Report: Warriors Turned Down Trade For Paul Pierce At Deadline

The Golden State Warriors reportedly turned down a trade for Rudy Gay earlier this season, and now reports are surfacing that they turned down a trade for the expiring contract of Paul Pierce, as well.

Grantland's Bill Simmons is reporting that the Warriors declined a trade that would send Harrison Barnes, and either Richard Jefferson or Andris Biedrins, to the Celtics for Paul Pierce.


Pierce will be a free agent after the season.

"Warrants mentioning: The Warriors turned down Pierce from Boston in February for Harrison Barnes and a 2014 expiring contract (either Andris Biedrins or Richard Jefferson). I would have done it because they would have been selling super-high on the disappears-way-too-much Barnes (notice he didn't even make "honorable mention") and Pierce would have made them a short-term contender. Could you go to small-ball war against OKC with Curry, Jack, Pierce, Thompson and David Lee? Actually, I think you could. I'd rather have Pierce's final four years then Barnes's next 10, anyway."

The Warriors have made it clear that they feel Barnes will amount to a very productive player in the NBA, and while Pierce would have made Golden State a better team talent-wise, Barnes is a part of the future of the team.

Barnes' NBA ceiling is higher than the probability of Pierce re-signing with the Warriors next season if the trade ever went through.

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Should the San Francisco Giants Be Worried About Hector Sanchez?

The news out of San Francisco Giants spring training has only been negative for backup catcher Hector Sanchez.  The 23-year-old showed up overweight to camp, then injuries have limited his play during arguably the most crucial period of spring.

Sanchez’s spot on the Giants’ 25-man roster is by no means guaranteed, and there are a handful of catchers in the Giants organization that are playing well enough to at least tempt manager Bruce Bochy into starting the season without Sanchez to relieve Buster Posey behind the plate.

“We’ve got to keep it competitive,” Bochy said, per CSN Bay Area’s Andrew Baggarly. “That’s the best way to go. There’s no jobs given out here and these guys know it.”

The handful of players competing for Sanchez’s spot are all having arguably the best springs of any players on the Giants’ roster. 26-year-old Johnny Monell has had the most eye-opening spring, batting .600 with nine hits and five RBI in 15 plate appearances. Although his defense could potentially ruin his chances of starting the season in San Francisco, his bat has become a constant force throughout spring training, something the Giants could use in place of Sanchez if injuries continue to limit his playing time over the next few weeks.

Guillermo Quiroz, 31, is another prospect whose bat has been impressive, and he has the upper hand on Monell defensively. Through 15 games of spring training, Quiroz is batting .333 with five hits and six RBI.

In addition to the two front-runners to replace Sanchez, if that is indeed what Bochy and the Giants decide to do, catchers Jackson Williams and Tyler La Torre will also get sufficient looks from the coaching staff. Williams is the man behind the plate for AAA-Fresno, and La Torre’s production for the surprising Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic will earn him nothing but opportunities as spring training wraps up in the coming weeks.

The San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea is reporting that Bochy is leaning towards the more experienced catchers if Sanchez needs more time to recover from injury.

“Manager Bruce Bochy said there's "some concern at this point" about whether Sanchez can be the No. 2 catcher behind Posey and mentioned Guillermo Quiroz, who has played 103 games for five big-league teams, and Jackson Williams as possible replacements.”
 

Bochy has decent options to backup Posey at catcher to start the regular season, but the bigger issue is Sanchez’s condition. Although his injury status does not appear to be serious, his .211 batting average in 19 games this spring is. Sanchez will need to recover and regroup if the Giants are to see a more experienced and productive backup catcher at any point in the regular season.

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Revis on 49ers: 'I Would Just Be An Addition To Help Them Win That Trophy'

The rumors of a trade involving shut-down safety Darrelle Revis and the San Francisco 49ers have run rampant ever since Alex Smith was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The 49ers have the ammunition to acquire a player of Revis' caliber with a total of 15 draft picks in the 2013 NFL Draft, and it appears they are poised for a big splash on the trade market or in free agency this offseason.


Bottom line: Revis is on the trade block, and the 49ers have the assets to acquire him.

Revis addressed the 49ers rumors on Tuesday.

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Report: Hector Sanchez Shows Up to Spring Training Overweight

The San Francisco Giants have always had to worry about Pablo Sandoval and now they have to worry about Hector Sanchez, as well. Sanchez reportedly showed up to spring training a few pounds overweight this week, an issue the team has previously had with their hefty third baseman.


Here is CSN Bay Area's Andrew Baggarly on the news:

"Add Sanchez to the list of Giants who will be doing extra conditioning work this spring, Bochy said. They aren’t just picking on Pablo Sandoval. Sanchez arrived a bit heavier than the club wanted, too."

Sanchez is listed at 225 pounds, but with increased playing time coming in his future -- as Buster Posey will likely be positioned at first base more often this season -- the Giants will need him at tip-top shape come Opening Day.

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VIDEO: Curry Impressive In Practice For Three-Point Shootout

2012's winner of the All-Star three-point shootout, Kevin Love, did not eclipse 20 points in any of the rounds. In a video posted by Warriors guard and 2013 three-point contestant Stephen Curry, it shows the sharp-shooter tallying 27 points in a practice round -- a score that would easily surpass the competition on Saturday.


Last year's high point total was made by James Jones, who had 22 points on his way to a second place finish to a rallying Love.

Curry fired off a tweet to go with the video, simply saying "Think this will cut it for the shootout."

Yeah, that will...

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Andrew Bogut: 'Right Now Our Defense Is @#$%'

The Warriors lost their fifth straight game and now head into the All-Star break with questions about their team, the sustainability of their success and their suddenly non-existent defense.

Andrew Bogut said as much after the Warriors' loss to the Rockets on Tuesday, per @SherwoodStrauss.

Bogut: "Right now, our defense is shit"
— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) February 13, 2013

Stephen Curry, David Lee and Harrison Barnes are all headed to Houston for the All-Star festivities, but they will ultimately have to return to a team in desperate need of a win.

Golden State sits in sixth place in the Western Conference through 52 games, but just two games up on the eighth-seeded Houston Rockets, who are currently playing some of their best basketball of the season.

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Roman on 49ers' Super Bowl Play Calling: 'That's Life'

'Should, coulda, woulda' is how 49ers offensive coordinator Greg Roman sums up the play calling in the final drive of Super Bowl XLVII. Roman has received some flack for the lack of creativity in the final four plays of the 49ers' season, but has not let it discourage him.


Sports Illustrated's Peter King spoke with Roman about the Super Bowl loss to the Ravens. Here is what Roman had to say:

"That's life," said Roman. "That's sort of the life of a coach. Will it eat at me? Of course it will. But I'll use it as motivation going forward. To dwell on something that's over is so utterly pointless. Anytime you make a call and the play doesn't work, you think of another play that might have worked. We had a valiant effort, a great comeback, and it wasn't enough. That's life. It's the game we love, the highs, the lows. But it doesn't take away from what we did this year, and how excited I'm going to be to coach these guys next year."

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