by Sports Xchange

Some presumed it was part of the organization's plan to keep people from believing that Nelson is calling all the shots. When Larry Riley was promoted to general manager in May, he went out of his way to assure he would not be a puppet to the head coach. So some found it as no surprise that the would-be puppet and puppet master were not placed side-by-side when addressing the selection of Stephen Curry on draft night.

Others thought it was a strong indication the Warriors would not be keeping Curry. He is rumored to be part of a multi-player deal for Phoenix power forward Amare Stoudemire. Some speculated Nelson didn't want to be part of the facade, forced to stand in front of the media and lie about how he planned to use a player he knew he'd never have.

But then Nelson came out the next day and said Curry wouldn't be dealt.

--If there was a disappointing aspect of draft night from a Warriors fan's standpoint, it was the club's unwillingness to acquire a second-round pick and select St. Mary's guard Patty Mills, who starred at nearby St. Mary's College.

Mainly because of their geographical advantage, nobody kept closer tabs on the Australian star during his two-year collegiate career than the Warriors. For most of his sophomore season, Warriors fans envisioned Mills sliding into the Golden State point guard position, giving the club one of the league's fastest guard combinations alongside Monta Ellis.

Alas, while many clubs were able to move into the second round (often by simply dealing future second-round picks), the Warriors never did so. The price would have been quite cheap -- Mills wound up slipping all the way to No. 55.

The Warriors dealt away their own second-round pick in this draft in a previous trade to acquire Zarko Cabarkapa from Phoenix.

--In a cost-cutting move, the Warriors dealt Jamal Crawford to the Hawks for Acie Law and Speedy Claxton.

Crawford, acquired early last season for Al Harrington, had two years remaining on his contract at a total cost of about $20 million.

Even though the ex-Knick was one of the team's leading scorers in 2008-09, Warriors coach Don Nelson had advised Crawford to exercise an opt-out in his contract, which would have allowed him to become a free agent.

When it became clear Crawford didn't want to risk losing the $20 million, the Warriors found a taker in the Hawks, taking back slightly more than just $8 million in return.

In fact, the Warriors could wind up saving a lot more than $12 million. If Claxton, who has a potentially career-ending knee injury, cannot play this season, insurance would cover about 80 percent of his $5.2 million salary.

Law, who has only one guaranteed year remaining on his contract, will join the Warriors' point-guard mix with Monta Ellis, C.J. Watson and, presumably, Stephen Curry.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "A lot of people thought I was going to be disappointed if I didn't go (to the Knicks), but that's not the case at all." -- Stephen Curry, drafted by the Warriors at No. 7, one spot ahead of New York's pick.