Warriors' Game 5 no-show a familiar scene, but makes Game 6 imperative originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
With the Houston Rockets playing less like men than a pride of lions, the Warriors on Wednesday absorbed a Game 5 mauling so thorough the starters were dry and seated before the fourth quarter.
The Warriors raised the white flag early and were waving it more furiously with each trifling possession before watching the subs crank up the intensity late to forge a more palatable final score of 131-116.
“It was just a slow start for us on both sides of the ball. We missed some shots, turned the ball up early and didn’t make them miss at all,” Jimmy Butler III told reporters at Toyota Center in Houston.
Golden State coach Steve Kerr, sworn to the wisdom of always having Stephen Curry or Butler on the floor, was so desperate that he deviated less than two minutes into the second quarter. With the Warriors trailing, 46-24, Butler headed to the bench for Gui Santos, who joined Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody, Draymond Green and Quinten Post.
That quintet might never again be seen, nor should it be. It certainly will not be in the plan Friday night for Game 6 of this first-round Western Conference playoff series.
The Warriors played Game 5 in Houston as if they were longing to return to the Bay Area for Game 6 at Chase Center. It represents their second opportunity to advance to the conference semifinals and bounce the richly loathed Rockets into the offseason.
“They got in the bonus in four and a half minutes,” Curry said. “They were the aggressor. First three fouls were … I guess they were fouls. And it kind of set the tone. And then they got confidence, went on a run, got the crowd into it early, and the desperate team set the tone.
“We understand how to negate that going into Game 6 and come out with a better effort in that first six minutes to set the tone our way.”
Winning Game 6 is the only way the Warriors can offset this stinker.
The Warriors fell behind by as much as 30 in the first half, with the regular rotation playing as if it were looking ahead to Game 6. When Kerr summoned the subs midway through the third quarter, they played as if money were on the table in Game 5.
“They came in and they forced Houston to bring their starters back in,” Kerr said. “They set a tone that we’re going to need for Game 6. I thought even though we lost the game, I thought it was crucial that we fought the way we did in the fourth quarter.”
This is not unfamiliar territory for Golden State’s veterans. Kerr, Curry, Green, Kevon Looney and Moses Moody can recall the 2022 NBA playoffs, when they took a 3-1 conference semifinals series lead over the Grizzlies before heading to Memphis and taking a 134-95 beating in Game 5. The Warriors returned home and posted a 14-point win in Game 6.
That preceded a conference finals series in which they took a 3-0 lead on the Mavericks, lost Game 4 by 10 in Dallas and came home to win Game 5 by 10 at Chase.
“At this point in our careers,” Green said, “we’ve seen it all. Had all the experiences. So, you’ve got something to draw back from. Yeah, they played a good game. But whether they win by one or by 50, it’s a playoff series. Counts as one.”
After Fred VanVleet, invisible in the first three games but cooking in Games 4 and 5, scored on a layup, putting the Rockets up 93-64, Kerr pulled all five starters and turned to the bench. Led by Pat Spencer and Moody, the reserves outscored Houston 52-38.
As Curry, Butler and Green watched the last 18 minutes from the bench, they already were in Game 6 mode.
“We turned the page quick,” Green said. “Just start talking about possible adjustments that we can make, things we see, stuff we can get into. We have. We flipped the page really fast.”
Game 5 didn’t linger. Rarely does. Only once in Golden State’s history under Kerr has a series been lost after taking a 3-1 lead. There have, however, been numerous earlier closeout games that ended in defeat, including each of the first three rounds preceding the NBA Finals victory over the Boston Celtics.
The 2018-19 Warriors, with Curry and Green joined by prime Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, built a 3-1 lead over the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round, lost Game 5 at Oracle Arena, but recovered to win Game 6 at Staples Center behind 50 points from Durant.
The environment will be more favorable this time around.
“There’s definitely something you can look back on as part of the journey,” Curry said. “That’s all well and great to talk about. [But] you have to go do something about it on the court. We’ve talked about our group is trying to do this for the first time together. And I love that challenge, because we have an opportunity to write our own story and how we bounce back.
“We’ve had a pretty resilient group over the last two months, and it has to show on Friday.”
Indeed, it does, for going back to Houston for Game 7 would be appreciably more daunting than Game 5.
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