Saltzman Says...Gilbert Arenas gives advice to Warriors

"And then, hopefully, they make the right decisions by building veterans around him, like [the Boston Celtics did with Rajon] Rondo, like [the Chicago Bulls] did with Derrick Rose. You've got to put veterans [there] so he can learn how to play winning basketball. If he stays with all these young guys, he's just going to learn how to lose and be OK with it."

Read more: Put Veterans around Wall

Even though Gilbert didn't mention the Warriors directly, I think his take on how Wall can be successful is s direct connection to his time in Golden State.  By playing with young guys with no experience like Jason Richardson, Troy Murphy, and Mike Dunleavy, nobody knew how to win in the NBA.  After Arenas moved to Washington, he was surrounded by a wiser Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler and put into a winning environment.  Gilbert's best years in the NBA were played with veterans who knew how to win.

Stephen Curry has Monta Ellis, Andris Biedrins and David Lee, who each have played on one playoff team.  Dorell Wright saw many playoff rounds with his time in Miami.  Vladimir Radmanovic has some great years in L.A. to reflect back on.  The key to success for Curry is to know that the season is a marathon and that having a great stat line means nothing if you don't win the game.  Curry has his father to aide him about winning basketball too, and Keith Smart has coached and been coached by some of the best the game has ever seen. 



Can Smart and Curry make the Warriors great again?


Growing as a team can work in the NBA, and the Oklahoma City Thunder are a perfect example.  With a superstar in Kevin Durant, a growing leader ont the court in Russell Westbrook, a disciplined defensive minded coach in Scott Brooks, and great role players in Nick Collison and Thabo Sefolosha.