In Baron They Trust

So a lot of us are smitten with those Golden State Warriors, who play totally unorthodox ball and could hit you with 30 points from anywhere in their starting line-up. Or maybe even from their bench. But after Baron Davis's sparkling game on performance, his own coach has pinned the team's hopes squarely on the veteran point guard.

From the Star-Telegram's Mavs Full Court Press:

Coach Don Nelson said Monday that he'll "burn him up" because otherwise the Warriors don't have much of a chance to win.

"If he breaks down in the playoffs, we lose," Nelson said. "If I don't play him because I've rested him, we lose. For us to have a chance to win, he has to play and he has to play more minutes. I can just hope he doesn't break down, but it's worth that gamble."

Mixed feelings here. I was a huge Baron Davis fan until all the injuries made it too sad to bear. He's one of the great underrated playoff performers of this era. At the same time, it's a lot more exciting to think that anyone on the Warriors could be the hero of future upsets. And more hopeful, given that Davis is still recovering from knee surgery.

Then again, this could just be more Nellie mind games. It's certainly a good way to distract a defense from Jason Richardson or Monta Ellis. And hey, the small ball smoke and mirrors sure paid dividends in game one.