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Phoenix Suns vs. Golden State Warriors – game chat |
by Paul Coro – Jan. 2, 2012 01:30 PM Warriors (2-2) at Suns (1-3), 1:30 tip-offC: Andris Biedrins … Marcin Gortat PF: David Lee … Channing Frye SF: Dorell Wright … Grant Hill SG: Monta Ellis … Jared Dudley PG: Stephen Curry … Steve Nash Key Warrriors subs: Brandon Rush, Ekpe Udoh, Ishamel Smith, Dominic McGuire, Kwame Brown, Klay Thompson. Snacking on some Orange Slices before an early tip-off: * Monta Ellis, averaging 21.0 points and 7.7 assists in two wins and a loss, missed Golden State’s Wednesday night loss to Philadelphia for his grandmother’s funeral in Mississippi but the Contra Costa Times’ Marcus Thompson reported this morning that Ellis has rejoined the team and will play today. Grant Hill fared well against Ellis defensively last season, including Ellis’ eight-point outing in the teams’ final meeting. * The Warriors have lost 12 consecutive games at US Airways Center, dating back to March 2005. Golden State was 10-31 on the road last season. This is the Warriors’ first road game of the season after opening with a four-game homestand that included wins against Chicago and New York. Golden State only has won 26 road games over the last three seasons combined. * The Suns have won six consecutive games overall against Golden State. * The Suns rank 24th in the NBA in scoring, 24th in field goal percentage and 27th in 3-point percentage. The very thing that was supposed to give the Suns a fighting chance at the playoffs despite little roster improvement was the continuity of the team. “Yeah, it doesn’t look that way, does it?” said Steve Nash, whose shot has been ailing due to a rib bruise. The Suns’ offense always has operated off rhythm and perhaps they never established that without spending the time they do playing together on their own each September before training camp started. The Suns clearly are getting good shots. In the last home game, they charted that they took 11 “Grade-A” shots in the first quarter and made two. “It’s not about anything another team does,” Frye said. “It’s about us. We’ve got to jump up and make shots and whether we’re going to stick to our defensive principles?” * How did the Suns defense go from giving up 29.8 percent shooting, the third lowest opponent mark in franchise history, against New Orleans on Friday night to yielding 53.2 percent shooting to Oklahoma City on Saturday night? For one, the Hornets don’t have much for scoring threats without Eric Gordon and the Thunder is playing like the best team in the West. But the Suns were a different defensive team internally Saturday night against the Thunder. “We didn’t stay within what we’re supposed to do,” Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. “We tried to make up too much as we went along. When we do that, we can’t have any continuity because nobody knows what the next guy is doing.” * The Suns’ best 3-point shooter this season is a rookie who looked throughout training camp like maybe he should hold off on adding it to his repertoire. But Gentry kept encouraging Markieff Morris to shoot and the Suns have another stretch power forward to show for it. Morris is 5 for 9 on 3s after going 3 for 4 in the Saturday loss. That included a fourth-quarter bank shot. “I actually tried to shoot it off the backboard,” Morris said. “I called bank. I don’t know if you heard me.” Morris also has the team’s third best rebounding rate (18 rebounds in 68 minutes) behind Gortat and Frye. * Frye is not the only notorious proficient 3-point shooter who has opened the season on a cold streak. Wright sank 194 3s last season in his first year with Golden State but is 3 for 17 (17.6 percent) in the first four games this season. Like Phoenix, Golden State has struggled from 3-point range as a team (27.5 percent). * The Suns and Warriors both emphasized a defensive culture change with offseason coaching hires — lead assistant Elston Turner for Phoenix and new head coach Mark Jackson for Golden State. It would have made for a nice turnaround with the teams if their offenses had not become polar-opposites of their past. Golden State (89.0) and Phoenix (89.3) rank as the sixth and seventh lowest scoring offenses in the league. * Michael Redd is joining the Suns today to begin working out with the team. He likely is at least a week away from playing. Post your comments on the game below: What do you guys think about this. Posted in nba, Uncategorized | Comments Off
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Warriors aim to snap skid in desert vs. Suns |
Written byThe Sports Network
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Golden State Warriors’ Dorell Wright’s 3-point… |
In his younger days, Warriors forward Dorell Wright said he would be much more bothered by shooting 17.6 percent from 3-point range over the season’s first four games. But Wright, in his eighth season, said he has no doubt he will return to being Golden State’s 3-point specialist. “It’s a matter of time,” Wright said. “I’m going to get hot, and everybody will forget about this little four-game stretch or however long it lasts. … In due time, my shot will be back.” Last season, Wright proved to be one of the league’s best signings. In his first season with the Warriors, he knocked down 194 3-pointers. In his previous six seasons, Wright totaled 73 from behind the arc. Wright’s 3-point shooting became one of the most reliable components of the Warriors offense last season. But that’s a luxury Golden State hasn’t had this season. He’s missed 14 of the 17 he’s taken. Since much of his offensive game is based on his 3-pointer, Wright hasn’t been able to get much of anything going offensively. He’s averaging 8.3 points (half what he