Last night saw the Warriors' playoff chances go up in smoke after losing to Phoenix, clinching the final spot out West to the Nuggets. While blame can be heaped on many things, one thing stood out. Coach Don Nelson benched star PG Baron Davis for the enitre second half, saying afterward he did it because Baron needed rest (or was it for shooting 1-15 or some ridiculous figure?). Why, when you have to win out to get in the playoffs, do you do such a crazy move?

The benching could create a rift between Davis and Nellie. If it does occur, it would be the second time Nellie' stubborness brought the Warriors apart. Who can forget 1994, when Nelson and Chris Webber feuded? The dispute got so nasty that Webber was traded to Washington for Tom Gugliotta, and Nellie eventually resigned. It took Golden State 13 years to recover from that fiasco. The question now becomes "Who gets fired?".

It all depends on who Chris Mullin feels he should build around. If he feels Nelson should stay, he'll trade Davis and any players who support him and reconstruct the roster to Nellie's liking. If he thinks Davis should stay, he'll dump Nellie and find a coach who can employ a similar roster, but tailor it to Davis' liking. Now I ask "Who should stay?".

If I had to choose, Davis would win. Don Nelson, for all his regular season success (second to Pat Riley in wins) isn't equipped to be the coach of a championship caliber team. Look at how the Mavericks made the Finals the year after he left. Nelson is the type of coach who needs to be the main figure (much as he was in Milwaukee and his first Warriors tenure), and that wouldn't be the case if Davis got the credit for the team's reemergence as a good team.

And why was Davis so tired? Because Nelson ran him ragged! Tell me how fresh you'd be if you had to go the distance every game down the stretch. Davis did the best he could, and after he has a bad game, Nelson makes an example out of him by benching him. Would Gregg Popovich bench Duncan or Ginobili after a bad stretch? Would Phil Jackson bench Kobe (or Michael Jordan)? Hell no! That's why they've won a combined 13 championships, and Nellie hasn't even made the Finals!

Bottom line: it's hard to have an elite (and Davis is elite when healthy) PG in this league. Don Nelson may have made the Warriors relevent again, but it's time now to cut ties and get a legit coach who can take Davis and his team to the next level. Maybe sometime later, Nellie can join another team and remake them. But Baron Davis shouldn't become the next Webber.