the timing of the opt out was messed up

I'm not sure if the Warriors would have used the 10mil trade exception if they knew BD was opting out but I'm willing to bet that they would have thought about it. With BD opting out merely hours before the trade exception expired, it's almost as if he wanted to screw the Ws on purpose. If that's the case then that's cause for exile! -bB

exactly

as Bobby said, the timing was messed up. They were counting on him coming back and he pulls this. They might have drafted differently if they knew he was going to pull a fast one.
- Freddie Footballer

it's also fairly stupid on his part

this is not a good year for players to opt out of their contracts when you consider that only 3 teams really have any cap room to sign guys like Davis for their asking price: Clippers, Grizzlies, and Washington (although with their recent $50 million agreement with Antawn Jamison, they have less to spend). the Warriors now have room to make a move, and Mullin would be smart to bail on Davis and go after Gilbert Arenas; he's younger, more athletic, and would sell more product because of his personalilty. plus, despite last season's surguries, he is still a healthier alternative to the oft injured Davis. warriors fans, this could be a blessing in disguise if Mullin plays his cards right.

As stated, the only teams

As stated, the only teams with cap room are the Clippers and the Grizzles. This means one thing: Baron is going to be a Clipper. I think Baron's heart has always been in LA and he'll jump at the chance to play for the Clips and with that knowledge, I hope that Chris Mullin can get something back for him. I know Kaman is making big bucks and if they hope to resign Brand as well as Baron, that will be an additional crap load of money. My ideal move would be to move Baron in a sign and trade for an expiring contract, Eric Gordon and a future draft pick or two.

just signed with the clips

for 5 years and 65 million. thank god the warriors didnt drop that kinda dough on baron. now we can pay monta and make him the focal point of our team.

I agree that eventually

I agree that eventually Monta and Biedrins should be the eventual focal points of the team but I think it is too soon. Monta is not ready to be a full time NBA point guard and Biedrins doesn't have a commanding post game(and I don't know if he'll ever develop one). I think a couple more years of Baron and the vets would have been good for them but now their learning is going to have to accelerate. I hope Baron leaving doesn't have a domino effect and cause Jackson to want out also.

re:

If the Warriors don't get a star player by the end of the off-season, prepare for a bad season. I'm talking 25 wins bad. __________ LB23

I’m starting to think that

I'm starting to think that Baron's leaving is going to be a blessing in disguise and I don't hate Baron for leaving. Warriors' management is obviously not interested in giving him the long term deal that he desires and he just left once a team gave him the deal he was looking for. He basically bolted one year earlier than he was going to anyway. He gave the Warriors a great run while he was here and he hasn't said anything bad about a Warriors' who offered the max to Arenas and Brand but not the player who brought them to the playoffs for the first time. With that said, we didn't even make the playoffs with Baron leading and assuming we want to win a championship, it would be better that Baron and the Warriors part ways sooner rather than later. If we win the Brand sweepstakes (which I don't think we will), that would be a HUGE step in the right direction. We could then re-sign Monta (hopefully he won't demand huge money a la Ben Gordon and Luol Deng last year, those idiots) and Andris. If we don't sign Brand we still have a lot of money to spend this year (Iguodala and maybe Josh Smith are on my wishlist) but I hope Mullin doe not make the mistake of giving out huge money a la Troy Murphy and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named aka Mike Dunleavy. Regardless, this will be an interesting off season for sure.

Calm, gents, calm

Let's not get apocalyptic (sic?) over BD. He's great and the Warriors will lose a step without him. But that money WILL go elsewhere. Remember, with the Italian, Jackson, and Kelenna, the Warriors have enough three point shooting. I think their key is to add a big man who can defend (Brand!!!!!!) and shoot fewer threes. Monta isn't ready to run the point full time, but he's got to. It's his time and, frankly, I can't think of another guy in the league I'd settle for switching positions. He's awesome.

best option for the now

since i can see no one has even mentioned al harrington, i'm going to suggest to warrior fans that the best move this season would be to send him to chicago for either kirk heinrich or ben gordon (the latter via a sign-and-trade). heinrich works best because, let's face it, monta ellis is not a point guard. this is the hardest position in the league to learn, let alone transition to, and scorers have the most difficult time. stephen jackson is also somewhat of a cancer on the team because his bad attitude is infectious. take it from a guy who suffered through the jail-blazers era here in portland, character is a huge part of a team's success. it might be wise to use jackson in a trade with the hawks for josh smith, who is likely to command more money than they are willing to pay for his services and would allow the hawks to get something rather than nothing. that way, you get a PG in heinrich, you keep ellis at his natural position, and Don Nelson gets a guy in Smith who plays high energy at both ends of the court.

re:

SJax is not a cancer. If anything him and Al are the glue that holds this team together. As for Hinrich, to put it bluntly, he doesn't have the killer instinct to compete and dominate. He seems hesitant not a times, but all the time. He looks scared to make the big play and shys away from the spotlight. Trading for a guy like that means you commit to him for a long time, and I'd rather not commit to a poor leader at a position that runs the team.

re:

Warriors are in big trouble. BD!!!!!!!!