Category: Golden State Warriors

Curry’s late game heroics lift Warriors over Mavericks, 95-93

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By Gabe Schapiro

On Wednesday night at Oracle Arena the Golden State Warriors (13-10) made another late comeback at home, this time toppling the Dallas Mavericks (13-10), 95-93. A little over a week ago the Warriors overcame a 27-point deficit to beat the Toronto Raptors. Tonight didn’t quite match that historic effort, coming back from being down “only” 18, but it was another one that anyone in attendance won’t be forgetting anytime soon.

As has become an unfortunate habit of late, Golden State had a dreadful start. They began the game shooting an abysmal 4-for-21 from the field, and had some butter fingers, turning the ball over often. After the first quarter they were already facing a seven-point deficit, kept that low only because Dallas was only slightly less horrible.

In the second quarter the Warriors shooting improved ever so slightly, but by halftime they had already racked up 10 turnovers, and were still just scoring at a 39.5% clip. Andrew Bogut was their biggest saving grace. He was a beast down low, blocking two big shots of the “woah” variety, and hauling in 12 rebounds. At one point in the second quarter the Mavericks held their biggest lead of the night with 18, but towards the end Golden State started chipping away.

Coming out of the locker room the Warriors defense woke up. They played with a much higher sense of urgency, and as a result the buckets started hitting as well. They still didn’t look great, but it was far from the dreadful performance witnessed in the first. Heading into the final 12 minutes they had cut the Dallas lead down to a much more manageable six points.

It should be noted that up until this point Stephen Curry was, for the most part, having one of his worst games of the year. He wasn’t making much and he was turning the ball over often. In the fourth quarter, that all changed.

That sweet stroke of Curry’s can only stay cold for so long, and when it mattered most he caught fire. With five minutes remaining a Curry jumper finally brought the Warriors back to a tie game. From their both sides traded blows and traded their share of the lead.

But on this night Curry just simply wouldn’t be denied. With 46 seconds left the game again stood at a stalemate, 93-93. The Mavericks missed their chance to win it, and with 1.5 seconds left, of course the ball went to Curry. And Curry would not miss his chance.

A Curry pump-fake got his defender, Shawn Marion, to leave his feet, giving him all the opening he needed to nail a 19-foot jumper. That gave the Warriors their second consecutive huge comeback win at home.

Curry finished with a game-high 33 points, to go along with 10 assists. 17 of those points came in the fourth. David Lee also posted a double-double, 15 points and 11 boards. Bogut finished with six points, and a season-high 18 rebounds. Draymond Green played a big 28 minutes off the bench, filling the stat sheet with nine points, five rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and a steal.

In the losing effort Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points and seven rebounds. Monta Ellis, in front of his former home, chipped in 21 points and five assists.

As exciting as these games are, the Warriors need to work on having better starts. Miracle comebacks can’t always be counted on. They will look to do so this Friday against the tough Houston Rockets.

Commissioner says no to A’s move but owners would approve in a vote

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That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

OAKLAND–Major Leauge Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig during last regular season denied the A’s move to San Jose if you read between the lines. They were asking about the San Jose financial status and if San Jose can support a big league club. It makes no sense to me because in a recent survey San Jose was declared the wealthiest city with over one million people.

