"Ain't nothin' but a ballgame fellas, ain't nothin' but a thing."

That's probably what Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson were telling their teammates Tuesday night on the flight home to Oaktown after letting the Dallas Mavericks slip the hangman's knot in game 5, 118-112.

With the series now a little tighter at 3-2 in favor of the Warriors, the C word (choke) hangs over Tuesday's bobble like Adonal Foyle's contract against the Warriors salary cap. We're still seeing all this as a win-win though. Game 5 was an incredible game for playoff-starved Warriorphiles. Both teams played spirited ball. The Mavericks faced down elimination from the very brink of defeat. The Warriors had a chance to close out their opening round best-of-seven playoff series with the Mavs, but couldn't quite pull it off. The game featured great defense, clutch shots, a little intrigue (again), last-second heroics, and playoff drama -- everything a hoops fan expects from the postseason.

Here's todays daily wrap up of sports news. more ›

Dujuan Wagner, Adonal Foyle, and Zarko Cabarkapa are riding the pine in suits tonight. For the opposition Lakers, Kobe won't play, and Phil Jackson, Kwame Brown, and Aaron McKie, and Chris Mihm may not even make the trip. JRich is probable, maybe, hopefully.

Another meaningless preseason game? Nope, it's opening night tonight for the Warriors at the Oracle. Here's everything you need to know, from the Warriors perspective, and from ours. more ›

Hey sports fans, in case you missed Sunday's episode of "Q&A" on C-SPAN--and judging by the ratings we're guessing that most of you did--host Brian Lamb interviewed the founder, President, and primary funder of Democracy Matters, a nonprofit foundation that focuses on grass-roots, pro-democracy reforms. more ›

What's the plan? The War-bloons have basically been treading water for the last couple of months, and like a small-time sucker playing conservative bets at the $5 blackjack tables in Reno, the house odds are starting to take their toll. Yet as their won-loss record sinks further into the red and the playoff dream shrivels up like Adonal Foyle's points per game average, Head Veep Chris Mullett can only watch as opportunities like the NBA trading deadline slip past like Brad Miller blowing by Troy Murphy unabated to the hoop. more ›

For perennial doormats like the Chicago Blackhawks, snakebit franchises like the Arizona Cardinals, and irrelevant standings stuffers like the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, hope springs eternal in the preseason. So it is, yet again, with this year's East Bay ballers. For about the fifth year in a row, the Warriors' marketing department is trying to hype us on the upcoming season as one of promise and playoffs. To quote Jim Mora, "Playoffs? Don't talk about playoffs. Are you kidding me? Playoffs?" more ›