By Huey Bergstrom
(SAN FRANCISCO) Golden State clinched the eighth seed Sunday night, in a nerve-racking game against Memphis, on the back of a historic night by Steph Curry.
Andrew Wiggins, to his credit, finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds and Draymond Green was one assist and one rebound shy of another triple-double. As most of these late-season wins have been for the Dubs, it was a team effort, with Curry conducting the train.
The final score, 113-101, doesn't reflect the intensity of the game. Nor does it reflect the recent history between these two teams.
Memphis used to be Golden State's boogeyman. In 2011 and 2012, the grind-it-out-Grizzlies served to haunt the Warriors. They always seemed to loose to the Grizzlies. Mike Connely Jr. would light up Oracle for 30-something points. Tony Allen would lock down Steph. Zak Randolph and Marc Gasol would back down Andrew Bogut and Fetus Ezeli for easy buckets. But, that era of the NBA seems like a long time ago.
Sunday night's game had a flavor to it that felt like 2012, likely because of the possible playoff implications, a position that both the Warriors and the Grizzlies last saw each other in eight or so years ago.
The Warriors held a 17 point lead heading into the fourth quarter but a 22-5 run by the Grizzlies pulled it to a tie game.
Canadian two-guard Dillon Brooks fouled out with just over six minutes left in the game, giving the Warriors a chance to crack open the score and take the lead.
The Warriors were up three with about three minutes left in the game when Curry showed why he's still the best point guard in the game.
He hit three threes in just over a minute and a half, putting the Dubs up 12 with a minute and a half to go and giving him the scoring title.
But, as has been the case in big wins all season, Curry couldn't have won this game all by himself. The double-double from Wiggins, the tenacious defense and Green's active offense created a symphony for the Warriors.
Green has played much better over the last few weeks, in large part because he looks to be a threat on offense rather than just a facilitator. While his three point percentage remains low, he hits the wide open top of the key three with enough consistency to keep teams honest. That opens the lane for Andrew Wiggins incredibly long arms and quick slashing, which in turn opens shooting lanes for Curry. It's all one big cyclical family.
A huge honorable mention goes out to Jordan Poole who has also been playing impressive basketball. He finished Sunday night with 15 points in 25 minutes.
The only real blemish of the night for the Warriors were the 19 turnovers. An absurdly high number considering the majority of their wins have come on nights when their turnover count has been less than ten. Those 19 turnovers resulted in 24 points for the Grizzlies. For the Warriors to win against the Lakers on Wednesday and furthermore, for them to win an actual playoff series, that number has to be much lower.
Despite the fourth quarter run by Memphis, Curry's 17 points in the third gave Golden State enough of a lead to ward off the incipient Grizzlies run. The Warriors' bench was strong througout, largely on the back of Jordan Poole.
In a moment of syncronistic elation, Curry pulled up his jersey following the exciting win, paying homage to the 2007 "We Believe" Warriors and their point guard Baron Davis who, after the Warriors upset the high-ranked Utah Jazz in the 2007 playoffs, sprinted to half court and lifted his jersey up with an excited yell.
It was a truly inspiring moment and speaks to the history that Curry and the rest of the Warriors play for everytime they put on the jersey. Curry might be one of the few Warriors who really remembers that era of Golden State basketball, but there are some distinct similarities.
This Warriors team has a similar make-up to the We Believe Warriors with a tough defense and a quick-trigger offense that mostly hinges on their star point guard. Even the great Baron Davis would likely admit Curry brings something a bit different to the table than he did but the team structure and underdog story have certain similarities.
The Warriors will play the Lakers on Wednesday for the play-in game in what is likely to be a hard-fought game. If they win, the Warriors will move to the seventh seed and will be matched up against the Western Conference's two seed for the opening round of the playoffs.