Silicon Valley is in the South Bay the only reason that this is happening is because of Giants team president Larry Baer is declaring the team’s territorial rights in San Jose and this might be put to a vote and it’s almost positive that the owners would apporve the move by over a quarter of the majority but it’s the Giants who hold the cards here therefore the A’s are stuck in Oakland and they just recently extended their contract at the Coliseum for two more years.
Eventually something will happen, something will give, it might be that A’s owners Lew Wolf and Don Fisher might get tired of this situation and put the A’s up for sale. For right now the A’s have been denied moving from Oakland to San Jose although that’s not written in blood as we speak it’s not a real definite.
Kings and Warriors arena builds: If the Sacramento Kings can’t build their own arena in downtown Sacramento it would be a shame because Sacramento Mayor Ken Johnson jumped through hoops to keep the team in Sacramento and stopping the team from leaving for Seattle.
When you put a vote like this to the voters who knows you could flip a coin most people in this country are not in the mood to spend tax money on new arenas. Most people 99 percent beleive that most owners have the money to build a new arena. These are the guys who sign players for over $200 million and the average fan or citizen would say they would have the money to build it themselves.
So if the public votes on the new Kings arena and I’m not a betting guy but most people in Sacramento would vote no on spending public money on a new arena. The owners have to be ready to pay and build their own arena. Regarding the Warriors we don’t know the history of San Francisco. All you have to do is look at the Giants and see how many times they tried to build a new stadium with some public money.
The voters turned them down several times until they got approved for Pacific Bell Park, the Warriors want to move to the City at piers 30-32 but right now former San Francisco Mayor Art Agnos is working very hard to prevent the Warriors from moving to the piers. In an election to decide to move the Warriors at the piers won’t be easy it won’t be a matter of “were going to put the Warriors at the piers and that’s all”.
Warriors owners Joe Lacob and Peter Gruber they have great attorneys but they don’t understand the political environmental layout of San Francisco. Even if both Lacob and Gruber could pay for the entire project the voters would vote no because they like the views at the piers just fine.
Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk Radio

Walker’s season-high trumps Curry’s

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Photo Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

By Pearl Allison Lo

Despite Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry’s season-high 43 points, the Charlotte Bobcats’ Kemba Walker’s season-high tying 31 points, was the one that counted in a 115-111 last minute victory Monday.

Curry also had 6 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 blocks while Walker had 5 rebounds and 5 assists as the teams met for the first time this season.

The Warriors did not really factor in the first half as they put up 37 three pointers over the course of the game.

With 21 seconds left in the game, Walker, went 6 of 8 from the free throw line, missing two right before Curry made it 109-111 with 11 seconds left and another three pointer. However, Curry could not make two more three pointers, including one from 40 feet out, as Walker went perfect his last four times from the line to seal the game.

Charlotte was never behind the whole game and built up a nine point lead during the 1st quarter. Within the first four minutes, Golden State had already attempted three three pointers and the Bobcats’ Al Jefferson was active on both ends, grabbing five rebounds and going 1 of 4 from the floor. Off a steal with 7:47 left to go, Charlotte’s  Josh McRoberts assisted Walker on a layup and then scored a three pointer less than 30 seconds later, when Walker assisted him off a defensive rebound. The Warriors went 0 for 8 from the three point line, while the Bobcats only attempted one, which they missed.

 In the 2nd quarter, Charlotte led by as many as 14 points and both teams went scoreless for over two minutes.

Golden State turned up the heat in the third, scoring 36 points, on 7 of 14 three pointers. The Warriors’ Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson had three apiece. With 2:44 left in the quarter, Golden State cut the lead down from 13 to 6, attempting four three pointers in a row, making the first two, and one with less than a minute to go. The Bobcats had their biggest lead of 15 points during the quarter.

Thompson made it 80-83 with a three pointer to lead off the 4th quarter. Curry’s second free throw with 8:52 left and fourth consecutive of the quarter, tied the game at 88 apiece. However, four fouls by the Warriors, including two steals by Ben Gordon, and three three pointers from Charlotte, gave the Bobcats back a double digit lead. A three by Curry made it 102-107 with 2:28 left to go as Golden State made another comeback. The Warriors also had an over 30 second sequence in which they eventually scored and could have gotten more.

Game notes: Golden State had two technical fouls during the game. David Lee had a double double with a season-high 16 rebounds and 14 points and Josh McRoberts had one with 10 rebounds and 11 points. The Warriors next play Wednesday against the Dallas Mavericks.

