Although to be fair, they couldn't afford Arenas because he was a 2nd round pick that they only signed to a 2 year deal so they didn't have his Bird Rights. Guys like him have changed the way that GMs sign 2nd round picks. Like with Boozer they had a team option for his 2nd and 3rd seasons, so if they like a guy, they can lock him up until they get his bird rights. Of course that opened up a different can of worms.
Keep dreaming man and if the Clippers need a Baron Davis type player um.. didn't they have Q-rich a great shooter and ballhandler and dont give me the two different positions. And yess they are decent players if Baron didnt shoot 25% crap shots all the time and was a team first player maybe he would be better than Wade but dont even think Baron is better than Wade Baron's knees are done (Reminds me of "Penny") But keep dreaming about GS and the Clippers bc if either one of those team makes the playoffs next year ill pay 100$ to the tip jar that is how confident i am that those two teams are composed of "DECENT" players. And when i say decent Im not meaning a Jon Barry who is a good player when I say decent not all star level bc that is for KG Tmac and them but Decent is Baron Davis someone who can score and do things for himself Cuttino is a "decent" player. So dont take offense Jumpman that your boy Baron Davis who you think can take Wade is just "decent" Oh ya and Elton Brand WAYYYYY better than Baron Davis hmm 56% shooter and hard nosed player or bad knees jacks up 30 3 pointers a game. Hmmm..who would you take.
I am not sure you can say that, since under the Eric Musselman era, they overachieved in two consecutive seasons. They never had a roster that could 'underachieve' since late 90s. And about the Mullin comment, I am always LOL about fans making short-sighted comments after less than a season. Just look at how some guys treated JVG then and now. I'll give you Baron Davis' bads first: He shoots way too many 3s, and sometimes he went for spectacular, high-risk plays for anyone's liking. But he brought excitement and tremendous energy whenever he is on the court. He is the best passer at PG position since Tim Hardaway left town during mid-90s. He commands double-teammed constantly. He is to the Warriors what TMac is to the Rockets: A guy that plays like a leader and command respects. Tell me: If you are in our position, if you team constantly sucks, what else you can do other than pinning hopes year after year? When your team is finally heading into a good direction, or so it seems, can't you just get a little excited. I know, you've watched Stevie Francis quite a lot and Baron Davis appears to be from the same hybrid. I was under such impressions too. But make no mistake, Baron Davis is as 'pure' a PG as you can get. He just so happened to have the ability to score in bunches. I for one won't concern about him over-dribbling every times on an offensive set. Foyle and Fisher are way overpaid, everyone has that conclusion except for Chris Mullin. But you're a little off regarding JRich's and Murphy's contracts. JRich starts out at roughly 9M next year. That's about 2~3 millions under the max. It's close but certainly not that closer than many people thought, I would think. Murphy starts out at a little over 7M next season, he won't hit the 10M mark until 08/09. What you should take note is, Chris Mullin is contend at the talents he has at this moment. The Warriors have an excess of talented swingmen, a really good PG, and a couple of nice big-men prospects. Throw-in a mid-to-high lottery pick this coming draft, they really don't need to be a major player in FA market for next few years. And with those excessive talents, trades are not out of questions when it became clear things won't work out for any reasons. So the Warriors are not in as bad a shape financially as it would appeared on paper. Again, Murphy is not THAT overpaid. He is still under his rookie contract this season for crying out loud. His productions are not too far off of what Carlos Boozer did a year ago, and he will get several millions below to start next season. Throw-in a possible improvements, he might become a good value. With that said, Murphy does have few weaknesses (like his D) that he needs to improve on immediately. But hey, he fills up stat sheets, which means he will become a hot commodity whenever he became available. No. They traded Dallas' 05 first (Acquired from Erick Dampier trade). They still have their own first-round pick in the upcoming draft. (I actually hope them trade that, along with one of our deadweights and a couple of nice talents, for an upgrade upfront.) That's true. That's true. Except that our payroll is more than half of what NY's. I guess I will stop here.
Let's look at the Warriors of two years ago that came reasonably close to making the playoffs, finishing 38-44. PG - Arenas SG - Richardson SF - Jamison PF - Murphy C - Dampier PG - Boykins SG - Sura SF - Dunleavy PF - Fortson C - Foyle That team should have made the playoffs, IMHO. Big time underachieving team that year.
Hindsight is 20/20. That squad looks good right now. But I challenge you to find a recognized media predicitons of that year that had Warriors making the playoffs. I am very sure you can't find any. Why? Because those players weren't very good back then, individually. Arenas came off an impressive rookie year, but no one thought he would absolutely blow up. JRich was still an enigma back then who only knows how to dunk. Jamison, well, was Jamison: A player who puts up good stats but never a game-changer. Murphy hit the injured list pretty much 75% of the season. Dampier was your typical underachiever up to that point and not many people knew he would came up big (stat wise). Boykins was a nobody after little stink with Clippers and one other team. Sura was as healthy as he has being this year, and he was the odd-man out. Dunleavy looked like a bust who played limited minutes. Fortson was more like a locker-room poison that a low-post bruiser he is today. Foyle? He was also in-n-out of the lineup due to injuries. Now you tell me if you really know what you're talking.
Since when is Q-Rich is a good ball handler? Baron probably isn't better than Wade, doesn't change the fact that the Hornets almost beat the Heat in last year's playoffs with Baron at 50%. How about you donate 100 if the Warriors win more than 50% of their games? Cuttino isn't even as good as David Wesley, he's not even close to Baron Davis who when healthy is a top 3 PG. Davis is not my boy, I just think he's a really good player, great PG that can help lead the Warriors out of the cellar. Elton Brand is not a 56% shooter, he's a solid PF not a big impact player, his stats make you think Tim Duncan his teams always stink though so I would take the guy who wins more. B-Diddy.
Please. They are called the Washington Wizards. Golden State doesn't know what they are doing. Let's be real.
Agree, Davis is playing good ball since joining the Warrior. I can see the team going above .500 next yeason as long as being away from injury. Last night Davis led the no Richardson&Foyle GS beatting the Kings (without Mobley)again. very impressive. I watched the game and it seems the team gained huge confidency since the Davis trade.
I agree with those who think that the Warriors have a shot at the playoffs next season. They really need to acquire Bogut or Taft via the draft, but if that comes to pass I like what Golden State has. While there is no T Mac on that squad there are plenty of guys that are above average players. I agree with those who think that Junior has to improve though, but if that happens and they can get a little bit of depth watch out... Davis/Fisher Richardson/Pietrus Dunleavy Murphy Bogut/Foyle