SFC/Ratto: Now that Ellis is the Man, how will he handle it?

SFGate
Now that Ellis is the Man, how will he handle it?
Ray Ratto, San Francisco Chronicle
Friday, July 25, 2008
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(07-24) 21:47 PDT -- Monta Ellis' signing by the Warriors to be Baron
II is no surprise. He had no other offers, the Warriors had no
alternatives, the Greeks hadn't settled on a playmate for Josh
Childress - why, it was a marriage made in heaven, if heaven is
defined as a fait accompli.

But as the new face of the franchise, Ellis is about to find out how
much his narrow shoulders can bear, and then what three times that
weighs. This, boys, girls and undecideds, is about to get very
interesting.

Ellis' career has been made in large part by drafting behind bigger
cars - Davis, Stephen Jackson, Don Nelson, even Troy Murphy and Mike
Dunleavy. He has been the youngest child, the one everyone finds
irresistibly cute. No baggage, no injury history, no contract burden.
In every way, the protected one.

And by any sensible measure, he paid off in kind. He was so gifted
offensively that his defensive shortcomings were forgiven. He was so
intrepid in the open court that people didn't mind his limitations in
half-court sets. People not only made allowances for his youth, they
lionized him for it - 21st century nurturing to a T.

Even Nelson's lash, felt most readily during the playoff run when
Ellis' playing time was reduced, was delivered with uncharacteristic
gentleness. He knew that Davis wouldn't last forever.

And now, Ellis is Davis. He has been handed a team that won 48 games
last year and missed the playoffs, and the allowances will be sharply
curtailed. He can be an unconventional point guard because Nelson and
convention run like firemen and arsonists, but he can't be so
unconventional that he forgets that Nelson's definition of free-form
is not Ellis'. He is the Man now, with all due deference to Jackson,
and the Man has responsibilities that can't be unmet. "We Believe" is
now "We Believe In You." Is he ready for what awaits? That depends on
what he considers his share, though it is safe to assume that it is
larger than he thinks. When the Warriors struggled in the past, fault
was found because fault must be found. Sometimes it was Davis,
sometimes Nelson, occasionally Chris Mullin, often Dunleavy and
Murphy.

And the Warriors aren't the same inept, unmotivated, non-creative
bunglers they once were, so that a lot of the attention that once was
siphoned off to hologrammatic owner Chris Cohan and his consigliere
Bobby Rowell was now redirected from the owner's box back to floor
level.

And now, with Davis gone to Los Angeles to split time between Mike
Dunleavy the Elder and Steven Spielberg, the load moves. Some will be
taken by Jackson, who last year went away from the stereotype assigned
him and became a go-to figure on and off the floor, but fingers follow
the money, and Ellis has 66,000,300 fingers pointed at him - the $66
million he is expected to make over the next six years, and the 300
wins he is expected to lead the Warriors to in that time - 50 per
year, more or less.

Ellis is an odd fit both in his new job and among those who do his job
in the Western Conference. He is plainly not as good at the moment as
Chris Paul (New Orleans), Deron Williams (Utah), Steve Nash (Phoenix),
Tony Parker (San Antonio), Jason Kidd (Dallas) or Davis (Los Angeles
Clippers), either by virtue of experience or current talent level.

He is being asked, however, to be a very quick study, especially at
these prices. He must be both Nelson's extension onto the floor, and a
creator, not only for himself but for Jackson, Andris Biedrins,
Brandan Wright and the rest of this dramatically different team. If he
succeeds quickly, we should never forget the mammoth undertaking this
is. If he fails, well, he'll find out.

But if, as is most likely, he ends up in the vast middle, learning on
the fly to temper his often mercurial game with the demands of being
the nucleus of a vibrant whole, he'll have to learn that love comes at
a price, that immunity from persecution is granted only so long, and
that cute is fungible.

For the moment, though, Monta Ellis is the Warriors. He had to be, for
there was no other foreseeable outcome once Davis left. Whatever
happens now, however he finds his place, his ability to define this
franchise is the new prime directive on what was, is, and for the
foreseeable future, the wackiest starship in the NBA.

And if any of this makes you nervous, relax. You could be an Atlanta
Hawk fan, watching your team's future sunning himself in Crete.

E-mail Ray Ratto at rratto DeleteThis @sfchronicle.com.

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This article appeared on page D - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle