Klay Thompson received the ball and shook it, a three-point hollow shot into the net, and the Warriors completed the fatal blow in the last 36.6 seconds.
The Warriors and the Grizzlies are two teams with different styles, one is based on constantly running without the ball to create offensive opportunities, and the other is to force the opponent by the speed of playing counter-attacks.
In such a fight, the Grizzlies once saw the hope of winning, but they fought until the last moment, and in some details they showed a gap with the Warriors.
The way the game ended, the key defensive rounds were laid out, and the Grizzlies didn't seem to have broken free from the first round against the Timberwolves, and the Warriors taught them a good lesson today.
Negligence is a pain in the ass
In the first-round series with the Timberwolves, the Grizzlies often staged crazy big reversals in the final quarter, and their final quarter of six games won a total of 62 points against their opponents, which is a frightening statistic. Suddenly, in a section, a tidal wave of offense was staged, allowing the Grizzlies to still hand-blade the Timberwolves even though they were 25 points behind at one point. The Grizzlies, accustomed to a single quarter of power, paid the price in the second round of the playoffs.
But the Warriors are not timberwolves, two different opponents, and the situation presented throughout the game is also very different.
The problem exposed by the Grizzlies in the playoffs is that the stage of defensive leakage allowed the Warriors to blast 36 points in the third quarter of the third quarter, and if it were not for Jaren Jackson's four three-point shots in a single quarter, the Grizzlies might have lost the ability to fight back.
Judging from the situation in this section, it should be a great opportunity for the Grizzlies to directly solve the battle with a heavy blow. Because dream Green was expelled before halftime, the Warriors were missing a big player. Green's departure has left the opponent without an axis, and the Grizzlies are the more dominant side on paper, both offensively and defensively.
But in the third quarter, they gave their opponents a chance to breathe, leaking under the basket and outside the line, and even had the problem of not retreating in time, and were caught by Poole and Curry and others.
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The problem remained unresolved until the last two minutes, when He was holding the ball to attract two defenders after Curry returned with a five-foul crisis, Payton went unattended in the three-second zone and received a pass to win the empty basket.
The Grizzlies, the more physically gifted side, lost to the Warriors in rebounds today, sitting on an All-Star-level interior like Jaren Jackson, but scored 12 points less on the inside than their opponents. The Grizzlies, who are the best at playing counter-attacks in the regular season, did not score more fast-break points than the Warriors today.
In fact, the Warriors did not give the Grizzlies a chance in the last moment, Thompson's two missed penalties have already startled the Warriors fans in a cold sweat. It was only Morant's last two mistakes, wasting the great opportunity given by his opponent.
Knowing that the next game Green returns, it will be difficult for the Warriors to expose so many flaws, and if the Grizzlies want to keep the suspense of the series alive, they must deal with every detail.
The opponent in front of them is the Warriors, a giant who once relied on the big three to ride the league, and the Grizzlies must not use the mentality of the first round to try to dig a hole for themselves and then fill the hole. If they are not careful, the victory will slip away, making them regret it.
Warriors are never afraid in the face of adversity
From the beginning of the game to put Payton on the starting line, facing Morant's first two defenses, the opponent hit three consecutive points, the Warriors felt a little uncomfortable. Especially when the opponent ravaged the paint area in the first quarter, the small lineup was exhausted, Curry was in foul trouble early, and Thompson even received a personal third offense before the second quarter was over. Dream Green was directly expelled by the referee because of malicious fouls, so that the Warriors' momentum of chasing points was interrupted instantly.
When the half-time ended you thought the Warriors would give up today, the team that has always been known as the favorite to win the championship in the usual days has a championship background in the second half.
First, Jordan Poole on the bench blew the counter-offensive horn, scoring in double figures for two consecutive quarters, like a snake out of the hole, interspersed in the Grizzlies' defense zone. The Warriors' most important moment, Poole made four three-pointers, directly stopping the Grizzlies.
Poole played the first five games of the playoffs, all of which were played in the opening, and after coming off the bench today, he has a lot of ball power in the rotation lineup, giving him the opportunity at his disposal, which also stimulates Poole's ability to organize tandems. In addition to scoring 31 points, Pool also delivered a team-high 9 assists. This is also the situation that Coach Kerr most wants to see, when Poole is tightly guarded, he can quickly get out of the ball, so that the Warriors' shooting threat point on the outside always tears the Grizzlies defense.
It can be said that Poole was appointed to complete an important mission today, allowing the Warriors to lead the team to break free from the quagmire under extremely passive circumstances. And what really gives the Warriors the victory is Klay Thompson, a warrior who often stands up in desperate situations, and today he is once again a savior.
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In the final 36.6 seconds, after Thompson received a pass from his teammate, he opened his hand at 45 degrees on the right side and fired a long-range shot, and the ball crossed a perfect arc and hollowed into the net, giving the Warriors a two-point lead in the final moments.
To know that today's Thompson, in fact, the feel is not smooth, especially the last two free throws missed, so that the Warriors are a little nervous. Thompson shot just 3-of-10 from the outside and scored just 15 points from 19 athletic shots, making him less than average offensively efficient.
But the value of the star is reflected in this key goal, Thompson, who has always been known as the "big heart", even after returning from a major injury, still shoots the winning ball without weakness. This also responds to the classic saying that "the warrior looks at the god of soup in a desperate situation".
The Warriors don't win by just one or two stars, and the team's system comes into play when their core players aren't in good shape.
Of the team's 45 goals today, the players on the pitch delivered a total of 31 assists. Statistics show that when the Warriors reached 30+ assists in a single game this season, their record was 26 wins and 1 loss. Although the Warriors suppressed the Nuggets on paper in the first round, they did not rely on stars to fight, but handed over the data of 29 assists per game, ranking first among all 16 playoff teams.
From this, it can be predicted that even if this team lacks what kind of general core, their mode of attacking and defending will not change. Although the past few years have struggled outside the playoffs, the team's system culture has never changed.
The warriors and the Grizzlies' first game was won by a point. This victory temporarily gave the Warriors the initiative, but it was by no means a watershed in the series. The young and energetic Grizzlies once suppressed the Warriors in the situation, and if they can contribute a tidal wave of offense, I believe they will be able to create a lot of trouble for the opponent. After the Warriors took the G1 first, they also needed to think about how to limit Morant and Jackson, who are 30+ at the same time today, and avoid being targeted by young people.
Such a set of suspenseful duels may only be able to score high and low after playing seven games, and only through such experience can they get closer to the championship.