Golden State Warriors guard Monta Ellis was not selected as a
reserve for the All-Star game. Charles Barkley was outraged.
Teammate David Lee was
”
very disappointed.
”
Warriors fans were miffed. As for Ellis?
”
I thought about it sometimes, that this would’ve been (my year).
But at the same time, I had to come to reality. It’s over with
now,
”
he said.
”
We’ve still got the chance to make the playoffs. That’s the only
thing I’m worried about.
”
Ellis said that before Thursday night’s game. Then he went out
and all but kept the Warriors’ faint playoff hopes alive with a
100-94 victory over Milwaukee.
OAKLAND
Golden State Warriors guard Monta Ellis was not selected as a reserve for the All-Star game. Charles Barkley was outraged. Teammate David Lee was “very disappointed.” Warriors fans were miffed.
As for Ellis?
“I thought about it sometimes, that this would’ve been (my year). But at the same time, I had to come to reality. It’s over with now,” he said. “We’ve still got the chance to make the playoffs. That’s the only thing I’m worried about.”
Ellis said that before Thursday night’s game. Then he went out and all but kept the Warriors’ faint playoff hopes alive with a 100-94 victory over Milwaukee.
Golden State was in danger of losing to a Bucks team that was without its starting center in Andrew Bogut (bruised right knee) and with a limited starting point guard in Brandon Jennings.
It wasn’t a pretty performance by Ellis, who needed 22 shots to get 24 points and had his six assists offset by four turnovers. But he made three clutch baskets down the stretch to keep the Warriors from a loss they could ill afford.
His driving layup with 2:35 left put the Warriors up 90-86. After a Warriors stop, Ellis got free for a dunk for a six-point lead.
Corey Maggette, who scored 21 points in his first Oracle Arena appearance since the Warriors traded him to Milwaukee in the offseason, scored six straight points for the Bucks, the latter a step-back jumper that cut the Warriors’ lead to 94-94 with 10.3 seconds left.
But Ellis responded with a jumper of his own. A jab step lost his defender long enough to free him for an open jumper at the right elbow of the free throw line.
It was the kind of play that had his teammates thinking he should have been selected to the Western Conference All-Star team.
“He’s definitely deserving,” said Stephen Curry, who finished with 16 points, five assists and seven turnovers. “His consistency from start to finish, the way he gets his points, the way he dominates the court when he’s in there, drawing double teams. Even when he’s not scoring, he’s having an impact on the game.”
The Warriors struggled most of the night as the Bucks succeeded in slowing tempo. Golden State was handled on the boards 49-36 thanks to a combined 38 points and 32 rebounds from Luc Mbah a Moute and Ersan Ilyasova.
Even with Jennings_who’s under a minutes limit after recently returning from foot surgery_totaling just two points in 20 minutes, Milwaukee was able to stay in the game. The Bucks led 73-72 after three quarters.
But Ellis helped the Warriors pull it out when it mattered, scoring eight points in the final three minutes.
Three reserve guards were chosen by the conference coaches to the West team: Utah’s Deron Williams, San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili and Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook. They all come from teams with better records than Ellis, though Ellis is arguably having a better season.
He still could make it as an injury replacement. Houston center Yao Ming, who was voted in as a starter, is out for the season with a foot injury. Williams has a wrist injury that could jeopardize his All-Star appearance Feb. 20 at Los Angeles’ Staples Center.
So Ellis could still be added on. But does he want to be?
“Uh, I’m gonna stay away from that question,” Ellis said. “I’m just going to continue to play hard, play like I’ve been doing the whole season.”
Notes:
Point guard Acie Law, Curry’s backup, missed Thursday’s game with a sprained right wrist. That paved the way for little-used Charlie Bell, who got some playing time for the first time since totaling five minutes at Utah on Dec. 13. Scratch that. He did play four seconds against the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 22. . . .Thursday, the Warriors wore the uniform from the 1974-75 NBA championship season to tip off Hardwood Classics Month. The uniform, which will be worn on select nights in February, will feature a patch of a deerstalker cap in honor of late former owner Franklin Mieuli.
— Story by Marcus Thompson II, Contra Costa Times
