9th place sucks, 2nd ain't half bad...

So as of this moment, the Golden State Warriors are in 9th place with a bullet, losing 114-105 courtesy of A.I. and Carmelo (with a surprise cameo from....J.R. Smith!!). Living in the bay, I've been privy to television coverage of the Dub's and honestly I can say this doesn't surprise me as to how the season is winding down. Seriously, the Warriors only know one way to play and that's warp speed. One thing people don't understand is the sacrifice that comes with playing that way.

The Warriors last year were playing helter-skelter ball after the trade with Indiana, which ultimately wasn't for the full season. Now this season, in the uber-competitive Western conference, they have been forced to play full throttle for all 82 games, and it's taken a toll. not only do they have to play this style, but with little to no PG support for Baron Davis. Say what you want about Monta Ellis, but the kid is clearly a shoot first, shoot second kind of player, and the injury in the pre-season when Coach Nelson was trying to work him into the PG role pretty much meant B-Diddy was going to be playing a whole lotta minutes this season.

Add to the fact that they have little to no bench support, and you are stuck with a few guys to carry the load and basically score 20-25 plus points every single night. Combine that with no defensive presence and you have no chance of advancing deep into the playoffs. Or as this season is showing, maybe not even making it at all.

On a brighter note, the L.A. Lakers,with a 106-78 beating of the Clippers, now have sole possession of second place (Yeah!). Normally if you see that Luke Walton has outscored Kobe Bryant, you'd think Kobe got hurt, or the Lake Show really sucked that night. But this evening, it was the contrary. In a Away/Home game in the Staples Center, the Lakers showed that they have the tools to play together and hopefully gel into a cohesive unit before the beginning of the playoffs.

Also, you have to feel for the Clippers, seriously. Elton Brand comes back to test out his injury and get in a little run, and he has to deal with this?!? What in the world is going on with the Clippers? Last year they looked as if they were poised to make a mark in the division. My how things things have changed, as now the Lakers look like they are going to have a nice little run for the next 3-5 years.

I'm watching the game and I can't begin to tell you how annoying Reggie Miller is. Why does TNT employ this guy? Maybe Cheryl got this guy a hook up or something. Whatever the case, he made sure his stating the obvious was on full display.

Here's a snippet:

Marv Albert (after a DJ Mbenga score): Lakers continue to add to the lead in the fourth quarter on a jumper by Mbenga.

Reggie: Yeah Marv, he's trying to score and add to the lead. it's important to have your bench players out there playing in this stage of the game.

No? Really Reggie? Thanks for that insight. Idiot.

And lastly, who woke up the Dallas Mavericks? Nice last second win courtesy of a Dirk jumper. They suddenly woke up, and are playing some solid ball against winning teams. If i'm correct, they've won games in the last week against Phoenix, Golden State, and now, the Jazz who were fresh off a defeat of New Orleans in New Orleans. not saying that I expect them to defeat the number 2 seed in the playoffs, but I do expect them to play hard until the end of the season. but whoever gets that number two seed is going to make mincemeat out of Dallas in the playoffs. But at least they're putting it all out there every night. Maybe reality about them being all axed from the Mav's roster woke them up. Bout time Dallas, bout time.