Golden State Warriors ‘locked down’ after Draymond Green elimination, closing Memphis Grizzlies late

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Draymond Green stand in Golden Empire Warriorstunnel when the last whistle sounded for them 117-116 Round 1 win Memphis Grizzlies.

As the coach and his teammates stepped back into the locker room, Green greeted each one with a high headshot, hug or chest slam. As Jordan Poole out of the court, both hugged each other for a long time, both screaming to the top of their lungs.

It’s almost like the action Green could get after being pushed off the field with less than two minutes to start the first half.

“This is a big game to win, especially with [Green] go out early,” Poole said. You really have to find that guts and hone and fasten your seat belts and lock down the points of attack and defense. He is an important part of our team. … We were able to fill the energy that he had. “

Like Memphis forward Brandon Clarke Going on a trick with 1:18 remaining in the second round, Green initially made contact with Clarke’s head as Green swiped down, grabbing Clarke’s collar in the process.

“My hand got caught in his shirt,” Green told Warriors coach Steve Kerr emphatically. He then repeated the exact same message to the referees as they gathered to review the call.

After being accused of gross foul 2, Green ran around the field for a few seconds, waving his arms up and down at the crowd and hitting his teammates. He was met with loud boos. As he exited, he waved to the crowd one last time before making his way down the tunnel.

Green finished the game with six points, four rebounds, three assists, three robberies and one block.

Guardian Warrior Stephen the curry told the refs that the rejection was “crazy”, as he, Green, and the Warriors expected it to be called a pervert 1.

“He was known for his blatant fouls during his career,” Clarke said. “I’ve watched him on TV all my life, it feels like that. I’m really not shocked. I don’t really like failure or nothing, but he hit me pretty hard twice when I saw it. back… . It’s not surprising that he did it. Something he’s done in the past.”

Captain Kane Fitzgerald explained cheater 2’s verdict, saying the contact was deemed unnecessary and excessive.

“The first part was the wind up and significant face contact, followed by the pull down from the shirt grab and tossing to the floor with a vulnerable player in the air causing that to happen,” Fitzgerald said in a consolidated report. become unnecessary and excessive,” Fitzgerald said in a report.

After the match, Green said on his podcast he’s trying to keep Clarke up rather than throw him down and argues that what he’s doing isn’t outrageous.

“I think tonight is probably more of a reputation thing than a rough foul,” Green said, adding that he hopes the fragrant 2 match will be called off.

The Warriors walked into the locker room at halftime with some anger, but they emerged with some fire.

“We were just determined,” Kerr said. “We were all shocked by the decision. But we were confident and determined, and the boys stayed with it.”

Without Green, the Warriors knew they needed to boost their defensive energy. But they don’t need to change their game plan. Instead, they plug the hub Kevon Looney stay in Green’s place and let the rest take care of itself.

In the second half, the Warriors drew the Grizzlies with only 29% of hits. The Warriors were particularly stingy in clutch time, edging past 11 of Memphis’ 13 attempts.

Kerr points out that the start of the third round is a time when momentum shifts in favor of the Warriors. Golden State started third on the 13-5 run to get the first round.

The game’s two biggest defensive possessions – the two that sealed victory for the Warriors – come from players who are used to key moments in stressful times, but often at the offensive end: Curry and Klay Thompson.

After Thompson’s 26-foot 3-point shot put Golden State ahead, Curry blocked Memphis’ Ja Morant 19.8 seconds left. It was just the third tackle of his career in the final 20 seconds of a game in both the regular season and the knockout stages.

“Steph has been underrated defensively for a long time,” Kerr said. “I think this has been the best defensive season of his career. We’ve seen it all year. … I think it’s just an excellent defensive play by Steph. “

Sixteen seconds later, still increasing by one, Thompson placed the clamps on Morant as he searched for the winning shot.

“I missed a layup that I usually do,” says Morant.

Thompson explains his strategy.

“I was thinking he was going to attack,” Thompson said. “I was just trying to prevent him from opening up and forcing him into a difficult scene. And that’s what I and I did. Gary [Payton II] did.”

Curry and Thompson finished with 24 and 15, respectively, but fouls kept them down throughout the night. In their absence, it was Poole, once again, who kept the Warriors afloat. And he did it on both ends.

In his first playoff game from the bench, Poole scored or assisted Golden State’s 52 points, while only allowing 14 when shooting 5 of 13 as a main defender. He ended the night with 31 points on 12/20 shots, including 5 3s, 8 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 saves.

“This is the Jordan we’ve seen over the last few months,” Kerr said. “This is what he looks like. He doesn’t always hit five 3’s, score 31 points, almost have a triple triple, but he’s a player. He’s a playmaker. He’s been great for us throughout the season, so this hasn’t surprised me at all.”

When the Warriors faced off in Memphis on Monday night – just 24 hours after they discovered they were facing the Grizzlies in the second round – the goal was a split on the road. If they can get a win at Memphis before heading back to San Francisco, that’s considered a successful trip.

When they lost their hearts and souls in Green less than 24 minutes into the game, it’s unclear if the Warriors used that to spark them or if it cost them the whole game. or not.

After 12 minutes in the dressing room and a few seconds on the pitch, the answer was clear.

“Which way you interpret it, whatever emotion you touch, you just bring it in,” says Curry. “When Draymond is out, there’s a moment where you feel like, okay, what are we going to do about it? , I’m really proud of the people and the way they’ve approached the game. It’s a vibration. It feels good to be there.”

The Associated Press contributed to this story.