Deadline is staring at Mullin
By Marcus Thompson II, CONTRA COSTA TIMES

OAKLAND - The clock is ticking. Warriors executive vice president Chris Mullin is faced with arguably his toughest personnel decision since taking over the team's basketball operations this spring.

Should he give Jason Richardson and Troy Murphy the contract extensions they desire now? Or should he buy more time by waiting until next offseason?

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Oct. 31 ends a three-month period in which teams can extend the rookie contracts of their 2001 first-round draft picks. If that doesn't happen, Richardson and Murphy -- picks Nos. 5 and 14, respectively -- will become restricted free agents after this season. This means they will be able to negotiate with other teams next offseason, but the Warriors are allowed to match any offer they may receive.

If he does not meet the extension deadline, Mullin will have one more season to evaluate Richardson and Murphy. That's more time to determine if Richardson is the dominant shooting guard he wants, or if Murphy is good enough to contend with the host of star power forwards in the Western Conference.

It's also more time to see if shooting guard Mickael Pietrus, who shined late last season as a rookie, and forward Andris Biedrins, the team's top draft pick this summer, are better options.

Richardson has improved in each of his first three NBA seasons. His points, rebounds and minutes-per-game averages have increased every year, climaxing with last season: 18.9 points, on 43.8 percent shooting, and 6.7 rebounds in 37.6 minutes.

Yet Richardson hasn't shown the outside shooting of some of the league's other top shooting guards, making just 28.2 percent of his 3-point attempts last season. His ball-handling skills, creativity and defense also need improvement.

Murphy was injured most of last season after averaging a double-double (11.7 points, 10.2 rebounds) his second NBA season. Though a steady shooter, he has yet to show an ability to create offense in the paint and has struggled defending many of the premier forwards in the West.

"These young players coming into their third and fourth seasons, it's really time for them to not so much play like young players, but to shoulder the burden and take on the responsibility of winning and losing," Mullin said last month of Richardson, Murphy and Mike Dunleavy, who's entering his third season. "Are they young in age? Maybe. But it's also probably time to step out."

But Richardson and Murphy are no doubt talented enough to draw big contracts -- maybe too big for the Warriors to match -- from other teams next offseason, especially if they have big years this season. By not giving them extensions, the Warriors also risk having two key players either too distracted or too disgruntled to perform their best.

Both players said they feel like they deserve extensions now.

"They act like they want us here. So I'm hoping that's the truth," Murphy said. "Jason and I want to be here. They want us here. We want something worked out. We should be able to (work something out)."

Waiting until next offseason seems like the best option for the Warriors. They will have about $20 million of cap space next offseason as Dale Davis, Cliff Robinson, Calbert Cheaney and Christian Laettner come off the books. That's enough money to lure a key free agent, say a Ray Allen or Zydrunas Ilgauskas.

After the free agent is signed, the Warriors still could sign Richardson and Murphy to lucrative deals because the NBA's collective bargaining agreement allows for teams to exceed the salary cap to retain their own free agents.

However, it might behoove Richardson and Murphy to get their extensions now. Not only would a serious injury hurt their chances of getting a sizable contract, but also the current CBA expires July 1. Owners may seek to reduce the length and worth of contracts in the new agreement.

Richardson and Murphy said they are not demanding the maximum six-year, $86 million extensions teams are allowed to give their draft picks entering their fourth seasons. They just want something that represents their value in the league. But signing them to extensions now would likely leave little or no cap space available to sign a free agent next offseason. That would be a sudden change of plans for the Warriors, who for the last two years have been trying to get way under the cap and in position to sign a free agent.

So why now would they say the current roster is adequate? If the Warriors weren't going to be a player in the free-agent market next year, why not give center Erick Dampier the lucrative extension he sought instead of trading him to the Dallas Mavericks in August?

"If I'm a (restricted) free agent at the end of the year, I've still got to find what's the best situation for me," Richardson said. "Right now, it's the Golden State Warriors. I want to be here. This city's just waiting for something to happen with this team. When it happens, I want to be a big part of that."

There were seven teams with two first-round picks in the 2001 draft. Three teams, including the Warriors, still have the players selected with those picks: Memphis has Pau Gasol (No. 3 overall) and Shane Battier (No. 6), and Chicago has Tyson Chandler (No. 2, acquired in draft-day trade), and Eddie Curry (No. 4).

Gasol and Battier both received six-year extensions earlier this month. Gasol's deal reportedly was for the maximum and Battier's reportedly was worth $37 million. Curry and Chandler are not expected to get extensions before the deadline.

As for Richardson and Murphy, the clock is ticking.

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