Warriors overcome 27-point deficit, stun Raptors 112-103

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By Gabe Schapiro

On Tuesday night at Oracle Arena the Golden State Warriors (11-8) made a huge late comeback to steal one from the Toronto Raptors (6-11), 112-103. They trailed by as many as 27 points, before storming back with a 42-point fourth quarter. On a historic night the Warriors tied for the seventh greatest comeback in NBA history.

For Golden State it was a tale of two teams. At times they arguably looked as bad as they have all season. In the fourth quarter the light switch went on, and they became simply unstoppable.

The Warriors came out of the gates flat. They looked rusty and just didn’t execute anything particularly well. Through 12 minutes of play Jermaine O’Neal was the teams leading scorer with five points in just three minutes. They quickly dug themselves into a 17-point deficit.

In the second quarter it looked like they had begun to open their eyes. Slowly but surely they were correcting their mistakes, and started hitting some shots. Harrison Barnes was big in keeping them within shouting distance, scoring 14 points in the quarter. The Warriors had stopped bleeding-out, but at half time still found themselves down 17, 65-48.

Coming out of the locker room things got worse before they got better. The Raptors extended their lead to as high as 27 points, and it looked like they were hammering the final nails in the Warriors coffin. In the waning minutes of the third quarter, however, the spark was lit. Golden State ended the frame with a 9-0 run, but still had an 18-point sized mountain to climb. It looked like it was an honorable late push that would be too little too late.

The fourth and final quarter looked like an entirely different ballgame. The Warriors seemingly forgot how to miss, and Toronto seemingly forgot how to score. Golden State’s ace in the hole, their historical three-point shooting, had been failing them all night. In the fourth they found it.

They got contributions from everyone who stepped on the floor, but were led primarily by the splash brothers. The dynamic duo of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson started hitting shot after shot, and slowing took chunks out of the Raptors lead. With three minutes remaining, a Curry three completed the comeback, and gave Golden State their first lead since early in the first quarter. They took their 101-99 lead and kept piling on.

Toronto failed to score in the final 1:30 of the game, making the final score look almost like your average nine-point win. It was anything but. All told, the Warriors outscored the Raptors 42-15 in the fourth to complete the epic victory.

Curry finished with a double-double. He scored a game-high 27 points, to go along with 10 assists, and five steals. Thompson pitched in 22, on six-of-12 beyond the arc, and seven assists.

O’Neal was huge off of the bench for Golden State, making numerous big plays to keep them alive. He finished with 11 points and eight boards in 23 minutes. He was also a very telling, game-high, +30.

In the losing effort DeMar DeRozan led the Raports with 26 points. Amir Johnson had a double-double off the bench, putting up 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Golden State now hits the road, beginning with a matchup with the Houston Rockets this Friday.

Agnos ramps up anti SF arena support with grass roots campaign

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by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–Former San Francisco Mayor Art Agnos who said that the Golden State Warriors new arena proposal for downtown San Francisco at piers 30-32 would be a real estate money grab and he is correct and in this world you really can’t criticize people for wanting to make money and you look at all the sports teams today and their in business to make money and I use sports teams as an example because most people root for a team passionately not realizing it’s a business.

So of course they want to make money like Warriors owners Joe Lacob and Peter Gruber, the question would be how much is the public going to have to contribute to make that money, that’s the big argument. They want to put that arena in that area that’s fine they want to foot the cost and they want tax payers to come in and supplement that. Agnos says that and also building on piers 30-32 is going to be a problem in terms of aesthetics and the environment, “they want the prettiest place in the city, I can’t blame them. But it’s the wrong site for a good team” said Agnos.

You can’t blame the Warriors for wanting that location and that’s a magnificent view looking onto the Bay and the bridge which the plan is to build a large window looking out onto the bay where basketball fans can see that wonderful view during the game. The development would come with two luxury hotel towers at least ten stories high, a 16 story luxury condominium complex across the Embarcadero, plus retail stores and a 500 space garage.

