Add to favorites Examiner Bio

Warriors' Curry to start season opener with Ellis

Stephen Curry averaged 6.1 assists per game and generally ran the offense the best.
William Mancebo / Tri-City Voice Newspaper

The time has come to see if the Warriors actually can win with a Monta Ellis-Stephen Curry backcourt.

Warriors coach Don Nelson made official Saturday what he suggested Thursday: Curry will be the starting point guard when the Warriors open the regular season Wednesday against the Rockets.

"I've worked very hard to get to this moment, so I've got to take advantage of it," said Curry, who averaged 6.1 assists and 2.4 steals per game in the eight-game preseason.

And the Warriors have got to take advantage of an easy early season schedule to get off to a quick start despite the fact that Curry and Ellis only started one game together in the preseason while Nelson experimented with different combinations and different roles for his many guards. There will be no adjustment time, no time to see if Ellis was right on media day when he said the team can't win with the pair of 6-3, 180-pounders playing together.

If the Warriors are going to win at all this season, they'll have to prove they can do it right from the start. Their first nine games are all there for the taking, with three of the first four coming against teams they figure to battle for the eighth playoff spot in the West. After opening with the Yao Ming-less Rockets, they play the Suns, Grizzlies, Clippers, Kings, T'Wolves, Pacers, Knicks and Bucks. Only four of the nine are at home, but if the Warriors don't win at least six of those first nine, it could be a sign of a long season. And if they win "only" six of the first nine, they're likely to be under .500 by the time December rolls around because their next six games are against the Cavs, Celtics, Blazers, Mavs, Spurs and Lakers. Of the NBA's Magnificent 7, only Orlando is missing -- and the Warriors get the Magic on Dec. 5.

Earlier this week, Nelson said he wanted to start C.J. Watson at the point because he played better defense against bigger bodies. But Curry's 14-point, 10-assist, six-steal, six-rebound game against the overmatched Hornets backups on Thursday must have been too irresistable for Nelson, master of going small and making other teams adjust to his unconventional lineups. The defensive match-up problems -- like who will guard Trevor Ariza or Shane Battier (both 6-8) in the opener -- couldn't compare to the offensive efficiency Curry has provided.

"We've got to shoot the ball well, and we've got to be fast and run," said Nelson, who enters the season needing 24 wins to set the all-time record for coaching victories. "If we do those things, it will be a match-up problem for the other team, too. If we don't, we'll be at a disadvantage."

Curry and Ellis played together 26 minutes against the Hornets and fueled the second-half blowout. Plus, it's not like Nelson has vastly superior options that he's ignoring just to trot out his newest and shiniest toy. Watson is not that much better than Curry on defense to warrant keeping Curry out of the lineup. The other option, if Nelson really wants Ellis to spend more time at shooting guard, is to start Acie Law, who has seen more time at forward than point guard. Nelson could start Anthony Morrow at shooting guard next to Ellis, but Morrow has his own defensive deficiencies and he's been a monster coming off the bench, averaging 22.0 points per game during the preseason.

So for now, the starting lineup looks to be Curry, Ellis, Stephen Jackson (expected to play after sitting out Thursday's preseason finale with a strained hamstring), Corey Maggette and Andris Biedrins.

ALSO:

Preseason power rankings

 

Al Attles featured in documentary