Oooh yeah, three in a row!  Not since the halcyon days of November 1st to the 19th have we looked this good.  Apparently, Jeff McInnis’ way with the Dark Side was more powerful than even I thought.  Even without Gerald Wallace, we racked up one W on the road and another over a playoff-hungry Warriors team.  Granted, the Minnesota T-Wolves are the NBA equivalent of William Hung: sort of endearing and inspiring, but mostly untalented.  Have you seen these guys?  They’re all sort of misshapen, almost like they’re defective models off the NBA player assembly line.  Craig Smith is kind of rotund and overly sweaty, Corey Brewer is skinny, Marko Jaric is squinty, Randy Foye’s kind of stocky, Bassy Telfair is kind of slow and small and can’t really shoot, Antoine Walker is kind of a salary dump, etc.    
 
Even that “Wolf howl” sound effect blasts over the PA system at inappropriate moments.  I swear I heard one after Jason Richardson drilled a 3-pointer.  They also have a pair of television announcers who are unmatched in their ability to generate awkward silences after weird, vaguely homoerotic outbursts.  After a generic put-back, one of them inexplicably yelled out, “Kirk Snyder is GOOD!!” (ensuing long silence).  The best shout-out was, “Emeka Okafor is a MAN!” (ensuing long silence).  Not “the man,” mind you, “a man.”  I also took offense to one of them asserting that Jason Richardson is “the first go-to guy in Bobcats history.”  Excuse me?  Obviously, these guys have never heard of the legend that is Jason Hart.
 
None of this stopped the Wolves from getting indignant over a loss to the likes of us.  Head coach Randy Wittman went all Neville Chamberlain afterward.  "Tonight we tried to have a nonaggression pact with the other team, from the first play of the game to the last play of the game," Wittman said. "That's disappointing."  Wait, did he just compare Sam Vincent to Hitler? 
 
Then came the Warriors.  You know how there’s been an endless debate over who are the biggest trade-deadline “winners” and “losers”?  Here’s my choice for a winner: Chris Webber.  He’s got to be thanking his lucky boosters that this year’s deadline wasn’t as quiet as last year’s, otherwise people would have had nothing better to do than focus on what a terrible acquisition he’s been: 9 games, 14 minutes per, 4 points, 2 assists, 4 reboards (and all these numbers rounded up).  Fortunately for him, the plethora of deals has completely taken the spotlight off his disastrous reunion with Golden State.            
 
As for the game itself, the Warrior roared out of the gate with 38 first-quarter points.  Sam Vincent had to call two timeouts, and it had the same demoralizing effect as a boxer receiving two standing 8-counts in the first round.  Monta Ellis was so fast that at times he seemed to be moving through people; he’s like X-Men’s Kitty Pryde if she also had the ability to draw lots of shooting fouls.  Given Ellis’s speed, it’s mystifying why they didn’t just give the rock to him for the last 5-and-a-half minutes when they were ahead 106-105—he seemed a mortal lock to either score or draw the foul every time he had the ball.  Instead, Stephen Jackson, Kelenna Azubuike, and Al Harrington all missed two 3-pointers apiece, and we pulled away for the win.
 
But I’m skipping a whole bunch.  Before all this came a stunning turnaround of a 2nd quarter, in which we cut their first quarter scoring by half (just 19 points) and came storming back to take a 2-point lead at the intermission, spearheaded by Earl Boykins’ 9 points in the period.  Matt Carroll scrapped for 11 boards and 4 steals, and Okafor got to the foul line 18 times.  Our two most positive trends lately—Richardson and Jared Dudley—also continued to blossom.  Richardson scored 42 points and Dudley did just about everything else—18 rebounds, 2 blocks, and a steal.  He also drew numerous charges and generally played like a muthaf—in’ spiteful, delightful, eyeful. 
 
Winning feels better than anything—even better thinking of Jeff McInnis in the past tense.  Over the last two games, we’ve hit 52-of-70 foul shots, committed just 22 total turnovers, had 8 of the 10 starters score in the double-digits, and exhibited crunch-time defense (just 37 total fourth-quarter points allowed)—is this how it feels to cheer for the Spurs every game?  Woooowww.  

Via BobcatsPlanet member – The Beagle

 Random thoughts about the game:

1.  It’s criminal that JD isn’t
geting any regular playing time.  Admittedly, he was playing against
their bench, but he was working his ass off on the boards, great
passes, and he did well on Jackson when he was still in the game in the
3rd.  What a waste

2. 
This is the best kind of loss you can possibly ask for; you can have
your "moral victories" and the inherent heartbreak that accompanies it,
but give me a good ol’ ass kicking.  This was the least frustrating
loss since the Suns game earlier in the season.  It was apparent, we
wouldn’t have won this game if we played good.  They were on, just like
last year; contested 3s or not, they were going in all night long, and
it was the 2nd qtr burst that combined with our offensive woes that put
it away.  Also, we have plenty of rest for tomorrow night’s game.

