Semi-Discipline A Good PR Move By Warriors

by Steve Weinman on Oct 12, 2008 11:00 AM EDT in NBA Articles

A Daily Babble Production

After nearly a month's worth of speculation, the Golden State Warriors took action this weekend and suspended their best player for 30 games.

That includes four preseason games, so Monta Ellis will be gone until after the Warriors take on the Indiana Pacers on December 17.

This would normally seem a risky endeavor for a team that won 48 games last season and still missed the playoffs in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. But the fact that Ellis was likely to play in few if any of those 30 games in the first place mitigates most of that gamble and turns this suspension into something that will probably amount to little more than a good public relations move for the organization that employs the 22-year-old guard.

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Ellis injured himself back in August and initially told the team that he got hurt working out on the court at home in Mississippi. It came out shortly thereafter that the fourth-year budding star had lied and that he had actually sustained his ankle injury riding a moped, which is a clear violation of the part of the NBA's uniform player contract that prohibit activities such as, say, riding mopeds. Not a good start to the 2008-09 campaign for a guy who had just been rewarded with a six-year, $66 million contract to secure his place as a franchise cornerstone Oakland.

So the Warriors had a decision to make: Take action against Ellis and risk alienating their best player, or do nothing and risk sending a bad message to the team and the fans about stars getting away with misconduct.

But the kicker was the extent of Ellis' injury, which would certainly appear to make the decision less of a dilemma. Virtually from the start, Ellis was expected to be out at least until December in the first place. There wasn't necessarily any guarantee that he would be ready to play before the turn of the calendar, so suspending Ellis through December 17 isn't much of a risky proposition from the standpoint of the basketball that is to be played between now and then.

It's also hard to imagine Ellis being that peeved about being suspended for games that he knew he wasn't going to play in anyway. He is by all accounts a good kid, and one virtually has to think that he knows he messed up by this point, so he'll have to live without the $3 million he'll lose (which still leaves a measly $63 million to him on this contract). He broke a clear rule, and he'll serve his time for it and move on. That he'll be serving time that really wouldn't have been his to begin with is just a bonus for Ellis. The guess here is that the context of the suspension should help dampen the likelihood of Ellis alienating himself from the time, and it doesn't hurt either that Don Nelson and Chris Mullin have publicly indicated that they weren't in favor of suspending the youngster. It was owner Chris Cohan and president Robert Rowell who made the decision, but Mullin (the GM) and particularly Nelson (the coach) are the two front office folks with whom Ellis deals most on a day-to-day basis. If he knows he has their support going forward, that may soften any psychological blow caused by the suspension.

Further, by suspending Ellis, the Warriors have sent a clear message to the rest of the roster and the team's fan base. The organization appears as though it will not tolerate off-court misconduct in a manner that hurts the team, and it avoids susceptibility to accusations of star treatment for its summer investment. The Warriors set an apparent precedent here that they will punish players who step out of line and jeopardize the club, and the front office no doubt hopes that will help its image with the fans while deterring other players from similar behavior.

In the meantime, the Warriors gain what should be closure to the Ellis injury mystery-fiasco without doing themselves much damage in the won-loss column. The risk of Ellis turning on the team still seems low, and so long as that doesn't happen, the suspension ploy will be a good one for Golden State.

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Comments

Seems like a pretty good kid that made a mistake. But his street cred is shot with him getting hurt on a moped.

by Birdbrain on Oct 12, 2008 11:15 AM EDT reply actions

I enjoyed reading these interviews with Warriors’ owner:

http://48minutes.net/2008/10/11/robert-rowell-speaks/

Btw, Mullin seems to be done as GSW General Manager:

(You said his agent wasnâ€™t in alignment on this. Were others in your organization on board, like Mullin and Nelson?)
Theyâ€™re in agreement with what weâ€™ve done because they know thatâ€™s where weâ€™re at.
(Did you give them input into the decision?)
No, and in fact, Chris Mullin made it perfectly clear to both Mr. Cohan and myself that he didnâ€™t think this was a big deal at the beginning. And we happen to think itâ€™s a very big deal. We happen to think that itâ€™s a big deal for our fans, itâ€™s a big deal for our season ticket-holders, itâ€™s a big deal for our business partners, itâ€™s a big deal for the Warriors organization. Iâ€™ve had discussions with Don and Don realizes and understands this is a contractural issue that needs to be dealt with at our level. Heâ€™s hired to coach our basketball team and heâ€™s done a great job of doing that. and he knows that these decisions need to be made by different people.[/quote]

Also, I’m hoping Ellis can come back as good as ever, but that kind of injury is pretty serious and the Warriors are clearly aware of that:

[quote]Rowell said repeatedly that the team has reserved its right to revisit the contract if Ellis, whose quickness made him the NBAâ€™s Most Improved Player in 2006-07 and led to his averaging 20.2 points per game on 53.1 percent shooting last season, canâ€™t regain that form.

by cordobes on Oct 12, 2008 12:40 PM EDT reply actions

It Ellis fine is immaterial … the fractions developing in their front office and ownership is huge news.

There’s been quite a few reports over the past month or two saying that Mullin might be on the out after this season, as well as several other front office personnel. A lot of things are going on there behind the scenes.

by Who on Oct 12, 2008 2:26 PM EDT reply actions

My guess is he grew up in a home with no father, has zero time invested in academic learning, hangs with friends who lack everything he lacks except his game, and no one should be surprised that he can’t make an intellignet choice. As Forest Gump said “Stupid is as stupid does”.

by Wildblu1 on Oct 12, 2008 3:28 PM EDT reply actions

Wow wildblue, he fell off a moped, hes a kid. Plenty of my friends have been hurt doing stupid things and they come from all backgrounds. I mean really, check the ignorance, thats borderline hateful.

by POBstuntin on Oct 12, 2008 4:17 PM EDT reply actions

i am sorry the kid got hurt. these are very young people with too much money and importance. riding a moped-come on. better than a bar brawl like tony got into or pp walking out of a bar late at night and getting stabbed. i hope he doesn’t lose his first step and explosion.

by nazzbo on Oct 12, 2008 5:25 PM EDT reply actions

hey mods – not that im trying to tell anyone how to do their job, but is anything being done about what that wildblue cat said? POB’s got it right except that there’s nothing borderline about it. these kind of comments have no place in any kind of public forum. dude can be ignorant in his own home, but others shouldnt have to suffer fools.

ellis by all accounts is a great kid. he fell off a moped – like some great kids do. i was an all state track and field athlete in high school with a 4.0 gpa and i fell off a dirtbike late in my senior year. granted, i didn’t have a 66 mil contract – but i lost all my scholarship offers. i made a dumb mistake – and my dad was the first one to meet me in the hospital.

by Raygus on Oct 12, 2008 11:04 PM EDT reply actions

According to Hoopsworld , the Warriors have suspended Ellis for 30 games for the circumstances surrounding his August injury. Given the range of unpleasant options following Ellisâ€™ mo-ped madness, the Warriors made the right decision.
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Sally
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by sallreen on Oct 13, 2008 11:25 PM EDT reply actions

by sallreen on Oct 13, 2008 11:26 PM EDT reply actions

Raygus, really appreciate your comment. Its a lot of ignorance that prevents people from appreciating the great NBA players and game sometimes. I do wish that players would make better decisions. Has Monta heard of Jay Williams? That guy was Chris Paul in-the-making and he crashed a motorcycle and lost out on a great career.

The funny part is Monta Ellis has probably not even received his first paycheck from his new contract. I hope he has some money saved up!

by Maestro on Oct 17, 2008 3:48 PM EDT reply actions