Warriors take advantage of short-handed Grizzlies
OAKLAND – There were 20 minutes left in the game and the possibility of six more to come, yet the Memphis Grizzlies already looked as if they'd had enough of the Golden State Warriors.
Tony Allen, considered by most one of the game's greatest perimeter defenders, put his hands together as if in prayer and shook his head at the way Klay Thompson's pump fake had done him in. Marc Gasol, the former Defensive Player of the Year who has been anchoring their stingy unit for so many years now, kicked a chair that folded in much the same way that the Grizzlies did in Game 1 of this second-round series at Oracle Arena.
The 16-point lead right then would become 101-86 in the end, with this much made clear right from the start by the NBA's regular season champions: there may not be a Game 5 – again.
It had been eight days since the Warriors finished off the New Orleans Pelicans in a first-round matchup that wasn't nearly as one-sided as the sweep made it seem. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson did their Splash Brother routine (a combined 40 points), while the relentless Draymond Green opened up the offense by hitting early threes during his 16-point outing.
The Warriors weren't just the fresher team, though, they were the far better team. Especially with no Mike Conley on the floor.
The do-everything Grizzlies point guard who suffered facial fractures in Game 3 of Memphis' first-round series against Portland put his mask on and went through warm-ups as if he might give it a go. But he's just not healed enough just yet, and a person with knowledge of his situation said it was looking unlikely that he would play in Game 2 on Tuesday. The person spoke to Paste BN Sports on the condition of anonymity because of the fluid nature of the situation.
Nick Calathes and Beno Udrih will do all they can to fill the void while he's out, but the reality is that these Grizzlies reserves aren't equipped to chase the newly-named MVP around quite this much.
"It's pretty tough, but a lot of our guys were very engaged and tried to make it tough on him," Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger said of guard Curry, who had 22 points, seven assists and four steals. "I thought he made some tough shots … He hit a couple on just about everybody, hit one on Courtney (Lee), hit a couple on Nick, hit one on Jeff Green where Jeff, I thought, blocked the shot from behind. He makes tough shots and you've got to keep your head up and keep pushing forward."
Gasol and Allen were certainly ready to forge ahead afterward, their angst and dismay having finally subsided. There is, they swear, a reason or two to believe they'll be just fine. If only for sanity's sake.
"You see what they're trying to do to you, and you adjust," Gasol, who had 21 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three steals, told Paste BN Sports. "That's basketball. That's life. You can't overreact. You can't overreact when you win. You can't overreact when you lose.
"You play the hand that you're dealt. Whatever you're dealt, you play it like it's a straight flush. You've got to play it smart, and don't get overly excited. If you get too excited, nobody's going to call your play. You want everybody to be in that pot if you have a big hand. If you're too low, they're going to over-bet you and you're going to be out."
Allen had his own ideas as to how their Grit & Grind defense can slow down this Warriors offense that was ranked second in the NBA this season, and swore they'll head into Game 2 with confidence. Golden State shot 61.5% in the first half to build a 61-52 lead, and finished with 13 three-pointers (on 28 attempts). As good as Memphis was defensively this season (ranked fourth at 100.7 points allowed per 100 possessions), their greatness weakness is one of the Warriors' most daunting strengths: they ranked just 25th in opponents' three-point percentage.
"We're definitely not discouraged from losing Game 1," Allen said. "We've always had the mentality of man down, next man up. Maybe some of those offensive rebounds don't lead to threes and putbacks and guys getting fouled and sending them to the line, and it's a different game. We're definitely confident, and we're looking forward to Game 2."
That's the only way to go, of course, even if all the recent evidence paints such a grim picture. Memphis' ability to take care of Portland in five games in the first round had everything to do with matchups, but this is a team that – after starting the regular season 41-14 – went just 14-13 down the stretch.
The frustration, it seems, isn't about to come to an end anytime soon.