Warriors at Suns
THE STORY: The Golden State Warriors are attempting to become a stronger defensive team under new coach Marc Jackson. So far, the renewed focus on that end has led to an offense no where close to last season’s explosive unit. Part of that comes from star guards Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis spending precious few moments together on the court. Curry made it through Saturday’s loss to Philadelphia without re-injuring his ankle but Ellis missed the contest to be home for a funeral. The Warriors hope to have both players back when they visit the Phoenix Suns on Monday. Speaking of formerly high-scoring teams that can’t seem to find the bucket, the Suns are just ahead of Golden State in scoring at 89.3 points after putting up 105.0 last season. Even Steve Nash has struggled to 8.3 points on 30.8 percent shooting through the first four games.
TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, CS Bay Area (Golden State), FS Arizona (Phoenix)
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (2-2): Golden State averaged 103.4 point last season but surrendered 105.7, dooming it to a 36-46 record. Many thought the first order of business would be to trade either Curry or Ellis to balance the team a bit, but Jackson has found a way to work with both. The Warriors held the Los Angeles Clippers, Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks to an average of 91.3 points in the first three games but fell apart Saturday in a 107-79 loss.
ABOUT THE SUNS (1-3): Phoenix is searching for answers at nearly every position, with none of the usual suspects playing up to their career standards. Veterans Nash and Grant Hill are not helped by the compressed lockout schedule and wing players such as Josh Childress, Channing Frye and Jared Dudley have not stepped up to fill the scoring void. A pleasant surprise has been Hakim Warrick, who languished on the bench for most of the second half last season but now leads the team in scoring at 15.7.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Phoenix has taken six straight and nine of 10 in the series.
2. Curry reportedly visited the Nike laboratory in hopes the company could design a shoe that would solve his ankle issues.
3. Frye is struggling to 20 percent (6 of 31) shooting in the first four games.