Lacob, Warriors front office at critical juncture

Warriors owner Joe Lacob and his front office findthemselves at an important juncture early in their tenure.The have the ability to spend money in free agency and alsopossess some pieces that make them a viable trade partner for other NBA teams.Only, now, theyve lost out on their No. 1 free agent target, Tyson Chandler,and they have no hope of landing Chris Paul.And free agency hasnt even begun yet. Doesnt start tillFriday.
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Lacob has talked for a year-and-a-half about boldness andrisk-taking, and theres now a tangible clamor from the fan base that itstime. And yet, now might be the best time to take a breath, re-assess andgather. At this point, you could make a case its the Warriors best course ofaction.If Lacobs goal is for the Warriors to improve enough thisyear to leapfrog four teams and get into the postseason, the best way toaccomplish that might simply be by adding a couple of role players to thecore.Thats not going to be as sexy as if the Warriors had signedChandler (heading to New York) or finagled a way to get Paul (traded to L.A.Lakers). But in the long run it might be the most effective way towardeventually being successful.Dont use the amnesty provision, dont overspend for a freeagent and dont make a trade to decimate your core. Allow new coach MarkJackson to coach the team for this abbreviated season and then better see whatyou have.Thats not the worst strategy in the world. After all, thereare worse things you could do. Remember Corey Maggette?The Warriors signed Maggette to a 50-million contract inthe wake of Baron Davis spurning them for the Clippers. That was back in 2008,and the Warriors spent the next couple of years trying to get Maggette offtheir books.The point isthere are mistakes to be made right now andyou want to be sure not to make them.The nice position the Warriors are in is theyre still in agood spot with the cap and have a variety of different avenues they could theoreticallygo in. They could still get way under the cap, although there doesnt seem tobe a reason to now. Or they could get just get under in the amount they need totake a crack at a contributor or two.Maybe its signing Kwame Brown to split the center dutieswith Andris Biedrins. Perhaps you take a run at Milwaukees Luc Richard Mbah aMoute, every bit the defender Chandler is only not at the center position. Mbaha Moute is a restricted free agent, but the Bucks are reportedly adding MikeDunleavy and the Bucks arent exactly big spenders.Maybe you consider bringing Jason Richardson backgivesyou some size in the backcourt, a steady veteran leader and more toughness andcompetitiveness overall.Are any of those three difference-makers? Of course not. Andif you acquire a player or two like that there will certainly be someeye-rolling around the Bay Are. But so what?Sure beats the alternativegiving big-time money tosomeone whos not a big-time player.