Saltzman Says...Warriors can learn from playoffs

Here's hoping every Warrior player and front office member is watching every second of the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder's series in round two of the Western Conference semi-finals.  The Western Conference has always been loaded with talented players and teams, specifically big men, and this series shows how close and yet how far the Warriors really are.

As important as it is to have a Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook or a Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol to run your team through, it is as critical to have a Kendrick Perkins, Nick Collison or Thabo Sefolosha, as well as a Tony Allen, Shane Battier and Darrell Arthur.  Those six role players have been monumental defensively.  They have helped their teams not only to get to the second round, but also in scaring the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks who are battling for the right to play them.  Also not to be forgotten are roles of players like Eric Maynor and Greivis Vasquez who have been outstanding running the point for the 2nd unit.  Perkins, Collison, Sefolosha and Maynor have helped the Thunder become one of the best all-around teams in basketball.  Allen, Battier, Arthur and Vazquez have done the same for the Grizzlies.

The 2011-12 Warriors will only be as good as the team they build.  Hopefully with Bob Myers hired as the assistant GM to Larry Riley, the Warriors will be more active in bringing in the right pieces to be a playoff basketball team every year.

Will the hiring of Bob Myers be the change that leads to smarter personnel decisions?

Saltzman Says...Warriors must learn from the Buford/Presti Way

The two best GM's in basketball, R.C. Buford of the Spurs and Sam Presti of the Thunder have a simple philosophy about what to look for in the players they bring into their organizations:

"We know what we are looking for (hard-working, high-character, team-oriented, mentally tough, coachable and unselfish players), and the important component of it is knowing what works and what doesn't work — and that qualifies your risk," Buford said. "There are NBA players who aren't necessarily Spurs, and there are Spurs who may not fit someplace else."

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/2007-05-21-cover-buford_N.htm

"Then I thought about it for a minute, and I couldn't do that to my guys," Durant says (when asked why he ran suicides up a hill at the Oklahoma City practice facility voluntarily) . "It wouldn't have been fair to them." The Hill does not afford preferential treatment. Front-office executives drop their Blackberries, swap dress clothes for practice gear and run suicides. Entry-level assistants join them. When they are all sufficiently gassed, they head back to the pickup trucks, Durant sneaking a spot in a bed before coaches wisely point him to a passenger seat.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1176118/1/index.htm#ixzz1G8kTt4ss

If you believe Stephen Curry, David Lee, Ekpe Udoh and Dorell Wright fit this mold, than maybe the combination of Keith Smart and Larry Riley make sense going forward.  However, does Monta Ellis, Andris Biedrins, Vladimir Radmanovic, and Charlie Bell fit that mold?  That would mean half of the highest paid players on the roster don't fit the mold for success. 



hard-working, high-character, team-oriented, mentally tough, coachable and unselfish players

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.