Drama Comes to Golden State

The Warriors were rolling, seemingly unstoppable.  They came out of the All-Star break without breaking stride.  Kevin Durant was out for a game with illness, the Dubs won.  Steph Curry couldn't make a single 3 for an entire game, the Dubs still won.  They clinched a playoff spot, either earlier than anyone ever had, or had in a long time, depending on what story you read.

Then it seemed to all come tumbling down along with Kevin Durant.  His knee injury took him out of action reportedly for the rest of the regular season, at least.
The Warriors, on their last long awkward road trip through the east and midwest, lost two games in a row for the first time since late in 2015.

Fans have to hope that the season low point was in Chicago, the first entirely Durant-less game, when Curry and Thompson and everybody else was stone cold.

The season--and the playoffs-- at best got interesting.  The Spurs (who host the Warriors at the end of this ridiculous trip) have more to play for now, as the top seed in the West is more imaginable.  Meanwhile, the Cavs got some apparently meaningful help before the trade deadline, while the Warriors seemingly got less.  How that actually plays out remains to be seen, but on paper the Cavs got a deeper bench, and nothing is more important to LeBron James than rest.

So now it's gut check, character time for the Warriors. They're still expected to beat most teams, but maybe not the elite.  For the first time in a long time, they are underdogs.

Meanwhile, spring training games for the San Francisco Giants started great but soon got messy.  But there's a lot of competition to make the team, and the Giants are learning more about who to watch for call-ups down the road.  So far, Mark Melancon is looking like a great addition as the closer.

Back to the NBA, Baby Buss and his bro tried to take the Lakers back from Jeannie Bush and Magic Johnson, but so far have failed.  A board of directors vote they are expected to lose appears to be their last chance.