#38: MIL @ GSW 1/15/10

PreThoughts

It'd be a stretch to call any game "must-win" for the Dubs at this point, but we could sure use a W here... this homestand will start to look pretty dicey otherwise. Brandon Jennings has not shot well since he high-55ed us, and the Bucks have lost 18 of 25, falling to tenth in a conference where that's hard to do. This being a Scott Skiles team, they do defend well, but they also foul you something fierce. Here's hoping we give them a vicious Maggette-ing.

Warrior To Watch: Monta Ellis had not yet kicked into his weird ineffective superhero mode when last we played them, so he will probably be looking to outshine ol' BJ tonight.

Buck To Watch: you'll be watching Jennings anyway, so try to also keep an eye out for Luc Mbah a Moute, a guy whose defense drives all the nerds wild. He figures to be Maggette's shadow tonight, and the winner of that battle will more than likely win the game.

PostThoughts

No win, but the larger mission of re-investing the Oracle fans was certainly accomplished. A really inspiring underdog turn from the good guys here, and you simply can't fault any Warrior for their performance tonight. Good thoughts to the legions of wounded.

In addition, we saw the continuation of several promising trends. Maggette continued his transcendent play, and his January line -- 27.7 points on 14.7 shots, 7.7 boards, 2.8 assists, 2.5 turnovers -- is most easily described as "Durant-like, but better". Andris finally double-doubled, and showed mobility, endurance and passion in doing it... if he's not all the way back, he's doing a damn good job of hiding it. Curry kept his higher shooting volume up, which will help both him and our offense in general. And we took a bunch of threes, including eight attempts by Monta. Let's be clear: we want him doing that, even if 30% is the best he can muster. Li'l teams will not compete unless they let it rain.

Monday brings a Bulls team with far more spring in their step than when last we saw them (not that they didn't beat us then). Let's hope some dudes heal up quick over the weekend, as spunky losing efforts lose their charm when placed consecutively.