"Warriors guard Monta Ellis has a ride-on mower at his home in Memphis, Tenn., that he likes to hop on, throw on headphones and find some peace while cutting his grass.

Ellis will be on that mower soon enough, as the Warriors were officially eliminated from the postseason Sunday. But his performance in Golden State's 114-104 win over Washington suggests that Ellis hasn't clocked out early.

Ellis played all 48 minutes against the Wizards, totaling 37 points on 14-for-24 shooting to go with a career-high tying 13 assists and seven rebounds.

"I don't want to play him those kind of minutes," coach Keith Smart said, "but I think he's trying to set a tone for his team. I think he's saying 'I'm going to go out and compete at a high level until this thing is over.' "

It's not uncommon for the Warriors, who will miss the playoffs for the 16th time in the last 17 years, to have a player or two check out. With the eight remaining games in the Warriors' season but a formality, Ellis could certainly pick one of his nagging injuries -- right wrist, left thigh, either ankle or knee -- as a cause to put him on the shelf.

Or he could just stop going all-out on the court. At one point, it might've looked as if Ellis had checked out mentally.

During the recent four-game trip to Phoenix, Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, he was a shell of himself, never scoring more than 18 points in the four straight defeats. He averaged 12.8 points on 34.5 percent shooting. He totaled 17 rebounds, 15 assists and 12 turnovers in the four games.

Ellis was equally ineffective on defense. It appeared his offseason had started early.

"I had personal issues," Ellis said. "But I dealt with them and moved on."

In these last two homes games, Ellis' play has rebounded. He had 27 points and 10 assists in 42 minutes during a 38-point wipeout of Toronto on Friday."