic shoes.

Larry Leavitt does San Jose Sharks commentary each week for Sportstalk radio

Michelle Richardson on the NCAA Cal’s upset over Arizona adds to the best in college ball

by Michelle Richardson

Cal 60 Arizona 58: This game was a shocker to me of all teams that took Arizona down it was a Cal Berkeley team that did that and yes I still can’t believe it Cal took them down. Yes it was on Haas Pavilion but you really didn’t expect that this game was really tight. It was a tight game all the way through. The first half basically The Bears held Arizona to 29 points in the second half.

The Bears just ended up beating Arizona by a bucket, Arizona was looking beyond Cal and at Cal the fans went crazy. Usually the Bearcats challenge teams but it just wasn’t enough as the Bearcats top scorers Kaleb Tarczewski 18, T.J. McConnell 13, and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson with 10. For Cal’s top three scorers Justin Cobbs 19, David Kravish 14, Richard Solomon with 12.

That jumper that Cobbs hit with 0.9 seconds to win that game is going to go down as one of those “oh my God where were you at” moments for Cal fans. It’s going to be one of those moments, the problem with Arizona was they really didn’t get a lot of help. There were a few people doing the scoring and litterally that was mostly Tarczewski and McConnell. Those were the only two players that scored for the Bearcats and they were looking for Eric Gordon but he was held to just eight points.

Syracuse 91 Duke 89: You knew this game was going to be spectacular welcome to the ACC Syracuse (21-0) and Duke and these two teams are not new to facing each other but their new to the ACC. They came in as championship like teams they’ve been to the Final Four before and I really like the way these teams let the ACC know that their in it to win it.

Right now Syracuse is the top dog in the ACC, number two Syracuse who will be polled at number one on Monday is just on a roll they’re playing so well and what can you say about them with top scorers like T.J.Fair with 28 points on Sunday, Jerami Grant 24 points, and Trevor Cooney and Tyler Ennis both finishing with 14.

Everybody was in this game from the beginning, even guys who were on the bench but that last second shot that forced the game into overtime that’s when that gets your heart going. That last second shot from Grant to take it into overtime, “it’ll make you say, are you kidding me, this can’t be happening.” That’s the thing that makes the college game so great when things like that happen.

Cincinnati (21-2, 10-0) 50 U South Florida (11-1) 45: It was a five point differential for the Bearcats in the win against the Bulls on Saturday. In this game USF gave Cincy a scare, the Bulls gave the Bearcats a run for their money but Cincinnati topped it off with a five point win. Top scorers for the winning Bearcats 18 for Sean Kilpatrick, Justin Jackson 15, and Ge’Lawn Guyn with eight points.

It was kind of an even game but what made it close there were quite a few turnovers on both sides, and the Bearcats were able to hold on and make the AAC. The next four games of the Bearcats schedule is Connecitcut, SMU, Houston, and UCF. Saturday Feb 22 Cincinnati will face Louisville

South Florida is one of the top dogs in the conference and you kind of have to wait for this kind of excitment that’s waiting to happen and it’s going to happen and can’t wait to see it happen and can’t wait to get into the tournaments I’m going to lose my mind.

Michelle Richardson does commentary on the NCAA each week

Warriors commentary: With upcoming road trip Warriors can close out first half big before All-Star break

by Daivd Zimor

OAKLAND–What we saw with the Warriors in their last game on the road against Utah is a team that was playing without David Lee. His presence on offense has been a really big boost for this Warriors team he’s one of the best inside scorers around basketball and one of the best in the NBA.

There was a reason why he was named to the Olympic roster just a couple of weeks ago and it was because of that ability, losing him definitely changes how the Warriors approach these games because they simply don’t have the same inside scoring presence without him. What happened in Utah was very interesting with the Warriors bench being thin with injuries to Jermaine O’Neal, Festus Ezeli and Lee.

Andrew Bogut has had a great week and a half as it is against Utah he was scoring points he was typical on his impact on defense but it was the offense that was really surprising. With Bogut everyone knew he had some kind of offensive skill but the Warriors haven’t called on him all that much. The Warriors do like to call on him as a passer but when we saw him in the last game he was somthing else he would hit a 19 footer with his foot on the three point line and it would have been a three.

Lee was running, he was cutting he was making moves around the basket, he was playing that brand of basketball that made him one of the top picks in the NBA way back when he was with the Milwaukee Bucks if the Warriors can get a little bit more of that kind of play out of Bogut they would be tough to stop.

Granted Utah is not a great test case because Utah is a lousy team but Bogut was showing some offensive skills that we really haven’t seen from him this season but we haven’t seen this all in one game. If the Warriors can coach that out of him every now then that would be a weapon other teams would have to worry about.

It’s worth noting that Bogut had that big game and Stephen Curry has the highest scoring night of the year with 44 points. In the last few games Bogut has really been the key for this Warriors, Curry is doing his typical Curry stuff and their starting to come around the defense is starting to come into play and we’ll see how they do in this final stretch towards the All-Star break they have a game against Charlotte, Miami, and Phoenix so they have some winnable games.

Miami is not a sure thing but if they beat Miami and they seemed to match up pretty well against them and whenever they play Miami they get up for it, it’s one of those things they rise to the occasion. Going into the All-Star break their 29-19. They have four games until the break they can win three out of those four and their capable of winning all four. This is an important stretch to put the Warriors in solid footing.

David Zizmor covers the NBA for Sportstalk Radio