MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Draymond Green addressed the Warriors ahead of Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals.
“Bring your hard hats,” Green told the team, according to acting head coach Mike Brown. “It could be ugly.”
He was right — but not in the way he intended.
As Memphis fans waved golden rally towels and taunted some Warriors players, the Grizzlies embarrassed Golden State Wednesday night with a lopsided 134-95 rout.
It was the Warriors’ fifth-worst playoff loss ever and worst defeat since the Clippers beat them by 40 points in 2014.
The Warriors, who have struggled with slow starts in this series, decided to keep the same lineup as the two previous games with rookie Jonathan Kuminga starting in place of Gary Payton II, who was injured in Game 2. That starting unit’s issues lingered into Game 5.
After just over five minutes in the first quarter, Kuminga was subbed out and Golden State trailed by seven.
The Warriors’ sputtering offense from the last game carried into Game 5, and unlike the previous contest, the Ja Morant-less Grizzlies totally took advantage.
Memphis dominated the second quarter — and the rest of the game for that matter. Klay Thompson hit a pair of free throws early in the second to pull within eight, but that’s the closest the Warriors got to the Grizzlies after the first quarter.
Memphis closed out the first half on a 20-4 run. Stephen Curry scored the Warriors’ only four points in the final 5:13 of the second quarter.
The Warriors made some bad decisions with the ball, resulting in 14 turnovers in the first half. The Grizzlies, who had nine turnovers the entire game, capitalized on those mistakes, scoring 25 points off the turnovers.
And it only got worse for the Warriors from there.
The Warriors looked absolutely defeated, allowing the young and athletic Grizzlies to score all over them. Golden State trailed by as many as 55 in the second half.
Three Grizzlies finished with 20 or more points and seven ended with double-digit scoring. Jaren Jackson Jr. had 21 points and eight rebounds, Desmond Bane added 21 and Tyus Jones recorded 21 points and nine assists.
Golden State totaled 22 turnovers. Memphis also won the battle of offensive boards, outrebounding the Warriors 18-4 on that end.
Thompson led the Warriors in scoring with 19 points, 12 of which came in the opening quarter. Curry had 14 and four assists. He and Green were subbed out for good with more than six minutes left in the third quarter. Thompson followed shortly after.
The Warriors were without coach Steve Kerr for the second straight game after he tested positive for COVID-19. Brown, who was hired to coach the Sacramento Kings earlier this week, was at helm for the second straight game. After finding out that he was taking over for Kerr just two hours before Game 4, Brown, more of a defensive-focused coach, said he spent the last 24 hours trying to get up to speed with Golden State’s offense.
“I’ve done a lot of homework,” Brown said after shootaround. “I feel like I’m back at the University of San Diego … cramming for an exam.”
But perhaps that wasn’t enough as the Warriors have experienced offensive lulls over the last two games with him in charge.
Brown is now 12-1 in the postseason while filling in for Kerr.
The Warriors, who still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2, have two days to regroup before Game 6 Friday.
____