3. 
It was a blast seeing the Nut (AKA Ryan Hollins) have a mini dunk fest
and get T’ed up for taunting after slamming over O’bryant so hard he
knocked him to the ground.  Was it classy? No.  Was it funny? Yes. 
Give me funny on a night like this.

4.  Despite the rest for our
starter’s in the 4th, tomorrow night is probably going to be ugly. 
Raymond irritated his ankle again, and GW sprained his ankle also, so
it’s likely we’ll be without one of them, and highly possible will be
without both of them.   

5. 
This season is crumbling before our eyes.  We’re 11 under for the first
time this season (I’m pretty sure) and it’ll be 13 under after this
trip is over.  I thought our guys could rise to the challenge, but it’s
not going to happen apparently.  It’s disappointing, but I’m okay with
it: the fact is we are a VERY flawed team with an even more flawed
coach.  Still….maybe we can reel off some wins once Boykins gets into
the flow, and then we should be right back in the chase, but there are
no expectation on my part.  I just want the guys to continue to bust
their hump, and not give up.

6.  I can’t see the Warriors
getting into the playoffs this year at all.  They are such a flawed
team.  I’d "Box and 1" their asses, with the 1 being BD.  The box would
keep Ellis from getting to the basket over and over and over and over. 
I’d widen the box significantly so that you can close out quickly on
their wings Jackson and Barnes, and I’d invite them with the wide box
to look inside for their scoring, which they can’t do against good
teams.  As long as you don’t try to run with this team, you’re good. 
They hate to play defense it looks like, and overplay the passing lanes
which makes them susceptible to being outmanned in the half court. 
They’re a good team, and they’re a great team when they’re making their
shots, and when they play a poor defensive team, but they aren’t that good.

It wasn’t exactly I Spit On Your Grave, but it was still pretty satisfying revenge: on Saturday the Bobcats reciprocated last week’s abomination to the Golden State Warriors with a 98-90 win. Both teams had played the night before—sort of; the Cats’ had their 20-point debacle in Cleveland, and the Warriors lost to Philly (only by 1, but the key words are “lost,” “to,” and “Philly,”)—so fatigue bogged things down at times.

Oh yeah, one other word about that Cleveland game (before I flush it out of my mind’s toilet): according to keen observer Ran (whose comments can be read here), the proper name for Drew Gooden’s hair-, um, “style” is a “duck tail.” According to Ran, Drew Gooden refers to himself as a “child of the 80s” whenever explaining his controversial hirsute philosophy. A-ha! Hmmm. I was a child of the 80s too, and yet I have no memory of that hairstyle whatsoever (although I do remember the weekday afternoon Disney cartoon by the same name), unless I missed an episode of Diff'rent Strokes in which Dudley rocked it or something. Oh wait, now that I think about it, someone in the band "A-HA" quite possibly could have sported a duck tail.

But the more pressing question is, even if it was popular, is that really Drew's only actual justification for the haircut–that he's a "child of the 80s"? Since when is living in a particular decade a reason for getting a certain haircut? I mean, like I said, I lived during that time too, but I have absolutely ZERO urge to suddenly part my hair down the middle and feather it, let alone get a rat-tail or a flock-of-seagulls 'do.

All I can say is hopefully this “what would the 80s do?” line of thinking doesn't end up influencing his other behavioral choices, such as whether or not to become a coke addict, whether or not to support Central American dictatorships, whether or not to invest in Savings & Loan institutions, etc…

Anyway, back to the game! The Warriors were in their road blues, and unlike Gooden, I WILL credit them for sticking to their 80s roots, as I’ve always enjoyed GS’s color scheme (although I don’t quite understand why their insignias are on the backs of their left legs—it makes it look like the entire team mistakenly put their shorts on backwards), which I feel is appropriately flashy and futuristic-looking but without overdoing it a la the Barkley-era Rockets. And in light of News14 once again not showing the game (nor are they showing "news" for their matter, just a bunch of infomercials, although they are at least on on channel "14"), I should also point out that I’ve always enjoyed the Warriors’ announcers as well. Bob Fitzgerald and Jim Barnett are even-keeled, rational, and very gracious guests. They complimented the Cats for "doing it the right way” by building through the draft and not owing anyone a huge salary (well, except Melvin Ely, the one guy we’re NOT playing) and were also optimistic in their forecast for Charlotte now that Michael Jordan’s an owner (holy crap he is, I’d practically forgotten about that). I’d like to return the compliments to the Bay Area, as I think they’ve finally got a bunch of young guys who can go on to be great Warriors.

