The Golden State Warriors are at the point in the NBA season — and the place in the standings — where every day can change the playoff seedings. And that was triple true on Tuesday night, as they paid a visit to their old friends the Memphis Grizzlies. When the night began, the Warriors were sitting in the sixth seed, but they were just a half-game behind the fifth seed ... and a half-game ahead of both the seventh and eighth seeds. And best of all? The fifth seed ahead of them? The Grizzlies. With a win, the Warriors would sneak into the fifth slot. With a loss, they would slide down to the seventh spot ... unless the Minnesota Timberwolves won their game, in which case the Dubs would drop to the eighth seed. There were three places they could end the night, and none of them were the position where they started. Such is the case with the end of the regular season right around the corner. Needless to say, with so much at stake, Tuesday night was not just one of the biggest games of the year, but the biggest, to date. By far. And the Dubs delivered, knocking off the Grizzlies 134-125 in one of the most thrilling contests of the season.
There were reasons for both optimism and pessimism when the game began. On the former front, Golden State was facing a Memphis team that is free-falling: the Grizzlies had lost six of their last seven games (though their schedule was brutal), and had shockingly fired their head coach. On the pessimistic front, the Grizzlies have so much to play for still, always seem to take matchups against the Warriors personally, and had embarrassed the Dubs with a 51-point win the last time they convened at FedEx Forum.
It was clear from the opening tip that both teams were there to play. Each squad knew what was at stake, and brought all their energy and attitude. But for the Warriors, that energy simply translated into more success. Their activity resulted in endless ball movement, while the Grizzlies were going heavy on isolation with lesser results. Draymond Green led the fast-paced offensive charge early, and then Steph Curry took over. It started with Curry draining threes on back-to-back possessions, giving the Warriors a 22-14 lead before the halfway mark of the quarter, forcing a Grizzlies timeout. A few minutes later, Quinten Post nailed a three to push the lead to double-digits, which was followed by a fourth Curry three. A few possessions after that, it was a 33-18 lead, and Memphis needed another timeout. It seemed like a blowout might be on the way, as the ball was flying around Memphis’ defense, Curry was dominating, and the bench was providing energy. They pushed the lead to 17 before the Grizzlies finally recovered, aided by Golden State’s offense turning cold when Curry hit the bench.
But Steph returned for the final minute of action, and drained a three to cap off the Dubs’ highest-scoring quarter of the season, giving them a 45-32 lead. It was their 16th 40-point quarter this year and, remarkably, their third in the last five frames. Curry had 19 in the opening quarter, and life was good. But Memphis wasn’t going down without a fight. There’s no love lost between the two teams, and with so much on the line — plus a loud home crowd — the Grizzlies were hell bent on making it a game. They drained threes on back-to-back possessions to start the scoring, and then Ja Morant started to take over.
The Warriors, however, weren’t going to just give back the lead. Even with Curry on the bench, they kept the offense moving behind brilliance from Jimmy Butler III, who made clutch shot after clutch shot. But Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. kept chipping away at the lead, and the Warriors started to unravel. They lost some composure, and started to see the fouls and poor possessions accumulate. Memphis got into the bonus before the halfway mark of the quarter and, thanks to a big run, cut the lead to two points just past the six-minute mark. That seemed to awaken the Dubs, who locked in and stole the momentum back. Curry returned and was again dominating on offense, while Green led a defensive charge that was both scrappy and disciplined.
Curry started a two-for-one with an arrogantly-deep three, and the Warriors punctuated the half with a stop, giving them a 74-66 lead at the break. Curry had been nothing short of unstoppable, scoring 32 points on 11-for-16 shooting, including 8-for-10 from deep, prompting Post — who drew the halftime interview assignment — to hilariously ask Bob Fitzgerald and Kelenna Azubuike why they were interviewing him instead of Curry. Butler was no slouch in the first half either, with 15 points on 5-for-6 shooting, and a perfect 4-for-4 from the line. But Morant and Jackson had scored 30 efficient points of their own, keeping Memphis in striking distance. It was game on in the second half.
The Warriors were executing decently, but Memphis scored the first six points before Curry nailed a three to stop the bleeding. Curry and Morant, two of the best point guards in the league, were locked in a battle and each seemed to be taking it personally. At one point they exchanged wild blows, with Morant making a lean-in 20-footer while drawing a foul on Curry, which Steph responded to with an off-balance, contested three, causing Morant to fire back with a three of his own. Suddenly the game felt like the late rounds of a boxing match, with the teams exchanging blow after blow, surviving on heart alone.
Before the halfway mark was reached, Jackson dropped in a floater to give the Grizzlies their first lead since the opening minutes, and soon the Warriors trailed by four. But that only made the Warriors fight harder, in every aspect of the game, while Curry started to build buzz that he might break the record held by Klay Thompson for most threes in a game (14). There were offensive rebounds and steals galore towards the end of the quarter, and even a Kevon Looney three (just one game after breaking a four-year drought from deep). Gui Santos showed up with huge minutes while Curry was resting, and the Warriors re-took the lead, before a sloppy final minute made it a 103-103 tie heading into the fourth quarter.
The most important 12 minutes of the year were upon us. Not surprisingly, neither team could gain control. They traded shot for shot — metaphorically speaking, as both teams had gone cold. When Curry returned from the bench with eight minutes remaining, the Dubs led 109-107. Nothing was easy for either team, but the Warriors, with a little more veteran savvy and a little more depth, were able to find just a little more than Memphis could. They finally built up a four-point lead with just over five minutes remaining, but the Grizzlies returned fire, flipping it to a four-point Memphis lead with less than four minutes remaining.
But the final minutes — where the Dubs struggled for so much of the year — were all Golden State’s. A Curry three — his 12th of the night — gave him a 50-piece and the team the lead with just under three minutes remaining. Jackson responded with a layup to give Memphis a one-point lead but Butler was fouled on back-to-back possessions — bookending a stop — and not only made all four free throws but fouled out Jackson in the process. And then came the defining sequence. After Scotty Pippen Jr. missed a three, Curry attempted a dagger three ... he missed, but Brandin Podziemski flew in over Morant to tip the ball in, pushing the lead to five points with 1:11 remaining. The Dubs forced a Morant turnover on the other end, leading to a Moses Moody corner three. The Warriors led by eight with 40 seconds left, and all that was left was to not throw the game away, and make a few free throws. They succeeded in that mission, and the result was the biggest win of the year, a 134-125 road triumph that moved them up to the fifth seed, and set them up for a massive showdown against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.
Curry had one of the most impressive performances of the season — for any player — finishing with 52 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five steals, and one block, while shooting 16-for-31 from the field and 12-for-20 on threes. Butler had a hilariously efficient night, amassing 27 points on 7-for-11 shooting and 12-for-12 free throws, along with six rebounds, four assists, and three steals. And just for good measure, Green ended with a triple-double of 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists, while also adding two steals and a block. It was clearly a night for stars, as most big games are. Morant dropped 36 for the Grizzlies, while Jackson had 22 and Desmond Bane 19. I’d say “not to be outdone,” but, well ... Memphis was outdone. What a night.
