Jackson sparks Bobcats to win over lifeless Warriors in return to Oracle

There were plenty of reasons to boo at Oracle Arena on Friday night. As it turns out, the least of which was the long-awaited return of Stephen Jackson.

Jackson, who said all the right things from the time the questions started a few days ago about his return to Oakland through his postgame comments about playing the team he forced to give him away, turned in a very businesslike effort in leading his playoff-contending Charlotte Bobcats to an easy 121-110 win over his former team, the Golden State Warriors.

Jackson filled the stat sheet, just like he used to during happier times here. He finished with 30 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks in 46 minutes. He also led the team in smiles and political correctness.

Despite ample opportunities to unleash on the team that he clearly felt misled him and lied to him in the offseason, Jackson repeated time and again his appreciation for his time with the Warriors, his closeness to "little brother" Monta Ellis and even his friendship with coach Don Nelson.

And as the Bobcats poured it on in the second half, taking a 22-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, Jackson continued to take the high road and never did anything to disrespect his former team or its fans -- perhaps he, like coach Larry Brown, felt sorry for the Warriors and the state their in. In fact, as the game wore on, the boos that began during pregame warmups died down and even turned into a slight cheer of appreciation.

You have to wonder: were the remaining fans applauding his professionalism or simply looking for anything to cheer because there hasn't been much in the way of Warriors highlights of late.

Jackson, who began the game being guarded by Ellis, showed the heart, focus, intensity and team play he was known for before he became an unmotivated and unhappy Warrior. Through the first nine games of the season, he played to get out. And he did.

On Friday, the real Jackson returned to Oakland. He even made three 3-pointers to help the Bobcats blitz the beleaguered Warriors, who have lost four straight and shown little life the past two.

The plucky fortitude and determination to make the best of a bad situation that the Warriors relied on to stay in games they shouldn't in an effort to tread water is fading and this shipwreck of a season is sinking quickly.

"As you can see we are missing a lot of energy," Andris Biedrins was quoted as saying in the postgame notes, "and I don’t know why. Last couple of games we went down by a lot of points and it’s hard to come back at that point. I know we need really to come together and think about that because we’re not playing with a lot of energy right now.”

Corey Maggette, who scored a team-high 25 points, called it the team's "lowest point." Considering all that has happened this year, that says a lot about a second straight home game that was essentially over before the third quarter eneded.

A few notes:

-- Stephen Curry had a good game playing in front of his dad, Dell, a broadcaster for the Bobcats. He finished with 22 points, nine assists, three steals and one turnover. I'm just guessing here, but Curry, who averages 2.6 turnovers per game, may have been extra careful with the ball because he didn't want to do anything stupid in front of his dad, who would then have to rip him on air. Maybe he can play with the same mentality even when his dad's not around.

-- Ellis played 40 minutes and scored 22 points with six assists. However, he was 0-for-5 on 3-pointers and his +/- number was -21. Curry, by comparison, was an even 0. Maybe Ellis still isn't right after taking two games off or maybe he's in a little all-star-snub funk, but he didn't have the same energy and look as the 30-point-a-night dynamo we got used to seeing nearly the entire first half.

-- Biedrins and Ronny Turiaf, hailed as the missing links while they were out with injuries, combined for only 36 minutes, 10 points and 11 rebounds on Friday. The Warriors were supposed to be much better when they returned. They've spent enough time on the bench this year, it's time for them to play -- and contribute.

-- Anthony Tolliver had another productive game, though he was limited by five fouls. Making his third start in five games, Tolliver had 13 points and six rebounds in 27 minutes. In other news concerning former D-League players, the Warriors said Friday that don't plan to keep Cartier Martin when his second 10-day contract expires on Saturday. With 15 players already having guaranteed contracts, there's no room on the roster for Martin, who has averaged 9.6 points and 5.2 rebounds in nine games. One of those players under contract is Chris Hunter, who made a splash in his debut but has seen limited action since. If given the chance to do it over, I'm thinking the Warriors would rather have Martin than Hunter.