Because of the melee against the Portland Trailblazers on Saturday, the Golden State Warriors‘ defensive anchor, center Andrew Bogut, will serve a one-game suspension tonight (Draymond Green received a $20,000 fine) against the New Orleans Pelicans in the Bayou. Marcus Thompson broke the story:
Replays show Bogut initiated the scrum when he shoved Portland center Joel Freeland, who had his arm locked while jockeying for a rebound. It appeared Bogut might have thrown a punch, at least a high elbow that scarcely missed landing.
Andy Liu had some of the Warriors’ reactions to that:
David Lee: “I don’t know if Coach is going with me as the five, two bigs, or a small lineup but it’s up to Coach Jackson.”
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Reaction to suspension: “I don’t want to get in any trouble but I find it tough to see how he was the only guy suspended when he was trying to stop a guy from breaking his arm. He’s had his arm broken before. A similar incident happened between Oklahoma City and Los Angeles and nothing happened.”
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Stephen Curry: “It’s a huge blow but Coach always preaches the next guy has to step up. It was unexpected but it is what it is. Dewayne (Dedmon), Dlee, hopefully JO (Jermaine O’Neal) will come back and we’ll be fine. I was surprised that he was suspended. I didn’t see the replays but I felt like he was not the reason it flared to the extent it did.”
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Mark Jackson: “Not happy with it. Just accept it and move on. No sense in us whining and complaining now.”
Meanwhile, with Bogut out, the Warriors’ frontline will obviously be thin, although O’Neal shot around yesterday at practice and remains a game-time decision.
An interesting twist to this all is that, with the Warriors depleted and facing the Pelicans’ Ryan Anderson, will we get a chance to see Harrison Barnes play the “Stretch Four”?
He did at this past summer’s Team USA Mini-Camp. And he demolished none other than Anderson in the exhibition game.
With the Warriors facing not only Anderson but also Dirk Nowitzki tomorrow at the Dallas Mavericks, The SF Chronicle ran a feature on “Stretch Fours”:
Anderson, who played at Cal, personifies a striking trend in the NBA – power forwards who spend as much time beyond the three-point arc as they do on the low post. They even have a catchy nickname, the “Stretch 4,” which captures the way they stretch the floor for overtaxed defenses.
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The Warriors will get a firsthand look this week, as they face Anderson on Tuesday night and Dirk Nowitzki in Dallas on Wednesday night. Anderson and Nowitzki are two of the sharpest-shooting power forwards around, tall men with range once reserved for guards.
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This means Warriors power forward David Lee must prepare to wander away from the basket on defense. It’s becoming a frequent assignment for him, at a position where large, menacing, mostly immobile players once grappled almost exclusively on the low post.
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“The game is changing,” Lee said, “and I think one of the things is not telling ‘4s’ (power forwards) they’re going to be in the post all the time. Instead, teams are giving them the option to shoot mid-range shots and threes. Then the defense has to make the adjustment.”
Coach Jackson has been known to play his cards close to the vest and only reveal smaller lineups when the Warriors’ backs are against the wall. Take last year’s playoffs, for example, when Lee was out with the torn hip flexor.
In any case, tonight is also likely to be an opportunity for Dedmon to step up, as well as Nemanja Nedovic. But could it turn into another skills development showcase for Barnes? We’ll see.
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