Another night, another spectacular performance for Monta Ellis. Ellis dropped 45 points on the Pacers tonight to continue his great run and give the Warriors a 126-107 victory. Another spectacular defensive performance from Ellis to prevent Danny Granger from having a big game. And to boot, his five steals give him the league lead in steals-per-game, surpassing Rajon Rondo.

Still, at the end of the day, the Warriors sit at 6-10, stuck in last place in the Pacific division. I hate to be pessimistic after watching a great all-around performance by Golden State, but we have to remember that it comes in the wake of two losses to San Antonio and the Lakers.

Could you really ask this scrappy Warriors group to beat either of those teams? The Warriors haven’t won on the road in San Antonio since 1997, and the Lakers are just on another planet these days.

Similarly, what can you expect from the next three games? The Warriors face a tough matchup with the Nuggets in a back-to-back without Anthony Randolph (who should hopefully be back for Thursday after turning his ankle tonight). It will be tough for a small Golden State team to contend with Nene, Kenyon Martin, and Carmelo tomorrow. Then they’ve got the pesky Houston Rockets, and the defending Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic. No one would be surprised if 6-10 becomes 6-13.

The Warriors seem to be stuck in perpetual underdogness. Even tonight, going up against a Pacers team that shouldn’t make the playoffs in the weaker Eastern conference, the Warriors needed another career night from Ellis to get it done. On any given night, they can be the most exciting team in the league. But they won’t become a perennial playoff team until they begin to put strings of wins together, and prove not only that they can upset the West’s top teams, but they can truly be in the same company. Right now, they are still playing catchup to the top teams in the conference.

The good news? There are a number of things to be excited about. Monta Ellis has the star power. Biedrins and Turiaf are slowly progressing and will work their way back into the lineup. Last year’s diamonds in the rough (Morrow, Watson) continue to be excellent role players. Corey Maggette looks like a legitimate second scoring option, as he showed when Monta fouled out with 6 minutes left in the game tonight.

The bad news? Reality Check: Still 6-10.