Steinmetz: Don't jump at Lee's impact

Nov. 29, 2010STEINMETZ ARCHIVEWARRIORS PAGEWARRIORS VIDEOMatt SteinmetzCSNBayArea.com

This is a stat that's getting a lot of play right now: The Warriors are 7-2 with David Lee and 1-7 when David Lee doesn't play.That's a great stat, no doubt. But get back to me in two weeks and let me know how those numbers are doing.Look, there's no doubt the Warriors are better with Lee, but touting a stat like that is asking for trouble because it implies that the Golden State with Lee is a very good team.And it's too soon for that. The Warriors have accumulated a bunch of their wins - with Lee healthy - against very favorable competition. And they lost seven of eight without Lee against a mixed bag of opponents.The real test comes now: Lee is healthy, and the big boys lie in wait, beginning Tuesday against the Spurs. After that, the Warriors play Phoenix, at Oklahoma City, at Dallas, at San Antonio, vs. Miami and at Utah.Put it this way, there's a good chance the Warriors' record with Lee drops to about 7-7 in the pretty near future.--There's no change when it comes to Brandan Wright's lower back strain. Wright was at Warriors' practice on Monday but didn't participate. He is still listed as "out," and no timetable for his return has been established.Wright declined interview requests on Monday. --Several Warriors stuck around long after practice on Monday but not to work out. Jeremy Lin and Jeff Adrien, among others, participated in a media training session with Bob Fitzgerald, the team's play-by-play man.--Don't tell Dorell Wright that David Lee doesn't help. How about this for a statistic - Wright is shooting 57 percent from 3-point range when Lee plays, 19 percent when Lee isn't playing.Said Wright: "That's crazy. He's just another threat. Three threats out there with him, Monta (Ellis), Stephen (Curry). You've got to pay attention to David because when he gets around the basket, he can finish with both hands. He's unselfish so you have to guard him more than one way. He just makes it a lot easier for me.
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