As terrific as the “We Believe” Golden State Warriors were in the postseason, many don’t actually remember how putrid they were during the regular season. Due to injuries to their stars and a glaring lack of firepower, the Dubs were in danger of missing the playoffs. As a matter of fact, the team held a woeful 26-35 record in early March — a little over a month before the playoffs tipped off.
Fortunately for Golden State, the moves they made in January paid dividends. One move, in particular, was crucial to the Warriors’ success that season: the acquisition of mercurial forward Stephen Jackson.
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Nellie didn’t like the team’s makeup
Don Nelson made his return to the Warriors, bringing his signature touch back to the team. Just as he did in the 1990s, when he famously molded the iconic Run TMC trio of Mitch Richmond, Chris Mullin, and Tim Hardaway, Nellie aimed to work his magic once again. However, he admitted to not liking the team’s personnel; to him, it just didn’t feel right.
“Well, I didn’t like the team that much. We had to make something happen, because the team wasn’t very successful as the year before. We had pretty much the same team coming back, and so when we got a chance to make that big trade, that’s exactly what I wanted to do,” Nelson recalled. “We were too slow. Just had average to good players upfront, not great.”
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The big trade Nellie referred to happened on January 16, 2007, when the Warriors acquired Stak, Al Harrington, Sarunas Jasikevicius and Josh Powell for Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy.
At that time, Mullin, who was the team’s top executive, had his eyes on Harrington, a versatile 6’9″ power forward who had a soft touch from the outside. Nellie, though, was intrigued by Jackson.
Rolled the dice on Stak
For all intents and purposes, the Warriors’ acquisition of Jackson was a huge gamble. Even though he was an NBA champion and a proven two-way player, his involvement in numerous controversies, including the Malice at the Palace, had earned him a reputation as a “bad boy” in the league.
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While others saw a wildcard, Nelson saw a sure thing.
“Harrington was the guy that Chris really wanted, and to get Harrington, we had to take Jack, and Jack was a guy that I really wanted,” he admitted. “There are two Jacks, you know? If you could keep him out of trouble, keep him straight and occupied, why, he could be great for your team.”
“He’s a great teammate, he really is. You know, he’d do anything for you or anybody on the team. He just…he’s fragile, that’s all. You gotta know that going in,” he added.
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It didn’t take long for Nellie to embrace Stak as one of their own. Shortly after Stephen arrived in the Bay Area, Don requested him to head over to Smitty’s Cocktails, a hole-in-the-wall bar. It was there, over games of Shuffleboard and drinks, that they began to build a bond.
“As soon as I met him, I trusted him. How he embraced me. How he hugged me. Just the coolness. It wasn’t forced. It was natural,” Jackson remarked. “Basically, come play basketball. I don’t care what you do off the court. Just play basketball, you know?”
The Warriors’ gamble on Jackson paid off late in the season as he helped spark the team’s turnaround to make the postseason. Against the Dallas Mavericks, Stak was a heavy-hitter, averaging 22.8 points on 47 percent shooting from long distance, 4.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.0 steals to help oust the West’s top seed in six games.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the Old School section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.