Getty Images/Ezra Shaw

Ownership's message to Stephen Curry and the Warriors: Win next year

Two Bay Area teams made announcements this week, in an effort to mollify their fanbases. Two teams sought to put a positive spin on negative developments. These two teams are fairly desperate for results.

The Warriors are either finally starting to get it, or are faking it really well.

The 49ers … well, there’s always 2013.

In the face of a disastrous road trip that adjusted the Warriors' late-April focus from playoff possibilities to golf outings, the team’s new ownership made a number of pledges:

• The team will reach the playoffs in 2012
• The team will win at least 25 home games next year
• The team will have a representative at next year’s All-Star Game. 

(For what it's worth, Golden State hosted an All-Star Game—in 2000—more recently than it's had a player suit up for one—Lattrell Sprewell, in 1997. As if to keep the Warriors from feeling too good about themselves, that year's All-Star game also featured five ex-Warriors, who astoundingly made up more than 20 percent of all players.)

We’ve heard guarantees like this before. Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, however, are willing to back it up.

If the Warriors fail to make the playoffs, season ticket prices will not be raised for those who renew. If they fail to land an All-Star, autographed All-Star merchandise will be distributed to season ticket holders. If they fail to win the requisite number of games at Oracle Arena, the team will conduct a two-hour autograph event for season ticket holders.

It ain’t much compared to winning, but it’s something. More even than face time, autographs and swag, it shows that the team’s ownership cares—not just about winning, but about the fans they so desperately need to fill their seats.

Across the bay, the 49ers have a much tougher road of it. They spent the early part of the offseason doing the right things—primary among them hiring Jim Harbaugh—but are now faced with the unenviable task of sitting out what could be a protracted labor battle and work stoppage.

There’s not much for the 49ers to do; they can’t sign free agents or work out their current players. Nonetheless, the team will host its annual draft day party on April 28 at the Santa Clara Convention Center.

“To every extent possible, we will be operating with a business-as-usual attitude,” wrote team president Jed York in an open letter to fans.

Then again, York also broke out the team’s refund policy should games next season be canceled—a necessity that induces far more cringing than any thought of a draft party could hope to mitigate.

It’s hardly a fair comparison, the Warriors and the Niners. One team is going to great lengths to treat its fans better than they’ve been treated in years. The other couldn't do that right now, even if it wanted to.

It's rough when the perpetually downtrodden can't even say, "There's always next season," with confidence. At least the Warriors are giving us that much.