Injury-riddled Grizzlies decimate Warriors at home
Mike "The $153-million man" Conley is still recovering from fractures in his lower back. Chandler Parsons' knees aren't what they used to be, so he was also sidelined. And a sore hip kept veteran Vince Carter out of uniform. Once again, the Memphis Grizzlies were undermanned.
Their five-game winning streak heading into Saturday's game against the almighty Golden State Warriors was proof in the pudding that they had enough in their arsenal to remain competitive, but against a roster with the scoring prowess of the reigning Western Conference champs, it'd be crucial to have all hands on deck ... or so you'd think.
From the opening tip to the final buzzer, head coach Steve Kerr's Warriors were beaten from pillar to post, losing just their third game of the 2016-17 campaign in the form of a 110-89 whooping at the FedExForum.
Taking a page out of Golden State's playbook, the Grizzlies moved the rock quickly and precisely, with 23 assists on 38 made field goals, and just 10 turnovers to boot. This led to seven players scoring in double figures, with Tony Allen and Marc Gasol tallying 19 each.
Names like JaMychal Green (14 points and 10 rebounds), Troy Williams (11 points and two blocks), Jarell Martin (13 points and seven rebounds), and Andrew Harrison (11 points and five assists) don't have star appeal like the Warriors' core. In true grit-and-grind fashion, though, their contributions made all the difference, both in the box score and with their efforts defensively and on the glass.
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Golden State had no answers for anything the Grizzlies tossed their way. They were frustrated - not only with their own shortcomings, but the fact that nothing they tried to claw their way back with provided any positive results. Their 23 turnovers were a season high, Klay Thompson's offense (eight points with 10 missed shots) dried up after he put up 60 on the Indiana Pacers just a few nights ago, and their fourth-ranked 3-point attack was barely superior to that of Memphis, which is only 25th in the Association.
The Grizzlies had a 30-point lead in the second half, the Warriors' biggest deficit of the season. Simply put, this was a game Kerr and his players won't look back on fondly, and while they can just chalk it up to a bad night at the office, Memphis deserves its fair share of credit for conjuring up a game plan that bothered Golden State so much they put up a giant dud of a performance.
Related - Curry after Warriors' loss: 'We sucked tonight'
Now let's see if other teams take notice.