As ever, a lot can change in the NBA world over the span of just a few days, and the Golden State Warriors just experienced it in the most extreme way possible.
Heading into their Game 5 showdown with the Ja Morant-less Grizzlies, the Dubs were up 3-1 and appeared to be on the verge of the gentleman’s sweep. Now, their entire world has shifted in the wake of a 39-point beatdown on Beale Street and yet another Warrior hitting the injury report in Otto Porter.
Make no mistake — the Grizz still have their work cut out for them in their quest to steal two more games from Golden State without the aid of their leader. But all the talk of “death lineups” and storybook marches to the Larry O’Brien Trophy has definitely been silenced.
In the wake of the loss, Warriors star Stephen Curry gave a particularly blunt assessment of what transpired and what has to change if his team hopes to get things back on track.
Curry Makes Damning Statement on Game 5
Curry — who scored just 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting in Game 5 — didn’t mince words when discussing the loss during his postgame presser. While he gave credit to Memphis for playing with desperation, he also came down incredibly hard on his own team.
When asked what the most disappointing aspect of the performance was, Curry deadpanned, “Everything. They obviously came out with a sense of urgency and our game plan, in terms of how we know we can beat this team, things we focus on, we did everything wrong. Turnovers. Offensive rebounds. Fouls.
“On the road, when you give a team that’s playing with desperation life like that, you don’t think you’re going to lose by 40, but it’s… you could lose control of the game really quickly.”
So, what do the Warriors need to do in order to get things back on track in Game 6?
“We’ve got to be more mindful of where we’re going on the floor and not take risks, because we could still get great shots,” Curry said. “We showed that in the first quarter for 10 minutes. And then all hell broke loose.”
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Brown’s Perfects Dubs Postseason Record Is Kaput
Entering Game 5, Warriors acting coach Mike Brown had never lost a postseason game at the helm for the team despite having to fill in for the majority of the 2017 playoffs. That undefeated streak came to an end in the most incredible way possible on Wednesday night as his team lost in virtually every phase of the game.
However, Brown isn’t worried about whether the team will be able to put this game behind them and come out with a renewed sense of urgency in Game 6. In fact, he has a simple solution.
“You just kind of grab the switch and push it down and then just close down the toilet, and it’s kind of how we’re going to do this,” Brown said. “We’re going to watch the film and try to learn and grow from it. But at the end of the day, like I said, our guys, they understood what happened out there. So there’s no need to overreact.”
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Stephen Curry Gets Brutally Honest About Warriors’ Game 5 Effort