Nov. 16, 2010STEINMETZ ARCHIVEWARRIORSPAGEWARRIORSVIDEO
KINGS PAGEKINGS VIDEOMatt SteinmetzCSNBayArea.com
OK, so Monday night against the Pistons, Warriors coach Keith Smart kept guard Monta Ellis on the bench for almost seven minutes - all the while Detroit kept chipping away at a 14-point deficit.Ellis had committed his fifth foul with 8:43 remaining, and the Warriors up 92-78. But Smart didn't bring Ellis back until there was 1:50 remaining, and the lead had dwindled to four.As Smart pointed out Monday - and again today - it all worked out because the Warriors ended up winning 101-97.Well, that's one way to look at it.
The other way would be that had Smart brought back Ellis sooner, maybe the Pistons wouldn't have pulled so close.
Ellis wasn't happy after Monday's game, saying: "I don't like it. I don't like it. At all."The point is, you bring your star player back with four or five minutes left in the game, right? Smart says not necessarily. That's one topic I revisited with Smart on Tuesday after Warriors practice.Here was Smart's explanation:
What'syour take? EmailMattand let him know. He may use it in his Mailbag.
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