But wars not make one great, and neither does 12/44 shooting in the second half. Golden State had pushed the lead to 10 late in the first half but crumbled down the stretch and ruined a superb effort by Andres Biedrins (15 points, 18 boards—10 on offense—2 blocks, 2 steals), who could pass for Primoz Brezec’s long-lost (and more talented) brother. Whether it was shooting field goals, shooting 3-pointers, shooting free throws, or shootin’ at the walls of heartache (bang-bang), Al Harrington IS the Warrior, but his 7/20 performance (and 1/5 from downtown) cost the team in the end.

No Harrington miss was more painful than the one that was blocked spectacularly by Gerald Wallace with just under ten to play and the Cats clinging to a 4-point lead. Harrington went driving for a sure slam, but Wallace crushed it away as if it were shot out of a cannon. I haven’t heard a crowd gasp in sudden disbelief like that since Antonio Tarver knocked out Roy Jones in their rematch. G-Dub (21 points, 16 rebounds, 6 steals, 3 blocks, 2 steals) is the glue holding this team together right now, the gum under the shoe, the snot in the nose—he’s the man. Raymond Felton also had 22 (and came back bravely from a bizarre, inadvertent elbow from Harrington that knocked him on his face—man, I only just now realized that Harrington was the “Forrest Gump" of this game, randomly figuring in all the key moments), and Emeka Okafor put up 16 and 11. As a team we kept the turnovers low and allowed the Warriors to shoot themselves in the foot via the 3-pointer. Great win.

I see the Warriors are playing the Pacers next—how confusing is THAT one going to be? I wonder if any gambling sites are creating an over/under for a “Mistaken Passes to Former Teammates” category.

{moscomment} 

“After an emotional win last night,” commentator Matt Devlin said in the middle of the Bobcats blowout loss to Golden State, “you could see a game like this developing.” This game didn’t “develop” so much as it “detonated.” I didn’t hang around long enough to find out what the official Wachovia Pivotal Moment of the Game was, but my vote would have been for the tip-off. The Bobcats got off to about as good a start as those troopers jumping out of the boats in Saving Private Ryan, trailing 21-2 after about 30 seconds. And then it got worse. How bad was it? Garbage time lasted long enough for Walter Herrmann to score 19 points.

Players are fond of likening their great performances to video games. “It was like a Playstation game out there,” Gilbert Arenas will say after scoring 40 points. The Bobcats were like video games too last night, except they were a bunch of Atari 2600’s out there. Admittedly, a three-game West Coast trip is brutal, and they were playing for the second night in a row after an OT-win, but they looked positively asleep out there. They left the Warriors open to hit 10/17 3-pointers, turned it over 22 times, and were lazily outscored 30-5 on fast breaks. They were twice whistled for delay of game calls for not being in proper uniform—presumably they’d forgotten to tuck their pajamas in.

After giving up 40 in the first quarter, the Cats—to their credit—actually cut the deficit down to 7. Gerald Wallace put in a spirited 19 points, and Okafor, who may have proven that he can literally get a double-double in his sleep, had 10 points and 12 boards. But Raymond Felton had just 3 points, Matt Carroll had 1, and then there was that pesky thing known as the second half…

Just a few games removed from their 8-player Extreme Makeover trade, I’d say Golden State is poised for a run. They made me a believer, at least; I feeling like calling them Golden Shower State for the way they pissed all over us. They already had a strong nucleus (or “nuculus,” as the President would say) with B-Davis, Monta Ellis, Mickael Pietrus, and up-and-comers Andris Biedrins and Matt Barnes. Now you add Al Harrington, who dropped us like his Mohawk with 29 points on 9/11 shooting, and Stephen Jackson, who had 17 points? Yikes. It wasn’t until late in the 3rd quarter that the delighted Oakland crowd demanded—and got—Sarunas Jasikevicius, but he’s also fully capable as well. As long as Jackson can avoid more headlines such as this one on ESPN.com a few days ago: “Judge: Strip Club Incident Violated Jackson's Probation,” (question: isn’t that headline kinda missing the main gist of that affair, which was that Jackson fired a gun several times at a car?), the Warriors will be fine, especially when Jason Richardson returns…

{moscomment}