As we enter Day 10 of the Lance Kiffin hostage situation. ...

Here's todays sports news...

Here's todays sports stories...

_Football_NYFF109300x312.jpg" width="240" height="250" image class="imgright"/>With the pre-season in full force (for what it's worth, the Silver and Black are 1-1), #1 draft pick JaMarcus Russell is still at home, hanging with his homies. As of right here, right now, JaMarcus hasn't put his name to paper. So, what up? ...

You know, if last fall wasn't exactly a great time for Bay Area sports, this spring, especially this weekend, has to be considered a great moment. We listened to Gary Radnich this morning and he was complaining about not having anything to complain about. ...

Here's a rundown of what's happening in the world of sports blogs...

Here's todays wrap up of the sports news...

A good NBA season is like a good acid trip: it's all about peaking at the right time. Just ask last year's champions, the Miami Heat, about that one (the NBA season, not the acid trip). Well lo and behold, the Warriors are playing the last month of this season like a seasoned DeadHead instead of a burned-out meth-breath. After stomping the playoff-bound Utah Jazz Monday night in the O-rena, 126-102, the Warriors' playoff chances are skyrocketing like so many fantastic colors, and their days as league doormat may truly be numbered.

-We'll say this about the Warriors-- they got some gumption. After a series of not so great games and the shellacking at the hands of the Spurs, the Warriors went out and beat the mighty Suns. They started off scoring 45 points in the first quarter and then held onto win 124-119. J-Rich scored 36 points, 24 of them on 8 three- point plays. Stephen Jackson had 29 points and Brittle Baron had 21. They......

-The Sharks clinched a playoff spot with a win over the LA Kings, 3-1. Sure, it was pretty much a given but it's still nice to say. Patrick Marleau had two goals and one assist to lead the way. -Frank Gore is now making bank. -Athletics Nation tries to make sense of the A's spring stats. -Tim Kawakami gives us today's "what will the Raiders do with their draft pick" post. -Ray Ratto takes up......

Here's todays sports wrap up...

We're calling it right now -- cancel your reservations at the midtown Manhattan Day's Inn, cuz' ain't gonna' be no Warriors representative at this year's NBA Lottery. After 12 years, THE STREAK IS OVER -- your Golden State Warriors will make the playoffs this year as the number eight seed in the Western Conference.

Unlike Monte Poole or Tim Kawakami, there is no "will they or won't they" coming from SFist. This is a done deal. Their season-long fever has broken just in time, and the Warriors now have only to avoid full-scale collapse and they will walk into the playoffs unchallenged.

Hey now-- the Warriors are on a bit of a roll as they won their second game in a row, beating the Nugs 110-96. Sure, Carmelo didn't play, but for the Warriors, they have to be happy with the game as it's the first time this season the exact same Warriors mentioned in the Warriors press guide actually all appeared in a game. All of this is making Bruce Jenkins and Tim Kawakami drink from of the very same sippy cup of Kool Aid SFist Chris drank from as they are all now having visions of being crushed by the Mavs in the first round of the playoffs. And hey, if that doesn't add some shine to your day, the Warriors, East Coast Edition, are sucking up the joint these days. ...

-Down, down, down go the Warriors ,who lost their fifth straight, losing 106-97 to the Knicks in New York. -Once again, the Sharks faced off against the Ducks and once again, the Ducks got the better of them. Same old story. This was the Ducks fifth win over the Sharks in seven games. -Jeff Garcia won't be dooming the final years of his life by signing with the Raiders as they fail to come to......

-Stanford beating ASU has them thinking Big Dance. After a loss to Arizona, Cal is thinking NIT. -In a surprise to nobody, the 49ers released Antonio Bryant. They're supposedly all set to go after some free agent DEs, something to which Monte Poole says beware. -Barry Z and Russ Ortiz are sharp in the Giants first spring training game. Which means, yes, that somewhere on God's green earth, baseball is finally being played. -Tim Kawakami......

