This is the second part of a multi-part series on the issues facing the Golden State Warriors this offseason.
The biggest disappointment in the 2010-11 season for the Golden State Warriors has to be the continued and accelerated decline in the play of Andris Biedrins.
Biedrins averaged just five points and seven rebounds this season. He shot 53 percent from the floor and a paltry 32 percent from the foul line. Biedrins averaged 23 minutes per game.
Many believed former Warriors coach Keith Smart stuck with Biedrins for too long. With three years left on Biedrins’ contract at $9 million per year (the final year is a player option), Smart did what he had to do. With the Warriors not having a realistic chance at the playoffs and no other natural center on the roster, Smart had to keep sending Biedrins out hoping he can regain some of his form from two seasons ago.
In the first 12 games of the 2008-09 season, Biedrins averaged the following:
17.3 pts 14 reb 5.3 off reb 54.7 FG% 63.8 FT% 1.5 blks 11 dbl-dbls
Biedrins finished that season averaging:
11.9 pts 11.2 reb 3.6 off reb 57.8 FG% 55.1 FT% 1.6 blks
Among all centers that season, Biedrins was tied for 12th in scoring, second in rebounding, tied for second in offensive rebounds and 11th in blocks. Transfer those numbers to this season, Biedrins would rank seventh in scoring, second in both rebounding and offensive rebounding, and tied for eighth in blocks.
Unfortunately for Smart and the Warriors, Biedrins' play never recovered. A week after the All-Star break, Biedrins was benched in favor of rookie Ekpe Udoh. Biedrins would regain the starting position after four games, but missed the final 14 games of the season due to a sprained ankle.
Biedrins played in 55 games this season, after playing just 33 the season before.
The problems with Biedrins seem to stem solely from his poor free throw shooting (14 of 56 the last two seasons). Biedrins has lost all confidence and aggressiveness on the court. He is mortified of being fouled and having to go to the line.
So what should the Warriors do with Biedrins?
According to Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle, Warriors GM Larry Riley met Biedrins and his agent, Bill Duffy, for two hours last week. Riley laid out an offseason training plan for Biedrins to follow.
This is a good and necessary first step taken by the Warriors. Despite what a majority of Warriors' fans want, Biedrins will not be going anywhere anytime soon. The first priority for the new Warriors' coach is to rebuild Biedrins' confidence and fragile psyche.
It is a similar situation to what 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh is doing with Alex Smith. With his every comment, Harbaugh is letting Smith know that he believes in Smith and his ability to lead the team, despite what everyone else inside and outside the organization thinks.
Biedrins still has time on his side. He just turned 25, despite having been in the league for seven years. There is still time for Biedrins to develop and become, maybe not a $9 million player, but someone that can help the Warriors nonetheless.
Biedrins need to be someone who goes after all the rebounds and be a force defensively, two areas that the Warriors sorely needed this past season. The Warriors should never run offensive plays for Biedrins or try to establish him early in the game. Let Biedrins be a roamer and let him score off offensive rebounds or hustle plays.
The Warriors can provide all the support Biedrins need, but Biedrins need to have an open mind and embrace the help.
Biedrins rejected recommendation from former Warriors coach Don Nelson to shoot free throws underhand. In fact, Nelson joked in an interview with Greg Papa on CSN Bay Area's Chronicle Live that he was fired for the suggestion.
Whether it was true or not, the new Warriors ownership need to support whatever the new coach decides for Biedrins. If the new coach suggest Biedrins to shoot free throws underhand, the Warriors needs to force Biedrins to follow the plan - especially when Rick Barry, perhaps the greatest Warrior or all time, shot free throws underhand and is in the Hall of Fame.
However, Biedrins need to do some soul searching before anything can be done. Biedrins needs to reach deep down inside himself and find the courage to accept change. He needs to have the want and the will to prove everyone wrong. He needs to realize that whatever he's been doing up to this point, it hasn't worked.
With a new coach and ownership, Biedrins has a fresh opportunity to turn his career around. If Biedrins rededicate himself to be more than just an afterthought - hard to do with his contract - in the NBA, it will allow the Warriors to spend money to improve the bench, instead of throwing more money at a position where they already have a large investment.
With the meeting Riley had with Biedrins so early in the offseason, I expect the organization to fully support Biedrins. Whether he succeeds or not, it will ultimately be up to Biedrins. The Warriors can only hope he does.
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