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Posted on Tue, Nov. 11, 2003

Richardson injured in loss
By Darren Sabedra
Mercury News


AP Photo/Paul Sakuma

Warriors center Erick Dampier shoots over Phoenix Suns guard Stephon Marbury (3) and Jake Voskuhl, right, for two of his nine points in the Warriors loss to the Suns.


Jason Richardson hobbled to his locker more than 30 minutes after the Phoenix Suns held on to edge the Warriors 99-96 on Monday night and provided hope that he will return sooner rather than later.

The shooting guard said the left-ankle sprain he suffered during the Warriors' valiant comeback attempt wasn't all that serious, adding that he hopes to play when the team returns to the court Wednesday against Detroit.

The Warriors say he is day to day.

``It was tough; I wanted to finish it,'' Richardson said of missing the final 3:29 of a frantically paced game at the Coliseum Arena. ``But you roll your ankle, you can't do anything about it. My teammates did the best they could to try to win the game.''

And they almost pulled it out.

With Richardson undergoing X-rays -- which returned negative -- the Warriors overcame a seven-point deficit in the final three minutes to put themselves in position to tie the score on their final possession.

After a timeout with 6.5 seconds left, Golden State put the ball in the hands of its most dangerous clutch shooter, Nick Van Exel. The 6-foot-1 point guard pulled up for a three-point try from the right wing, but his vision was hindered by the outstretched arms of 6-7 Anfernee Hardaway. The shot missed badly and the game was over.

``I just wanted to get a good look at a three,'' Van Exel said. ``When we ran the screen, I just happened to get a taller guy on me -- which did not work out too good.''

As it turns out, Van Exel suffered a sprained left thumb at some point during the fourth quarter, according to a team spokesman, and he underwent precautionary X-rays. They were negative.

It has been that kind of season for the Warriors. Just when it seemed their injury situation couldn't get worse, they got two more Monday. Van Exel's isn't believed to be serious.

Richardson's occurred on a night in which he led the Warriors with 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting.

``You don't want to see him go down,'' power forward Clifford Robinson said. ``But at the same time, we still have a good enough team to win basketball games if we go out there and play consistently.''

Added Van Exel: ``He is just coming off the suspension and we were beginning to figure each other out. Hopefully, he is not out too long.''

Richardson suffered the injury when he landed on teammate Speedy Claxton's foot while the Warriors were trying to make a stop. Richardson tried to walk off the pain but eventually tumbled to the floor near midcourt and had to be assisted to the bench.

It was an all-too-familiar sight for the Warriors, who saw their three-game home winning streak end. The Warriors already are without power forward Troy Murphy (foot) and reserve center Adonal Foyle (knee). Moreover, Van Exel missed the first three games after undergoing knee surgery.

Nevertheless, the Warriors haven't let the injuries affect their grit and desire. As has been the case throughout the young season, they have the ability to push aside adversity.

Reserve forward Brian Cardinal again provided a spark for the Warriors, scoring a career-high 17 points.

But Monday, that wasn't enough to overcome a Phoenix team that got an expected 22 points from point guard Stephon Marbury and an unexpected 22 points from guard Joe Johnson. He came in averaging 11 points per game.

The Suns turned the game into a track meet, and the Warriors -- who entered the night allowing just 86.6 points per game -- struggled to keep pace.

``We just didn't have enough attention to detail on the defensive end,'' Robinson said.

Asked if Johnson caught the Warriors off guard, Robinson said: ``I don't think he surprised us. When you play on this level, anybody is capable of coming out and having a big game. Everybody has scored some points once upon a time in their career or else they wouldn't be on this level.''

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