MEMPHIS, Tenn.
The Grizzlies had one last punch, delivered with it's grit-and-grind identity.
Golden State took the punch, grunted, spit out a gob of blood, then brutally delivered blow after blow after blow from 22 feet and beyond, one from way beyond.
The Warriors were the only ones standing after a 108-95 win to close out Memphis in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinal.
Down as many as 15 points, Memphis cut the lead to one in the third quarter. The way the Warriors halted the comeback was nothing short of sheer cruelty, like Mother Gothel not letting Rapunzel out of the tower.
"It's a dangerous world out there," she would say. "Stay in here where it's safe."
Grizzlies basketball just isn't safe anymore. It's time to climb out of the tower and move 22 feet behind the curvy line. The team's window was thought to be open for a couple more years, but the new NBA is slowly slamming the window shut.
As blasphemous here as not liking barbecue and Elvis, but it's time to move beyond grit-and-grind. Add a little shine.
That was summed up in a 3 minute, 20-second display of new NBA.
Once Jeff Green's free throw cut it to 65-64 with 3:20 to play in the third quarter, the Warriors' Andre Iguodala knocked down a 26-foot 3-pointer. Two possessions later, he scooted up an inch and hit from 25. When a Kosta Koufos hook had the Grizzlies primed to go into the fourth quarter with a slim deficit and a rowdy crowd, scheduled to be led by Three 6 Mafia's DJ Paul emceeing from the floor, the Warriors warriored.
Green rebounded Harrison Barnes' missed 3 and rushed a shot with 7.4 seconds left in the quarter. Iguodala was given a block through contact with Green and MVP Stephen Curry smooth picked up the basketball and heaved it -- right through the net.
Curry hit a 62-foot 3-pointer, and if it hit the rim, the rim didn't know it. But it wasn't the sexy that ended the Grizzlies season. It was the two Iguodala 3-pointers. Memphis had to labor to get the game back in reach, only two made shots in the quarter past 8 feet. All the life it rebuilt, two Iguodala shots choked right back out.
The Warriors made 15 3-pointers in the game. Memphis made 25 -- the entire series.
Curry, who had a game-high 30 points, made 8 of 13 from deep. He made a much simpler 25-footer when the Grizzlies cut the lead to eight in the fourth quarter, then again from 23, then Draymond Green from 26, then Curry from 26. It became a ruthless display of demoralizing what Memphis does.
"We have big guys. We have to play through our strengths," Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley said. "We just have to work with what we have and we've done a phenomenal job with it. But, going into next season, we've got to find ways to free up guys on the outside, get guys that can get easy looks and knock them down and try to open up more opportunities for our big guys."
Fair enough. Adding a deep threat seems now a must, whether that is debenching rookie Jordan Adams or a draft pick or a move.
Yes, it's the Warriors, the best team in the NBA, but what better test for GNG. It took a relentless effort to crawl back into a game you once trailed by 15, only to have Iggy bury back-to-back triples to bury your season.
As good as Memphis' defense is -- and it was -- at some point the offense has to allow it to keep up. With the Currys, Klay Thompsons, Kevin Loves, Nikola Mirotics, Kyle Korvers.
Conley played with a mask covering his broken face and as valiant as it was for Tony Allen to limp out there with a busted hammy, the story was written. And it's a splashing success, not a smashing one.
What Allen did in Games 2 and 3 to disrupt the course of the series was undoubtedly first-team defense, but even if he continues that torrid pace, the chances the Warriors were going to get their mojo back were really good.
Starting in Game 4, Golden State dared every single Grizzly to shoot the basketball. They can't, not well enough to keep the new league pace.
Memphis loves to bump and bang, scratch the paint. And it works -- in the regular season. But if Golden State proved anything, it's that the Grizzlies bumping and banging only works when bunnies don't hop off the rim and 14-footers fall, too. Even then, matching 2s for 3s is the fastlane to playoff losses.
Jump shots can kill shooting percentages, especially those beyond 22 feet, but the new NBA is making them. Four of the final five teams are in the top 10 in the regular season from beyond the arc. Golden State, Atlanta and the Los Angeles Cllippers are the top three, shooting .398, .380 and .376. Cleveland is fifth (367). Houston would be the oddball out, at 14th (.348).
By comparison, Memphis was No. 22 in the league at .339. Golden State, Houston and Atlanta are all in the top seven in the NBA in defensive efficiency while the Warriors are at the top. Teams are running, gunning and defending. Memphis is scoring underneath and defending and it's just not enough.
The grit and the grind made for epic shirts, fun hashtags and a cool identity. But it shows no signs of making a parade.
It may be time to see grit and grind gone.
