Devil in a Blue Jersey

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Fri Feb 01 2008 at 6:54 PM EST
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Used to be, the two months between the Super Bowl and baseball's opening day was the worst time of year.  The Warriors were always dead and buried by February, so we in the Bay Area were forced to sit and wait for 60 days until the A's and Giants returned and restored hope to our lives.  The Warriors are the only good team in the neighborhood now, but that hasn't stopped them from trying to inject some life into these two months anyway.

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The Main Event

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Tue Dec 11 2007 at 4:37 PM EST
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"Did you see the Warriors game last night?"

Used to be, if someone asked you that at work in the morning, it was followed by something like "Tracy McGrady dunked on six Warriors at once", or "some of the fans ran onto the court and beat the Warriors in a pickup game".  But no more!  Finally, regular-season Warriors games are now events for all the right reasons- most importantly, the team wins most of them.  And they're winning in style now, stealing the close games against good teams that they used to squander, and running teams in the bottom half of the standings right out of the gym.

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Suck, We Barely Knew Ye

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Tue Apr 17 2007 at 1:49 AM EST
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13 years. That's an eternity. 13 years ago, Greg Oden could barely grow a moustache. Edmund Dantes claims he spent 13 years on Chateu D'If, but he probably went crazy and rounded up after 11 ½. If you had a kid 13 years ago, it would already be asking for birth control or sneaking into your porn collection. I'm only 25, so for me, 13 years means I've spent over half my life supporting crap basketball- that's almost too depressing for words. But now, after 13 years, it all seems worth it.

13 years. That's how long it's been since playoff basketball has been played in Oakland. But now that's all about to change.

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Party Like It's 1994

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Wed Aug 30 2006 at 4:34 AM EST
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    Tuesday was already shaping up to be a great day for the Bay Area.  The A's continued to pull away in the AL West, the Giants inched closer toward the NL Wild Card, the Raiders were enjoying their 4-0 preseason record, and the new Too Short album was set to hit stores.  Fun for the whole family.  And yet by 9 AM, all anyone could talk about was a 66-year-old man coming out of retirement (no, not Jeff George).  After 12 brutal years, Don Nelson has finally returned as head coach of the Golden State Warriors, singlehandedly saving the team's most disappointing offseason in years.

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The Swingin' A's

By sign arenas, Section MLB
Posted on Wed May 03 2006 at 4:37 AM EST
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    There are no handlebar moustaches to be found.  No skin-tight plaid bellbottoms, either.  And there's no basket near the door for your keys.  But the Oakland A's are certainly doing their best to re-earn the nickname "The Swingin' A's".  By charging the mound against the Angels Tuesday, Jason Kendall scared away any remaining perceptions that the A's are still the fun-loving, beer-chugging misfits they once were.  Gone are the Lost Boys carrying out Jason Giambi's never-grow-up credo; in their place is a group of veteran castaways who have taken control of the team, and instilled a fighter's mentality.   Given the way these A's play, don't be surprised if they end up in a few more scraps before the year's over.

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Be The Draft

By sign arenas, Section NFL
Posted on Thu Apr 27 2006 at 6:01 AM EST
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    Thank god for the NFL.  As America's other major sports continue their downward moral and ethical spiral, football arrives just in time to save us.  In the past week alone, 5 Giants were ejected from a single game; Keith Hernandez set the Women's Lib movement back 50 years;  and NBA players were suspended from the playoffs for clubbing opponents in the head, throwing mouthpieces at referees, and arguing with coaches over playing time.  But just when you were ready to give up on sports for good, the NFL Draft arrives.  Suddenly it's Saturday morning, Mel Kiper is staring you in the face, and all is right with the world. Just in case you haven't adequately prepared for this weekend's festivities, here is a quick rundown of where you can expect the big names and familiar faces to end up:

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1-800-GS-Whoops

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Tue Mar 14 2006 at 10:12 AM EST
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    Well, that didn't work, did it?  The Golden State Warriors are wrapping up their 12th consecutive season without a playoff appearance, and for the first time in recent memory, this qualifies as an unexpected development.  And while it's disheartening to be left out of the playoff picture yet again, it does provide a much clearer picture of where this team stands in the NBA's pecking order.  Only a year ago, Baron Davis' arrival had everyone convinced we were ready to make a run, but by midseason this year I was already turning down free (free!) tickets to home games- and I live 5 minutes from the Coliseum, on a bad day.  

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The Lukewarm Stove

By sign arenas, Section MLB
Posted on Tue Dec 20 2005 at 5:05 AM EST
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    Manny Ramirez?  Still in Boston.

    Johnny Damon?  Still a free agent, waiting for the right offer.

    Nomar Garciaparra?  Agreed to a one-year deal in L.A., while Rafael Furcal signed the contract Nomar once appeared destined to receive.

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Moving to the Attic

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Wed Nov 16 2005 at 6:21 AM EST
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    I am the Bizarro Chicken Little.  The sky is actually growing.  After 8 games, my basketball team has failed to post a single losing record.  They've now had 8 chances to take that familiar plunge into the lottery pool, the shallow end of the NBA where also-rans bob around in their floaties and learn how to hopefully make it to the deep end one day.  Over the past decade, the Warriors have been the kid who simply refuses to get out of the lotto pool, closing hours and pruned fingers be damned.  But this year, the Warriors haven't so much as dipped a toe into the lottery waters, instead sprinting for the deep end and diving in headfirst.  And the only thing more surprising than seeing the Warriors in the deep end for the first time in 12 years?  They're keeping their heads above water.

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All the Right Questions

By sign arenas, Section NBA
Posted on Thu Oct 27 2005 at 7:21 AM EST
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It's been a long offseason for basketball fans, especially those in California.  The past 6 months have felt like an eternity to all those Clippers fans who can't wait for Sam Cassell and Cuttino Mobley to lead the Clips back to the promised land.  With the season less than a week away, you'll want to be prepared for when the real games begin.  But don't worry: you have questions, and I have the answers.  Here are the biggest questions surrounding the NBA's offseason, and how they affect your team.

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