Ja Morant Leads Memphis To Playoffs In Stunning Upset! 5.21.21
It’s the final day of the NBA play-in games and we have our 6th and final game; between the Grizzlies and Warriors in a battle for the 8th and final spot in the Western Conference.
Memphis Grizzlies vs Golden State Warriors
Incredible
The Grizzlies have been in their situation before; win or go home. Last year their inexperience showed in the bubble. Today they looked like they had been here before and they earned this win, fair and square. This game had a lot of stuff in it, so buckle in.
In the first quarter, Memphis got going early. They led by 13 early on, shades of their game against the Spurs. Ja Morant looks aggressive, trying to bounce back after a tough game against the Spurs. But Curry responded with 14 points of his own and the Grizzlies led by one after the first quarter. In the 2nd quarter, their 2nd unit and defense dominated. Even with Jonas Valanciunas and Jaren Jackson Jr. each picking up 3 fouls, rookie Xavier Tillman came off the bench with some great energy.
The Grizzlies led by 13 at the half thanks to great shooting, 9 3’s in the first half for a team not known for shooting. The Grizzlies had 25 bench points in the first half to just 13 for Golden State. The Grizzlies forced 9 turnovers in the first half as their defense was excellent. Everything was going their way. Jonas Valanciunas was dominating, a +16 in his playing time. But his 3 fouls limited him to under 9 minutes in the first half. This game could have been a real blowout if not for those fouls on him and JJJ.
In the 3rd Memphis stopped getting into their offense early and they shot just 23% in the 3rd. The Warrior cut into the lead, trailing by 5 entering the 4th. And now it all came down to this. One quarter, win or go home. This should be fun and it was. Very, very fun. It was a game of runs, Golden State comes back a little, Memphis silences the crow right back. With 3:36 left, Memphis led by 10 and it seemed they had the game in the bag.
But a 10-2 run, with 4 free throws from Jordan Poole, cut the lead to two. Poole got fouled on a 3 and it looked like it could have been an offensive foul when he stuck his leg out. Memphis didn’t challenge and Poole’s 3 free throws cut the lead to two. It was back and forth but Wiggins tied the game with 33 seconds left. The Grizzlies wasted their last possession with a shot clock violation. They got the ball out of Curry’s hands, Draymond Green drove right to the rim where he missed the little runner, overtime.
The OT was back and forth, but 3 3-pointers, two back-to-back from Grayson Allen and one from Xavier Tillman in the corner were big-time. With under a minute left, the Grizzlies went to their franchise star. Morant scored two more times, both tough floaters in the lane. His last one with 4.5 seconds left put them up 5, ending the Warriors season and giving Memphis their first playoff birth since 2017.
Temetrius Jamel Morant, better known as Ja, had a game. He struggled against the Spurs and against the best point guard in the league? He showed up. 35 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. He was 5/10 from 3 as he made Golden State pay for leaving him open. Morant played 45 minutes in this game, missing just 1:40 in the 2nd half. He was big-time.
The Grizzlies didn’t have too much scoring from anybody else, but they had depth. 14 for Brooks who hounded Curry better than anybody this season has been able to do. Desmond Bane had 10, 11 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals for Xavier Tillman who was great. Valanciunas and JJJ were in foul trouble and the rookie 2nd rounder came up big.
Grayson Allen was 4/5 from 3 with two of those coming in OT. The Grizzlies hit 15 3’s, they were 22/26 from the line and they were just great. They had 40 bench points as their bench continues to do great things. But the defense needs all the credit in the world.
Kyle Anderson’s defense was so good in this game. He had 11-10-6 but he was going a great job closing off driving lanes and did a really good job slowing down Curry. He had that Draymond Green like impact on defense, being everywhere.
The Grizzlies were determined not to let Steph Curry beat them and they accomplished that. Curry hardly ever got good looks as they did their job. They made life as hard as you possibly can for the greatest offensive weapons, maybe ever. The Grizzlies forced 21 turnovers, they played their hearts out. They take on the Jazz but they are an up and coming team out West.
(Jaren Jackson Jr. played 3 minutes in the 2nd half. Valanciunas played 17, but fouled out in the 4th. The Grizzlies won this game despite all of that).
Deserved
If the Warriors won, they weren’t the better team. If they lost, they lost because they got outplayed, plain and simple. The Warriors dug themselves a hole they couldn’t get out of as they are shockingly out of the playoffs.
The Warriors started off the game slow, their offense seemingly not used to how physical Memphis was playing them. They fell behind by 13 early but Curry got going with 14 in the first to battle Morant’s 10 and that lead went away quickly. But as has been a problem all year, the Warriors struggled with Curry off the floor. Memphis hit 9 3’s in the first half as their bench dominated that of Golden State’s. Curry was struggled to get open as the Warriors fell behind by 17 at one point, by 13 at halftime.
But the Warriors defense stepped up big time, holding Memphis, who just scored 62 in the first half, to 16 in the 3rd to cut the lead to 5. The 4th quarter was great, back and forth, two good teams battling with each other, playoff spot on the line. The Warriors kept trying to comeback but to their credit, Memphis always had a comeback. The Warriors trailed by 10 with 3:36 left.
But Golden State hadn’t shot all their bullets. 6 points from Jordan Poole, including 4 free throws cut the lead to two. A Wiggins layup with 33 seconds left tied the game. The Warriors got a stop and again, I get the idea of not wanting to call a timeout. But the season is on the line, get your best play out. I know they’re going to get the ball out of Steph’s hands anyway. Why not give another guy a better shot?
They got the ball out of Steph’s hands and Draymond got to the rim and missed, overtime. And OT when like how the game went. Steph scored once and never saw the ball again. The Grizzlies targeted Curry with 5 fouls on the other end. 3 3-pointers from Allen and Tillman hurt Golden State, who couldn’t score without Curry getting good looks. Ja Morant scored twice in the lane and that was it, the Warriors lost.
Curry had 39 points but 7 turnovers? It felt like he was working so hard just to get the same looks he was getting a week ago against Memphis. Jordan Poole had 19 off the bench and Wiggins had a double-double. Draymond Green had a triple-double, but this defense was far worse than it was against the Lakers and he had 6 turnovers.
21 turnovers for the Warriors which surprisingly, only led to 12 Grizzlies points. Golden State had 22 points off turnovers on just 13 turnovers. But they were outscored by 13 off the bench, 40-27. They hit 3 less 3’s and 6 less free throws. The defensive pressure was not there, almost like they didn’t fear Memphis.
They left Ja Morant open even after he had multiple 3’s in the game. He hit 5 overall, all wide open. The Grizzlies got right to the rim with ease in that first half and that led to 3’s. The Warriors were a flawed team and they’re going to have to get a lot better.
But what do they do? Curry is 33 years old, Draymond is 31 years old, Klay is 31 as well but he’s coming off two massive injuries. Will he be the same? What about Wiggins? You’re paying him nearly $30 million per year for the next 3 years. James Wiseman didn’t help this team, they were better without the rookie. The Warriors have a lot of questions to answer this offseason.
What Are Your Thoughts From The Final Play-In Game? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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