-Warriors road woes continue as they get rolled by the Milwaukee Bucks, 122-101. Are the nails being placed in the coffin? Tim Kawakami moves past the standard "will the Warriors make the playoffs" story to give the eulogy for another Warriors season that bites the dust. ...

-The Warriors get a big lead, lose a big lead, then regain a big lead as they beat the NY Knicks. Tim Kawakami thinks the Warriors need to tank the season by giving Patrick O’Bryant some playing time. ...

And so, the Giants finally pulled the trigger and signed the Barry. The money is about what was heard before- $16 million with enough incentive clauses to make it a possible $20 million. The only thing they got out of it as they were taken to the cleaners was no more Barry flunkies in the locker room. Ooh, boy. ...

So imagine you have a job. And imagine you're really good at your job. You know it, your coworkers know it, and your bosses know it. Now imagine that there's a management position that opens up which would be a great promotion for you. So you apply for it. You think you would be great at the job, your coworkers think you would be great at the job and your friends think you would be great at the job. Now imagine that instead of you getting the job, the head of the company give it to some snot nosed punk straight out of school with no experience. Welcome to Rob Ryan's world...

For the past few seasons, the Warriors primary marketing slogan has been, "A Great Time Out". Brimming with hope after Tuesday's trade, SFist decided to catch a game at the O-rena to find out for ourselves.

Since the Merc's Tim Kawakami couldn't make it, we figured we'd step in for Saturday's game against the Cavaliers. This team now has new hope, and SFist was eager to see if there was a new buzz to go with it.

Our audit considered 11 different categories: parking, Oraclelization, concessions, personnel, entertainment, the crowd, new players, visuals/lighting, the seats, music/sound, and the game itself. Each category was ranked from 1 to 10, with 10 being Pac Bell/SBC/ATT park and 1 being, well, Candlestick.

-Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo will start in the NHL All Star game. -The Giants already start working on their tribute to the 2002 Giants by signing Russ Ortiz. Hey, what's Shawn Estes doing these days? ...

-The Warriors beat the New Orleans/OK City Hornets and on KNBR this morning we heard the word "playoffs" being mentioned in reference to the Warriors this season. We'll let Basektball Chris handle that one, but how many seasons now have the Warriors gone on a run in December/January and had people thinking this might be the year? Let's just say the season ain't official 'til Baron Davis goes down. And Tim Kawakami agrees. Meanwhile, are the Warriors better without J-Rich? ...

-Barry Bonds? Still not signed by the Giants. Barry Zito? Just signed....

Let's take a look at the reaction to the Bonds' signing, shall we? Ray Ratto calls out Magowan for whimping out and Scott Ostler makes a bunch of jokes that all imply he's not a big fan of the dude. Glenn Dickey, however, is. Over at the Mercury, Tim Kawakami says the Giants make lousy poker players and Sabean should quit. Ouch. ...

-So everyone is talking about what's up with the Barry. Not only has he not been signed yet, but he rolled into the winter meetings with an entourage in tow looking for a job. We get a kick out of the idea of seeing Barry standing outside some hotel handing out resumes to any GM who walks by. The Giants, as you can well imagine, were not happy but they continued to talk to his agent nevertheless. ...

It's official down on The Farm. In a story that we broke more than two months ago, ESPN.com and others are reporting that Stanford has fired head football coach Walt Harris. Hate to say it Main Stream Media, but we told you so.

Saints 34 49ers 10- For 49ers fans, this was a tough loss. And not just because the 49ers came up lacking against their first really good team in awhile. It's tough because it also turned out to be the official Reggie Bush coming out party and for the rest of the week, Niners fans will have to watch in horror as clip after clip after clip of their defense giving it up to Reggie will be played. One should wonder why it is that every other team was capable of bottling the dude up but the Niners couldn't. ...

Pacers 108 Warriors 106: In detailing the game, the Chron's Janny Hu actually uses the word "upset" to describe the Warriors loss. Now when was the last time those words have ever been said about a Warriors loss? Probably sometime last century. In this game, Al Harrington (who Chris Mullin tried to get in the off-season) sunk a last second three pointer to lead the Pacers over Golden State. ...