Warriors guard Monta Ellis will miss at least three months, probably four, after suffering a severe high ankle sprain in Mississippi. Here’s what they’re saying out in the ether about the tough break …

Golden State of Mind: "Monta won’t be back until at least the start of December meaning he misses the first month of the season and training camp. If he misses more than that, we may not seem him back on the court until January 2009. And we may not see him fully healthy until next season. With that beginning schedule loaded with road games and without our #1 scoring option for up to a 1/3 of the season, you can kiss the playoffs goodbye. Hanging around .500 without Monta? I’ll pray, but it’s doubtful."

Tim Kawakami, Talking Points: "Before Monta Ellis‘ shattering ankle injury, I was suggesting that the Warriors should and could make a play for oft-injured free-agent point guard Shaun Livingston, who remains unsigned. Now that Ellis is gone, probably until January or February, I would NOT say that it should be no-holds-barred for Livingston. Hey, he’s not likely to be ready, either, for the start of the season and it gets a little dicey when you have TWO young point guards with shaky knee/ankle situations. But … Livingston, if relatively healthy (and reports are that he’s looking pretty good in workouts), was probably the Warriors’ best option for added depth last week."

Hardwood Paroxysm: "The fact is, for a fanbase that has seen so much misery over the last two decades, they were rewarded with the briefest taste of redemption, and then … back to the dungeons, whelps! Seriously. Losing your best player, getting a sub-par aging shooter in replacement, nearly losing Azubuike, missing out on every major free agent forward, and you get through all that and have some hope, only to lose your $66 million dollar investment at point guard for four months? How does that happen to one team?"

GldnSt8Warrior: "With several new faces that will be playing a huge role on the team training camp and preseason give an excellent opportunity to gel. Especially since Ellis was supposed to be taking over the Point with Baron gone. Well you know what they say when it rains it pours. At least we will now get to see Watson and Williams get some starts. Perhaps the floor time will help them develop more and one will emerge as our starting point? Don’t get me wrong I love Ellis but I just didn’t see him running the floor like a true PG. Anyway rest up Monte we need you healthy if we want to have a chance at that 8th spot."

The Sporting Blog: "The NBA season is very long. The beginning doesn’t matter much. Don Nelson is a psycho genius who can turn any mismatched batch of talent into a viable team. These are the reasons why Golden State fans need not despair at the news that Monta Ellis is out for three months. He’s the future of the franchise, its number one option and presumptive playmaker, and one of the league’s most exciting young performers. But three months on the shelf won’t make a difference. Right? Sadly, no."

Dime: "While Monta is out, this is Marcus Williams‘ chance to prove he was worth that first-round pick in ‘06. He’ll have plenty opportunities to score and put up big assist numbers, given the system and the scorers around him (S-Jack, Maggette, Al Harrington, etc.), but the key will be maintaining the breakneck pace Nellie had envisioned with Monta running the point — Williams did QB an up-tempo UConn squad featuring Rudy Gay and Josh Boone — and playing decent enough defense to at least hold the opposition under 120 a game …"

Upside and Motor: "Marcus is a good passer and a decent shooter, but aren’t you just totally pumped to have a young talent with questionable attitude and work ethic leading a team that was already directionless after losing the identity-defining Baron Davis who also happened to double as distributor, scorer, and ball-dominator extraordinaire? Now THAT’S must-see TV!"

Rip City Project: "I’ll refrain from making jokes about the newly crowned $66 million dollar man playing pickup in Jackson, Mississippi. That’s someone else’s job. Going into the season the Warriors were one of those teams picked to battle for that 7-8 spot. Some of their off-season moves were head-scratchers, but the talent was there to make a run. Now they just have to hope they can survive the first three months … and on top of that hope that Monta can make the transition to the 1. No training camp to ease the difficulty of that move."

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