Agnos 70 who is campaigning to community groups at least two to three times a week is catching the attention of neighborhood groups around the city as the Warriors new arena proposal is the hottest San Francisco political issue. Agnos called the Warriors downtown arena the “perfect storm” for gridlock on the Embarcadero and that it’s being proposed by Warriors billionaire owners Lacob and Gruber who Agnos says don’t have the city’s best interest at heart but this is all about profit and affordable housing you can forget that.

“There’s no sense being in second, there’s no sense in doing something unless you’re going to do it right” said Lacob. The Warriors no doubt will be fronting their share of money for the build but there is little doubt that public tax payers funds would go into paying for the Warriors arena. The Sacramento Kings are using public funds for their new downtown arena set to break ground in downtown Sacramento next year the funds are reportedly coming out of the general fund and will be repaid with parking lot receipts and sales tax from tickets sold at Kings home games.

Warriors spokesman Nathan Ballard who is strategizing the project on the political side said “Art Agnos is a very smart guy and he knows that if the election were held tomorrow the Warriors would win it.” Agnos is running a grass roots campaign ran with a clipboard for notes and promises from the community that oppose the building at the waterfront they would support Agnos in stopping any kind of new development at piers 30-32. The proof is in the pudding after San Francisco propositions B and C lost in the October 2013 election last month to develop condominiums at the piers and the election wasn’t even close.

The San Francisco business community was out in full force behind the development effort with Mayor Ed Lee, former mayors Gavin Newsom and Willie Brown and the higher ups from the Chamber of Commerce. Although no one from that camp admits it Agnos played a huge part in getting the development proposal to get voted down and much can be said the same for the newest proposals for a new arena coming from the Warriors.

Ken Gimblin is covering the Warriors new arena proposal in San Francisco for Sportstalk Radio

Curry Returns But Warriors Drop a Chippy 113-101 Contest to Trailblazers

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By Matthew Harrington

The Golden State Warriors became another victim in the Portland Trailblazers’ 10-game unbeaten streak, suffering a 113-101 loss at Oracle Arena Saturday night. The Trailblazers (12-2) rallied in the closing minutes of the third and start of the fourth quarter to come from behind in a chippy affair that saw three ejections, 53 combined personal fouls and seven technical fouls.

LaMarcus Aldrige had his third career 20-20 game, dropping 30 points on the Warriors while reeling in 21 rebounds. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 30 points before fouling out in the fourth while Stephen Curry added 22 points on 8 of 21 shooting in his return to the lineup. Andre Iguodala did not play for the short-handed Warriors (8-6) after straining his left hamstring in Friday night’s loss to the Lakers.

Golden State held a 54-49 lead at the half, but a third-quarter scuffle sparked a Portland comeback. The Warriors held a 77-63 lead when Aldridge was leveled to the court. Wesley Matthews received a technical foul after taking exception to the play and in the aftermath the Trailblazers’ Joel Freeland and Andrew Bogut began jawing and shoving each other, sending both benches into chaos. The referees restored order, handing out six technical fouls and ejecting Draymond Green from the game along with Portland’s Mo Williams and Matthews.

The skirmish inspired the Trailblazers to go on a run for the remainder of the quarter, cutting the Golden State lead to 84-81 before completing the comeback on a 12-2 run to open the final stanza, coasting for a victory from there.

The Warriors now face unusual territory this season, sputtering through a three-game losing streak, including a two-game winless stretch at home. Last season, the Warriors only lost consecutive home games once, falling to the Houston Rockets and Milwaukee backs in both ends of a back-to-back. The Warriors have not lost more three games or more in a row at home since a five-game skid to end the 2011-12 season.

Golden State do not receive an opportunity to defend home-court until December, going on a four-game road trip with stops in New Orleans, Dallas, Oklahoma City before a return to California for clash with the Kings in Sacramento.

Tuesday’s tilt against New Orleans will give the Warriors their first look at the newly-branded Pelicans as well as a chance to try to regain a tie atop the Pacific Division standings with the Los Angeles Clippers. Golden State sits one back of first while New Orleans stands in dead last in the Southwest Division with a 6-6 record, tied for third-worst in the Western Conference.

