Grizzlies Fall to Warriors: Almost Doesn’t Count in Ball

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It’s been over 24 hours since the Grizzlies lost at home against the Warriors. Since then, the NBA released a report saying that the game was called “fairly” and the Warriors beat the Spurs giving them 72 wins for the season.

So what is there left to say? Well, for starters I would like to point out that this Grizzlies team, a team that by all means should have been the one lose by 50, didn’t. Instead they worked together and almost halted the Warriors Quest for 73.

The team who has seen 28 players on their roster, the team who is giving bench guys starting minutes, and has had to tap the D-league to keep guys on the floor. That is the Grizzlies team that fought the Warriors and lost by only 1 point.

So here’s my quick recap:

The Good

The Bench Play

The Grizzlies bench outscored the Warriors bench 32-17. Almost the entire Grizzlies bench had a positive efficiency rating. When the bench subbed in the Grizzlies didn’t fall off. They were able to gain on the Warriors and keep the Grizzlies in the game. Despite Coach Kerr’s assertion that his starters would would rest quite a bit, they had to play a few extra minutes to try come up with this win.

That bench play resulted in what was easily my favorite play of the night:

The Bad

We gotta make our shots

Memphis finished the night shooting 38.5%. They did almost everything right. The Grizzlies made their free throws, scored from the three-point line, forced turnovers, worked the boards, and won the paint. It’s unfortunate that they could not have connected their shots just a little better. It is hard to win a game in the NBA when you shoot 38.5%. It’s almost impossible if you are playing the number one team in the league. Let’s just be real about that.

The Grizzlies fought hard but if you ask me there is a reason that Coach Joerger was quick to answer “No.” when asked if this could be a “moral victory”. It’s simple; there aren’t moral victories and when you don’t make your shots (whether or not you think fouls were called fairly) you can’t claim one. (A quick statistical side note here: The Grizzlies visited the free throw line 20 times to the Warriors 13. They finished the game with 16 fouls, the Warriors had 14.)

Memphis gambled at times and they paid for it. I don’t want to be hard on them because our guys played their hearts out but the cold hard truth is that when they needed to, they just didn’t make their shots. They finished the game shooting 31.8% in the fourth. Down the stretch the shots didn’t fall. That hurts when you lose a game by 1 single point.

 

The Ugly

The Audible Chants and Cheering for the Warriors

I get it, the Warriors are a team that could potentially make history. I have to imagine that when the ’95-’96 Bulls traveled there were kids in Jordan jerseys that had never watched a ball game in their life. That said, last night, being able to hear chants encouraging the Warriors to play defense against the Grizzlies was just plain ugly.

I have to give our guys credit. I know they heard the cheers, the groans when Curry missed, and the jeers anytime they started to get going. Memphis still played hard. They still fought. In the place where they are used to feeding off the energy of what I think is the loudest crowd in the NBA, they had to overcome what they would only hear at an away game. The crowd wasn’t with them as much as it was with them. Grizzlies fans did a hell of a job making noise but I won’t be able to un-hear the chants supporting the Warriors that happened inside the Grindhouse for a very long time.

 

Quick Stat Lines:

– Matt Barnes was the leading scorer of the night and ended the game with a double-double. Barnes scored 24 points and brought in 15 total rebounds. He went 8/17.

– The Grizzlies out-shot the Warriors from the three-point line. Memphis went 7/21, shooting 33.3%. The Warriors shot 27.8%.

– There were 18 total lead changes in the game. The largest lead of the game belonged to the Grizzlies at +10. They took that lead 3 total times in the 4th Quarter.

– Draymond Green was the Warriors leading scorer with 23 points.

– Steph Curry finished the night shooting 31.8% and scoring 17 total points. He shot 21.4% from 3.

 

Here’s a couple more highlights from the night to hopefully ease the pain:

Almost only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades, and nuclear warfare. In basketball you either walk out a winner or a loser. I don’t want Grizzlies fans to forget about what happened in the Forum Friday night and I don’t want the Grizzlies to forget either.

The Warriors only have one game left this season and it is a match-up in Oakland against Memphis. That game is why I don’t want the Grizzlies to forget. I want them to play, I want them to play hard. I want Memphis to remind everyone that Grit and Grind isn’t just about a style of play, it’s about an attitude. Grizz never say die….. Ride with us or collide with us. Whatever way you want to say it, the Grizzlies never give up and we shouldn’t either.

Tabitha Smith

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