Warriors season preview: Fresh start begins with opener against Rockets

No more talking, no more tinkering, it's time for tipoff.

The Golden State Warriors open the 2009-10 season Wednesday against the depleted Houston Rockets and it's time to see what this collection of young talent can do. Thankfully (and hopefully), it's time to put all the preseason drama aside and concentrate on playing basketball, winning games and trying to make another run at the Western Conference playoffs.

Coach Don Nelson, entering his 31st season as an NBA coach and needing just 24 wins to set the all-time record, has seemed happy and excited throughout camp and says it's time to get down to business.

"I think I have enough guys playing at a high level to get done what we need to get done," Nelson said after one of the last preseason practices.

Players responsible for getting it done will be a mix of talented veterans, unproven youngsters and potential superstars.

Stephen Jackson, who dominated camp with his trade requests and two-game suspension, is being counted on to put all those issues aside and play like a team leader, even if he's no longer Captain Jack. Jackson averaged career highs of 20.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and 6.5 assists last year, joining LeBron James, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade as the only players in the league to average more than 20 points, five rebounds and six assists. His ability to stay focused on winning with the Warriors rather than winning elsewhere could be the key to the entire season.

Monta Ellis is back and has said numerous times throughout camp he's 100 percent healthy and ready to go. After having last season derailed by his infamous moped accident, Ellis is anxious to see what the team can do at full strength.

"This is just the beginning of us getting to play together," Ellis said. "The more we play together, the more we're going to get to read each other. ... We feel great right now. Everyone seems to be getting along well; the chemistry is growing, the team is coming together. Everybody is feeding into the concept they want us to play and just having fun."

What would really be fun is winning -- and this opening nine-game stretch against some of the league's lower-tier teams could provide an exciting start to the season.

"It's really important because last year we did bad at the beginning of the season and it kind of screwed up the whole season so we want to make sure this season it won't happen and we have a really good chance our first couple games," said center Andris Biedrins, who is just 23 years old but is the longest-tenured Warrior with five years with the team. "Those are really winnable games so we need to make sure we start on the right note and after that, it will be good."

After opening with the Rockets, the Warriors play the Suns, Grizzlies, Clippers, Kings, T'Wolves, Pacers, Knicks and Bucks. Picking up wins against these teams will be especially crucial as a brutal stretch of schedule follows immediately.

"I don't know if it means more or less but I remember last year we had a problem -- we always played good against strong teams and played bad against teams we're thinking we should win," said Biedrins, who averaged career highs of 11.9 points, 11.2 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game last year. "We kind of need to put all those teams on one level and make sure we're always ready for them."

Ready to make his NBA regular-season debut is Stephen Curry, who won the starting point guard job with his floor play rather than the shooting touch he's known for. Curry averaged 10.3 points per game in the preseason on 36.6 percent shooting from the floor and 22.2 percent on 3-pointers. But he also averaged 6.1 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game while controlling the flow of the offense.

Curry is one of two newcomers to the starting lineup, at least the projected starting lineup for the season opener. Ronny Turiaf is expected to start and provide defense, rebounding and energy, the first two of which the Warriors have lacked in recent years.

"We've put in a lot of work and are ready for the challenge," said Turiaf, who averaged 10.5 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks in two preseason games. "It's going to be a long challenge, a long journey and I think we have a team that is willing to fight for each other and that's the one thing that helps you do along on that journey."

Another thing that helps is depth. Sharp-shooting Anthony Morrow could see time in the starting lineup after finishing second in the league in preseason scoring at 22.0 points per game. Corey Maggette is another big-time scorer off the bench, averaging 18.6 points per game last year as the second-highest scoring sixth man in the league. And second-year forward Anthony Randolph, slowed a bit during camp with a bruised lower back, is expected to make major contributions after a breakout summer league performance in which he averaged 20.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.

Kelenna Azubuike is a consistent performer who was having a strong camp before an ankle injury and 12-year veteran Mikki Moore provides insurance and size along the frontline. C.J. Watson gives Nelson another option at point guard and will be called upon in certain matchups as he's the best defender of the smallish backcourt.

Like Nelson said, he's got a lot of guys. And they're looking to put last year's injury-riddled 29-win season behind them.

"We had a rough year last year," Biedrins said. "Now we have a full squad with no injuries. Everybody is playing good and everybody is excited for the new season. They just want to start to play."

And start fresh.

"I don't think it's a rebuilding team," Maggette said. "I think it's time for us to step up. You can see a lot of our young guys towards the end of the year really made a great effort to improve and if it continues for this coming season, we have a great opportunity to, you never know, go to the playoffs and go from there."

It all starts Wednesday.