averaged last season) on 34.3 percent shooting. Saturday, when the Warriors needed offense with guard Monta Ellis out, Wright totaled four points on 2-for-10 shooting. With Wright not knocking down his 3-pointers (the Warriors are shooting 27.5 percent from deep), opposing defenses are not paying a price for packing in the lane. With no big man to create offense, the Warriors rely on outside shooting to open up the paint so Ellis & Co. can penetrate. “It helps when he makes the shot because it’s another weapon that they’ve got to protect and work against,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said of Wright. “When he makes that shot, it’s more breathing room for everybody else on the floor. So we certainly need it.” So what’s wrong with Wright’s shot? He said it boils down to mechanics. He said usually when he misses, he knows exactly what’s wrong. To fix it, Wright said he’s shooting more before and after practice. He also said he hired someone to break down game film of his shooting so he can study his mechanics. But mostly, to get out of his slump, Wright said he is focusing on defense. After all, that’s what Wright hung his hat on before joining the Warriors last summer. “To tell you the truth, I really don’t care about the offensive end,” Wright said. “It’s not like that anymore around here. It’s not like if you can’t score 15, 16 points you’re coming out the game. … Whatever I’m contributing is a plus.” It’s doubtful Jackson would go that far. Golden State is 26th in the NBA in points per game at 89.0 — more than 14 points below last season’s average. The Warriors rank 21st in field goal percentage (42.2). Especially for the upcoming three-game road trip, Golden State needs Wright to get going on offense. What do you guys think about this. |
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New York Knicks Vs. Golden State Warriors Preview:… |
The New York Knicks head out on the road to take on the Golden State Warriors Wednesday night (Dec. 28). It’s a tough game because of the depth and youth that the Warriors have on their side, but a good aspect of this match-up is that Stephen Curry may miss the game with an injury. Curry is one of the best young guards in the NBA, but he is down with an injured ankle that he suffered in the preseason and then re-aggravated. Curry averaged 18.6 points and 5.8 assists as the point guard for the Warriors last season and was looking to improve upon those numbers. He played in the first two games for the Warriors this season, averaging 12.5 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds and 4 steals, so having him out of the game really helps New York. There is a chance he feels better by game time, but even if he plays, Curry will have limited mobility. For the Knicks, this is a great chance to prove something to the rest of the league. Having a road trip to the West Coast this early in the season is a tough endeavor, with games against Golden State Wednesday (Dec. 28), the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday (Dec. 29) and the Sacramento Kings on Saturday (Dec. 31). Hopefully it’s a test that the team can pass, and that by the end of December the Knicks are sitting in first place with a 4-0 record. The Knicks are also still trying to figure things out with a host of new players this season. Guard Mike Bibby is back in the lineup and should provide some minutes off the bench and that is extremely important with Iman Shumpert out due to an injury he suffered in the first game. The starters for the Knicks are point guard Toney Douglas, shooting guard Landry Fields, small forward Carmelo Anthony, power forward Amare Stoudemire and center Tyson Chandler. For the Warriors, the starters could shift if Curry is unable to play. The most likely scenario is that Monta Ellis shifts to point guard and Brandon Rush joins the starting lineup as the shooting guard. Starting at small forward is Dorell Wright, at power forward is David Lee and at center is Andris Biedrins. The Warriors are averaging 92.5 points per game while giving up 98 per game through the first two opponents. The team has posted a 1-1 record and is grabbing 42 rebounds per night. New York scored 106 points in the game against the Boston Celtics and gave up 104 points. The team only managed 31 rebounds though, making the Knicks the worst rebounding team in the NBA so far. Hopefully that can change a bit on Wednesday night. Anthony is also the leading scorer in the NBA with 37 points per game and Chandler is second in blocks at 6 per game. Those are just stats from one game and the Knicks hope they can get duplicated on Wednesday night. Start time is at 10:30 p.m. ET and the game is on NBA TV for fans to watch. More From YCN : Knicks Take First Place No_Garnett_Suspension New_York_Wins_Opener_Against_Boston Knicks_Win_Second_Preseason_Game Baron_Davis_Comes_To_Knicks Sources: NBA Statistics Full Knicks Schedule New York Knicks Website *Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league. Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content. That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow. |
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Warriors’ Curry Assured He’s Not on Trading Block |
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) – Stephen Curry says he has received Following a voluntary workout at the team’s downtown Oakland practice facility Wednesday, Curry said he’s humbled his name comes
New owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber have promised to make
Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
If anybody needs tickets to games, remember to click the tickets link at the top. Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off
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