Despite Draymond Green's ouster, the Warriors won the first game against the Grizzlies / Golden State Warriors win Game 1 vs. Memphis Grizzlies despite Draymond Green's ejection
Published: May 1, 2022 US time
Publisher: ESPN
Article author: Kendry Andrews
Article translated by de Gaulle
In the first game of the Western Conference Semifinals, the Warriors narrowly defeated the Grizzlies 117-116 on the road to win the series. The moment the final whistle sounded, Draymond Green stood in the players' tunnel, and every Time a Warriors player or coach walked in from the field, Green would celebrate with them, or high-five, or hug, or jump up and hit the chest.
When Jordan Poole jumped into the players' tunnel, Green hugged his teammate, both of them "hooping" each other with their arms and screaming at maximum volume. It's both a celebration of victory and perhaps a catharsis of the emotions of this past game. Seeing this scene, it is reminiscent of the reaction of him and his teammates when Green was directly expelled from the game less than 2 minutes before the end of the first half of the game.
"It's an important win, especially if he leaves early," Poole, who came off the bench and scored a team-high 31 points, said after the game, "you have to find that gritty attitude in the game, put your head down, and concentrate very much on the offensive end and defensively." After all, he is a very important part of our team, but we also have the ability to supplement the capabilities he provides to the team in other ways. ”
The scene of Green's expulsion appeared 1 minute and 18 seconds before the end of the first half of the game. At that time, Grizzlies forward Anderson broke through and passed to teammate Clark under the basket, and the backcourt was about to jump dunk. Defensive Green first did everything with his right hand, and after not hitting Clark's ball, his left hand grabbed it again, directly grabbing Clark's shirt collar and slamming the Grizzlies inside the line directly on the floor. Although there were actions to protect Clark in the process, the referee still believed that Green's foul was not directed at the ball, but also endangered the opponent's neck, so he blew a second-degree malicious foul and directly expelled Green.
"My hand was rolled into his jersey," Green repeatedly stressed to coach Cole and the referee on duty after being fouled. However, after watching the replay, the referee obviously did not agree with Green's statement and insisted on expelling him. Before leaving the stadium, Green ran around the field, waving his arms up and down, as if to signal the fans to boo him with a louder voice. Then, he ran to the bench and after celebrating with his teammates one by one, Green rushed into the players' tunnel and ended his game early.
After Green's departure, the debate between the two sides about the foul, and the various issues that came with it, was far from over. Warriors head coach Kerr and main guard Curry are still theorizing with the referee, and they all feel that even if the foul is blown maliciously, it is only a first-level malicious foul, not serious enough to directly expel their internal defensive core.
For the Grizzlies, it is natural to take the opposite view. "One of the things he's known for throughout his career is that he often gets such malicious fouls," said Clark, one of the parties involved in the incident, "I've seen too many of his games on TV, so I really don't feel shocked at all." I'm not a player who likes to fall to the ground, but he's already hit me twice before he finally me. So, I'm not at all surprised that he ended up making such an action, after all, he's been doing it for so long in the past. ”
As Clark puts it, Green's career was indeed filled with similar "stains." After the game, Green also immediately updated his podcast program, and also focused on his foul action. In the show, Green stressed that he had no intention of throwing Clark directly from the air to the floor, and there was no other extra action. So, Green Hope League then revisited the second-degree malicious foul and eventually canceled it. "I think the question I'm fighting for so far is not just a question of whether it's just a regular foul that's relatively big, but a question of my personal reputation," Green said.
Green's foul and his expulsion became a focus of discussion after the game. However, back in the game, the Warriors did not have much time and energy to think about this, and they needed to find a solution to make up for the impact of Green's absence in the second half. According to media reports, the entire Warriors team that returned to the locker room at halftime was filled with an angry emotion, and it was this emotion that ignited their counterattack flame in the second half.
"We were all full of determination," Kerr said, "and everyone was shocked by the referee's decision, but we were full of confidence and determination in ourselves, and the whole team was united." ”
It was with this sentiment that the Warriors immediately played a 13-5 offensive wave after the start of the second half of the game. In the eyes of Warriors head coach Kerr, it is this wave of offense that came up in the third quarter that became a watershed in the whole game.
On the tactical level, although Green's expulsion caused the team a lot of losses, the Warriors did not change their defensive strategy. In the second half, center Looney topped Green's position, while the other Warriors players still targeted the Grizzlies' many offensive strengths according to the original plan. Throughout the second half, the Warriors maintained pressure on the Grizzlies' offense with a high degree of defensive integrity. Especially in the key period of the last 5 minutes of the game, the Grizzlies made 13 sports battles, and the Warriors' players made 11 of them interfere with the opponent, showing the team's overall defensive skills.
And the Warriors finally fought for this victory, and the two defensive rounds at the last minute were also the most critical. The first defensive round, 19.8 seconds before the finale, was completed again defensively against the Grizzlies Arrow Morant after Thompson hit a key counter-over-the-top three-pointer. According to statistics, this is the third time in Curry's career (including the regular season and playoffs) that the block has been completed in the last 20 seconds of the game.
"Curry's ability on the defensive end has been underestimated for a long time," Kerr said after the game, "and I think this season is the best defensive season of his career so far." In the past year, his performance has been obvious to everyone, and today's defensive round, I also think his performance is unparalleled. ”
The next defensive turn, 16 seconds after Curry completed the block. At that time, the Warriors still led by one point, and the Grizzlies, who held the ball, handed the ball to Morant in the hands of Morant, expecting him to stage another game against the Timberwolves. However, after breaking through Gary Payton II's defense, Morant found himself in front of him again. "I missed that layup that I could normally hit," Morant said after the game.
However, no one can predict whether Morant will miss that layup if it were not for Thompson's timely defense. "I thought he was going to attack," Thompson replied, "so I tried hard not to give him a chance to go to the basket, to force him to shoot hard." Not only me, but Gary (Payton II) did the same. ”
The Splash Brothers, who usually shine on the offensive end, are now standing up in this crucial battle, when the team needs defense the most. The person who really carried the team's banner on the offensive end became Jordan Poole, who came off the bench for the first time in this year's playoffs. In addition to a team-high 31 points, Poole also delivered nine assists, and the Warriors scored 52 points across the team, all from Poole's direct contribution.
Moreover, Poole was as sharp as the defensive end. He also had eight rebounds and two blocks in the game, and when he defended the Grizzlies' players one-on-one, the opponent's offense was only 5-of-13. "That's the Poole we've seen in the last few months," Kerr said after the game, "and while he doesn't shoot five three-pointers every game, get 31 points, and play close to a triple-double, he's really an offensive engine, a player who can create offensive opportunities." He's been so good all season, so he didn't surprise me at all. ”
Because the regular season results are not as good as the Grizzlies, the Warriors have one less home home in this series, and they must start the series from the road. Less than 24 minutes into the first game of the game, their defensive core left early. It was in this situation that the Warriors showed what kind of team they really were.
"After Draymond was sent off, we went through a moment where everyone couldn't help but think: 'Okay, what should we do next?' How do we find a solution? Curry said after the game, "And through halftime, we regrouped and played like we did in the second half." So, I'm proud of everyone on the team and proud of what we played in this game. The overall atmosphere of our team is really very good. ”