Consenus from pro and con voters SF arena traffic main concern

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by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–Even voters in San Francisco who are pulling for a new San Francisco downtown arena admit that traffic and not views or environmental issues will be the main issue of debate. San Francisco officials which includes the planning commission have come up with an idea to ease traffic and that’s to construct a light rail line that will run from McCovey Cove from AT&T Park to the Warriors new arena at piers 30-32 which would include  $1 billion new condos and hotel, and that is expected to help cover the traffic flow when both teams play on the same nights or if their are events being held at the same time.

While discussion had been focused on no development at the San Francisco waterfront and demonstrated in the October election when voters voted down propositions B and C that would start condo development at the piers 30-32 location. Even with a new transit lane that would run from the Giants park to the Warriors new arena and the traffic issue question resolved the waterfront neighborhood still opposes the Warriors building a new arena that could block the view of the bridge and the bay.

 Former San Francisco City Attorney Louise Renne stated that she and San Francisco voters during the prop B and C election were against the development at that location. San Francisco Mayor Art Agnos said the Warriors and condo developers are not in it for basketball or entertainment but this is merely a land grab for pure profit.

The Sierra Club is one of the strong environmental non-profits who are demonstrating environmental issues with developing on the piers from not only the aesthetics but also animals and their protection to arguing the pier is fine just the way it is. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors or most of them are trying to make way for this development as this would surely be a profitable situation for the City.

Board of Supervisor Scott Weiner says the Muni improvements would cost $2.2 billion more than the new arena-condo project, “before there wasn’t nearly enough focus on transit impacts and transit needs, my sense that is shifting there’s a renewed focus. As negotiations move forward, it’s very important to have in mind the full transit impacts of the project to make sure those are being accounted for.” said Weiner

Ken Gimblin is covering the NBA arena projects for the Warriors and Kings for Sportstalk Radio

As Curry Sits, Warriors Drop 11th Straight to Memphis in OT

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By Matthew Harrington

One streak came to an end while another continued on strong in after 88-81 overtime defeat for the Golden State Warriors at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies (7-5) Wednesday night at Oracle Arena. With Stephen Curry sitting due to what is being termed a concussion, the Warriors were handed their first loss in six homes games this season, continuing a string of 11-straight losses to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Klay Thompson dropped a game-high tying 21 points on 9 of 19 shooting, while David Lee added 18 points on 9 field goals in 17 attempts. Andre Iguodala notched 14 assists in Curry’s absence. Zach Randolph scored 21 points to tie Thompson for the game best while pulling down 12 rebounds, most by any side Wednesday night. Marc Gasol also nabbed a double-double on 18 points and 11 rebounds.

The Warriors (8-4) raced out to a 26-16 lead and held a ten-point lead at the midway point for a 44-34 halftime score. Memphis outscored Golden State 25-13 in the third quarter to take a two-point 59-57 lead in to the fourth.

The wild fourth quarter saw the Warriors storm back from an early six-point deficit to chisel away at a 63-57. Thompson capped the comeback with a 3-pointer with 7:20 left to give Golden State the 68-66 lead. From there, the lead would change four more times before the quarter ended in a 75-75 deadlock.

Memphis controlled the overtime session, outscoring the Warriors 13-6. Mike Conley had five points in the extra frame and Tayshaun Prince added a pair of daggers on two contested desperation jump shots that hit their mark.

The Warriors coughed up 14 turnovers to Memphis’ 6. Golden State was limited to only 4 fast break points, struggling without the normal starting point guard against a stout Grizzlies defense.
Another Warrior went down with injury as Ognjen Kuzmic injured his right arm on the backboard during the first quarter. He now joins Toney Douglas, Jermaine O’Neal and Stephen Curry as wounded Warriors.

Golden State travels to Los Angeles to face the Lakers Friday night in a rematch of the opening night 100-95 victory. Tip-off is at 7:30 pm.

