The Golden State Warriors were defeated by the Houston Rockets in Wednesday night’s NBA Cup quarterfinals matchup. Unable to execute down the stretch, Golden State fell 91-90 after having beaten Houston 15-straight games. This was a hard-fought game, and it ended with a lot of controversy.
In a decision that made Warriors head coach Steve Kerr furious with the officials, Jonathan Kuminga was called for a loose ball foul that put Rockets guard Jalen Green to the free throw line with 3.5 seconds to play. Making both free throws, Green clinched the game for Houston as Golden State did not score on the other end.
The NBA has released its Last Two Minute Report for this game, and like the Pool Report conducted immediately after, it confirms that controversial ruling was correct.
“Kuminga (GSW) reaches over Green (HOU) in an attempt to get to the ball and pulls his shoulder down,” the NBA wrote.
While the league deemed this a correct call, there were two big misses in the final two minutes. The first came with 1:41 remaining when Rockets forward Dillon Brooks should have been called for a defensive three second violation.
This would have given the Warriors a free throw in a game that was ultimately decided by one point. The other big missed call on the Last Two Minute Report came on the game’s final possession when the NBA says Warriors guard Brandin Podziemski should have been called for a five second violation.
Podziemski ended up being blocked on his game-winning shot attempt after getting the ball back from Steph Curry, and the Warriors were eliminated from the NBA Cup.
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Stephen Curry Says Warriors Need to Fix One Key Issue or Risk Being Average
The Golden State Warriors once again collapsed down the stretch on Wednesday and lost 91-90 to the Houston Rockets in the NBA Cup quarterfinals at Toyota Center. The Warriors blew a six-point lead in the last 90 seconds to lose to the Rockets and Stephen Curry admitted postgame that unless they fix this problem, they’ll be a mediocre team.
“It’s a team trying to figure out who you are, what works, what sets we need to be in,” Curry said. “…. The pattern of scoreless kind of droughts down the stretch has to be addressed or else we’re gonna be a mediocre team. I’ll take responsibility for not being able to get us organized and not being able to finish plays.
“Ball’s in my hands. I got to make shots,” Curry continued.
“But I think we all can address certain sets that can get us into better shot-creation type opportunities, knowing how teams are trying to guard us, especially in the last five minutes.”
“We’re talking about it,” Curry added.
“We’re experimenting. That’s going to be a defining point of our full season, if we figure it out or we don’t because we’re playing well enough to win most games. So, that’s a good sign and a bad sign.”
Well, this loss to the Rockets dropped the Warriors to 14-10 on the season and they are playing like a mediocre team at the moment. As Curry, who had 19 points, three rebounds, five assists, two steals, and a block on the night, stated, if they don’t figure out how to close games better, this is going to be another disappointing season.
Against the Rockets, the Warriors self-destructed in spectacular fashion. They did not score a point in the final three minutes of the contest and had two shot clock violations in that time. Their offense was out of sync down the stretch and that’s starting to become a common occurrence at this point.
In their win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, the Warriors blew an 11-point fourth-quarter lead in a matter of minutes. They managed to regroup and eventually win 114-106 but that’s not something they’ve managed to do all that often this season.
Against the Denver Nuggets on Dec. 3, the Warriors scored just two points in the final four minutes to lose 119-115. Going back a bit further, they completely collapsed in the fourth quarter against the San Antonio Spurs on Nov. 23. The Warriors lost that quarter 33-13 to lose the game 104-94.
Following this game against the Rockets, the Warriors have now suffered defeat in seven of their last 10 clutch games. This is a team that just crumbles in the big moments and they need to address this problem in a hurry.
The Warriors will be taking on the Dallas Mavericks at Chase Center next on Sunday at 8:30 PM ET and they could learn a thing or two from their opponents on how to close out games. The Mavericks have won five of their last six clutch games and if this clash goes down to the wire, you know which team to back to get over the line.
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Warriors Fans React to Jimmy Butler’s Instagram Post
Jimmy Butler, the Miami Heat star has been the biggest name involved in recent NBA trade rumors. With his future in Miami uncertain, Butler reportedly has a list of preferred trade destinations if he were to be moved.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Butler would welcome a trade to the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks, and Phoenix Suns.
Via Charania: “The Phoenix Suns are another team that Jimmy Butler’s agent, Bernie Lee, has indicated in league circles that the six-time All-Star is open to as a destination while Miami listens to trade offers, sources tell ESPN, joining Dallas, Houston and Golden State.”
The Phoenix Suns are another team that Jimmy Butler’s agent, Bernie Lee, has indicated in league circles that the six-time All-Star is open to as a destination while Miami listens to trade offers, sources tell ESPN, joining Dallas, Houston and Golden State.
Butler made an Instagram post on Wednesday amid these trade rumors, and the comments include several from Warriors fans.
“No shortcuts still crafting,” Butler captioned his post.
“Jimmy butler you are a golden state warrior,” a fan commented.
“Come to warriors?” a fan asked.
“Welcome to the Bay Area jimmy Steph,” another fan wrote.
“welcome to the warriors,” another comment read.
“@warriors 👀,” replied another fan.
“Ready golden State🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥,” a Warriors fan commented.
While there were plenty of Warriors fans in Butler’s comments, there were also a lot of Heat fans asking him to stay in Miami. The six-time NBA All-Star will be one of the most interesting players to follow ahead of the trade deadline.
