| Another Lost Season For The Warriors Authored by Payam Jahromi - March 30, 2006 - 2:19 am

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I don’t know about you, but as a Warriors fan, I can’t wait for the regular season to end.
Which is pretty ironic considering me and many other Warriors fans felt the exact opposite at the end of last season.
I want the misery to end so that I can watch real NBA teams in the playoffs. I’m looking forward to the start of baseball. Heck, I’m even somewhat excited about the NHL playoffs.
But I’m emotionally done with the 2005-06 Warriors. And I doubt I’m the only one who feels this way.
This season the Warriors have lost as many fans as they gained last season. All of last summer’s hype and excitement has turned into disappointment and bitterness.
In other words, welcome to Golden State Warriors basketball.
Now, as I write this, the Warriors are still technically alive for the playoffs. But they’ve been unofficially finished for quite some time, depending on who you ask. For me, the playoffs were no longer a reality on January 5.
There’s not much else to say – every reason for the team’s failures has been beaten to the ground: Mike Dunleavy and Mickael Pietrus are having awful seasons; they still have no low-post presence; the rookies aren’t getting enough playing time; they need a new coach; Baron Davis is hurt too often; Adonal Foyle sucks. And so on.
I just need a break from this team. At least until next week when I’m sure I’ll actually have something good to write about.
Around the league:
My MVP vote goes to Kobe Bryant. I realize that his team is only four games above .500, but I would take him just ahead of Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki.
With Detroit’s recent slide, Chauncey Billups went from a serious candidate to a guy who will get his share of third-place votes.
Dwayne Wade is also getting MVP consideration, but he plays with Shaq. I’m not convinced Wade is the most valuable guy on his own team (and the Heat’s record without Wade versus without Shaq back me up).
I’ve also seen a couple articles comparing Wade with Lebron James. The truth is that it’s too early to determine which player is better.
But if the two traded teams, would Miami be better or worse? What about Cleveland? Keep in mind that Miami’s record is only six games better than Cleveland’s.
Back to my argument for Kobe. Every year there are always a handful of players who are invaluable to their respective teams, and there’s no way to prove which team would be affected the most without that player.
This year is no different. It’s hard to say how many less wins the Lakers would have without Kobe compared to Nash and the Suns. Or Dirk and the Mavs. Or Billups and the Pistons. So after you determine those top 3-4 players, the next step is to simply pick the most outstanding player.
And in my opinion, Kobe is that player. Just ask the Toronto Raptors.
If you have any questions or comments, you can reach me at pjahromi@sbcglobal.net |