Warriors Cruise Past Utah 102-88, Thompson Drops 25 Points on Jazz

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By Matthew Harrington

The Golden State Warriors maintained their unblemished record at home Saturday night, besting the Utah Jazz 102-88 at Oracle Arena to improve their record to 7-3 on the season, keeping pace atop the Pacific Division standings with the Los Angeles Clippers. Klay Thompson led the warriors with 25 points on 9 of 14 shooting. Thursday’s hero Andre Iguodala pitched in 16 points and Stephen Curry added 15 to go with a game-high 11 assists. Derrick Favors lead the Jazz with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Andrew Bogut led all players with 11 boards.

The Warriors raced out to an early 27-13 lead after the first quarter in front of the sell-out crowd and by the half the advantage had increased to 51-34. The Jazz outscored Golden State in only one quarter, 29-23 in the third frame, to draw as close as down six points. The Warriors coasted to the victory though with a 28-25 final quarter for their fifth-straight win at home this season.

Victory came with a price for the Warriors. Backup center Jermaine O’Neal sprained his right knee and strained his right knee going to the basket with 11:26 left in the fourth. He was helped off the court and did not return.

Golden State will next head to Salt Lake City for a Monday night tilt that will have the Jazz seeking revenge for the Saturday night loss. Tip-off begins at 6 p.m.

Iguodala buzzer beater tops Thunder, 116-115

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By Gabe Schapiro

Welcome to Oakland Andre Iguodala.

On Thursday night the Golden State Warriors (6-3) won in thrilling fashion, 116-115, over the Oklahoma City Thunder (5-3). Iguodala was already making a name for himself with the Warriors, and anyone he hadn’t already won over is officially on board now. With 2.3 seconds remaining and the team down two, the ball went to Iguodala who nailed a three from the corner to beat the buzzer, sending the crowd into a frenzy, and sending the crowd home happy.

In this one both teams hit the ground sprinting. The first quarter featured few missed shots from either side, as the Thunder started particularly hot, shooting and incredible 68.4% from the field. They were also totally owning the boards, hauling in 16 rebounds compared to Golden State’s four. The Warriors kept the game close, however, thanks to eight Oklahoma City turnovers and some nice shooting of their own. Klay Thompson had an early nine points to lead the way, as Golden State got points from eight different players in the first frame. After 12 minutes, which saw 11 lead changes, the Thunder had a slight 33-32 lead.

The second quarter saw both teams slowly come down to earth a bit, but the same fast paced and close action continued. David Lee started to come alive, chipping in 10 in the quarter. Thompson stayed hot and added seven more to his total. Stephen Curry started to catch fire, contributing six points and four assists. In another extremely evenly played quarter, the teams were dead-locked at 62-62 heading into halftime.

Coming out of the locker rooms the Warriors grabbed the momentum and started to pull away. Curry took over the game for stretches, as Golden State led by as many as 14. Heading into the final frame the Warriors held a 95-86 lead.

At the start of the fourth Golden State seemed to almost be coasting, as they had little trouble maintaining a comfortable lead. With about six minutes remaining, however, the Thunder started to make a run. They got hot and the Warriors got cold. Golden State managed to hold onto their lead despite their struggles and the occasional miscue, up until Russell Westbrook stuck a dagger into the hearts of Warriors fans, hitting a deep three with 2.3 seconds left to give them the two point lead. All was not lost, however, as in stepped Iguodala to save the day. On a quick in bounds pass from Thompson, Iguodala turned and hit the fade-away three-pointer from the corner, over the out-stretched arm of the defender. Nothing but net.

Iguodala finished with 14 points and nine assists. Thompson had team-high 27. Curry just missed a double-double with 22 points and nine assists. Harrison Barnes had a great game off the bench, contributing 16 points in 23 minutes.

In the losing effort Westbrook had a game-high 30 points to go along with nine rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Serge Ibaka had a double-double, posting 27 points and 13 boards. Keving Durant, who was relatively quiet by his standards, had 20 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds.