Curry-less Golden State Warriors dominate Memphis Grizzlies

Jordan Poole (Image Via @NBATV on Twitter)

With Steph Curry ruled out due to a shoulder injury and the Warriors already struggling, most predicted their Christmas game with the Grizzlies to be a blowout Memphis win. The Warriors proved the doubters wrong in an incredible effort to not only overcome, but annihilate Memphis without their superstar.

In a game marred with a let’s say ‘strict whistle’, the teams started with the following 5s;

Memphis Grizzlies	Golden State Warriors
Ja Morant	Jordan Poole
Desmond Bane	Klay Thompson
Dillon Brooks	Donte DiVincenzo
Jaren Jackson Jr.	Draymond Green
Steven Adams	Kevon Looney

1st Quarter

Memphis went right to the size advantage in the first play of the game. Desmond Bane set a back screen off-ball for JJJ to open him up to catch a perfect lob pass from Morant. The Warriors, on the other hand, stuck to their ‘beautiful game’ system with tons of off-ball screens and back cuts. and got off to a hot start with three hitting 4 of their first 6. The back-and-forth first quarter ended with Memphis’ backup point guard Tyus Jones hitting a tough mid-range shot to beat the buzzer and cut the deficit to 4 points. The Warriors won the quarter 33-29.

FS Video

2nd Quarter

It was more of the same back-and-forth between the two teams in the 2nd quarter. Golden State went on a 13-4 run at one point to go up 15 with around 5 minutes left until halftime. Memphis battled back by forcing misses in the half-court and then pushing the pace in transition with the otherworldly athletic ability of Ja Morant at their disposal. The Warriors held on to the first-quarter lead but weren’t able to significantly increase it. At halftime, the score was 59-54 to Golden State.

Also Read: Watch: FRUSTRATED Giannis Antetokounmpo throws a cheap shot against Jaylen Brown as Celtics get past Bucks on Christmas

3rd Quarter

In typical Warriors fashion, Golden State pulled away in the third. Scoring a whopping 40 points in the quarter. Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole, and Donte DiVincenzo all put on a jump-shooting clinic in the quarter, allowing the home team to build a big lead. With the score at 77-80, the Warriors went on a 17-2 run behind Poole, Thompson, and 2-way player Ty Jerome, who was one of the surprises of the game.

4th Quarter

The 4th period of the game was lackluster. It is the only quarter of the game that the Grizzlies won. With around 9 minutes left in the 4th, Jordan Poole picked up his 2nd technical foul and got ejected. He had done enough damage by this point though, tallying up 32 points. Golden State was up by 17 at that point and ended up seeing the game out. The final score at Chase Center was 123-109 in favor of the home team.

The Warriors without Steph and Wiggins DESTROY the FULLY HEALTHY Grizzlies on Christmas Day ??? pic.twitter.com/onjIy2ZDCx
— Guru (@DrGuru_) December 26, 2022

In the absence of their main man, other Warriors got the job done in what might be Golden State’s best win of the season. 32 from Poole, 24 from Thompson and 19 from DiVincenzo led the way in the big win over the Grizzlies.

The Warriors are now 16-18 and only .5 games below the Timberwolves. The Grizzlies on the other hand fall below the Pelicans in the West standings to #3 albeit, the two have the same overall record.

Also Read: Steph Curry provides a tentative return date, says he’s healing well

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