Well, It looks like the Warriors have finally done it.. they've finally fallen all the way down.  The Warriors are officially at rock bottom.

Two years ago, this franchise was blazing toward their first playoff appearance in 12 years, as well as the NBA record books by becoming the first 8 seed to beat a 1 seed in a seven game playoff series.  They were a young, hungry club.  All the "rebuilding" we fans had endured for the previous decade was finally beginning to bear some fruit, and the future was bright.

Two years later, this franchise is flat on its back.  We're back to the preverbial "rebuilding" phase; your Golden State Warriors, the youngest team in the NBA.  Only that mantra is getting really old.

We've got a coach who has lost his ability to relate to his players, in part because he throws them under the bus to the media when they fail.  (See Nelson's comments about Ellis' final shot vs. the Spurs)  Nelson is a fantastic coach, but such a young bunch of talent needs a coach they can relate to, someone who can talk to them, discipline them, and inspire them to grow.  Nelson is not that man.  When Baron Davis was here, he was likely Nelson's voice in the locker room.. Nelson had Baron's loyalty, and so he had the team's.  With Baron gone, Nelson has lost his voice, and so he has lost this team.

We've got a captain who, despite his heart-felt efforts this year (and increased production) needs a leader to follow.  Jackson is a heart and soul player, no doubt.  He does everything well.  He wears his emotions on his sleeve, and every team needs a player like that.  However, he is not a guy to lead the youth movement.  His bad habbits, unchecked, rub off on his impressionable young teamates.  Jackson staying behind to argue with officials is seen by his young teamates, who begin to look to the officials to blame for the team's misfortunes.  Jackson forcing bad jumpshots is seen as "acceptable", so younger players begin to follow suit.  Jackson is extremely effective when he plays under control, and he needs a voice on this team who can keep him in check.  Baron was that voice... who will be now?

Finally, the Warriors do not have adequate personnel to be competitive.  We're entirely too small.  Everyone in the NBA can see this except for the Warriors front office.  As a result, we have impressionable young players, still develping their games, playing out of position on a regular basis.  That undoubtedly slows down development and maturity, puts players at increased risk for injury, and affects the confidence of players who are constantly being exposed on defense because they're undersized and cannot defend their man.  (See Kelena Azubuike guarding Dirk tonight, or any other PF for that matter).  The fact that the Warriors future plans at power forward include not one, but two undersized yet athletic young players, neither of whom weighs more than 220 lbs, shows the apparent denial that this team is far too small to be considered a serious contender anytime in the near future.

But.. I do always like to find the silver lining, so here it is.. Maybe it takes hitting rock bottom in order to rise from the ashes and forge ahead.  The Warriors have a talented group, there's no denying that.  Rather than squander that talent, they need to realize how disfunctional they really are, how much this team needs veteran leadership, and how much they need to take honest inventory of their current personnel and make moves to become a bigger, more physically competitive team.  If they cannot do this, we Warriors fans will be subjected to even more of the slow torture that has become so agonizingly familiar to us all:

"These Warriors are a dangerous bunch of young players, you can see why they're so excited about the potential of these kids.  The future is bright for this rebuilding franchise."

Ya, we've heard it all before.

ECJ