Mike Conley Using Playoff Stage to Shed 'Underrated' Label for Good

On a night when Stephen Curry was presented with the NBA's MVP trophy in front of a raucous Oracle Arena crowd, Mike Conley made his triumphant return and stole the show in a 97-90 Game 2 win while handing the Golden State Warriors their first home loss since Jan. 27.  

Following a three-game absence after suffering nasty facial fractures against the Portland Trail Blazers, Conley donned a clear mask that transformed him into a heroic savior one game after the Memphis Grizzlies looked helpless without their stud floor general.  

Back at the helm, Conley didn't display any fear of attacking the teeth of a vicious Warriors defense. He finished with a game-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting (3-of-6 from three), while dishing out three assists, and set the tone from the jump by scoring nine of Memphis' first 14 points. 

Conley didn't hesitate to bookend his courageous performance in style, either: 

"I thought Mike Conley had tremendous heart to come out and give us what he had," head coach Dave Joerger told reporters following the win, according to NBA TV on Twitter.  

More than his encouraging stat line, Conley led with a quiet confidence, which Memphis desperately missed when it was blown out, 101-86, in Game 1 and in a 99-92 Game 4 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers during the Western Conference quarterfinals. 

NBA on ESPN outlined the disparity in production between Memphis' point guards from Game 1 to Game 2: 

While the Warriors prefer to play at a pace resembling a NASCAR race, the Grizzlies are inclined to slow it down, take their time, use the shot clock and turn things into a heavyweight prizefight. 

In other words, Memphis bruises with strength, and Golden State abuses with speed. 

However, the Grizzlies hadn't been able to dictate pace effectively without Conley at the controls. But with their leading man back orchestrating the offense, a sense of calm enveloped Memphis and allowed it to attack methodically. 

Whether that meant Conley was lofting floaters over the outstretched arms of Golden State defenders in the pick-and-roll or simply maintaining the metronomic integrity of the team's offensive flow, a semblance of normalcy was restored. Synergy Sports Tech and Bleacher Report highlighted Conley's on-court performance:

As Charles Barkley noted during halftime of the TNT broadcast, Memphis' offense was "running selectively," which acted as a nice supplement to the team's usual dose of deliberate half-court action. All told, the Grizzlies outscored the Warriors, 21-19, in transition.  

Conley's ability to steady the ship was also apparent on the defensive end, as Hardwood Paroxysm's Scott Leedy observed:  

In 41 minutes, Curry totaled 19 points and six helpers, while shooting 7-of-19 from the field and 2-of-11 from beyond the arc. 

By siphoning off the MVP's production, Conley helped Memphis' defense muck things up so much that the Warriors were limited to 39 first-half points. For a steamrolling machine like the Warriors, that total was uncharacteristically low, according to ESPN Stats & Info and GSWStats: 

Conley's infectious energy translated to Tony Allen as well, who clamped down and limited Klay Thompson to 13 points on 6-of-15 shooting (1-of-6 from three), while racking up a game-high four steals. 

Allen's superb play even prompted him to share the contents of his LinkedIn page in boisterous fashion:  

Conley didn't just set the tone—he made a statement and started shedding a label in the process. 

That label? Underrated. 

In a league dominated by point-guard play, Conley's name has long been elusive in an elite conversation littered with names like Curry, Russell Westbrook, John Wall, Chris Paul and Kyrie Irving. 

That's because Conley doesn't possess prototypically elite point guard traits. He doesn't burn past opponents with regularity, he doesn't fire threes from the hip and he doesn't contort around the rim like an airborne trapeze artist. 

But what Conley does brilliantly is manage games with unmatched eloquence and ambidextrous poise. He's rarely fazed by the moment, and he'll always make smart passes, make precise moves with the ball and waste little movement when it comes to getting his team ideal shots in the half court. 

And thanks to that unique blend of skills, Conley's allowed Memphis to gain control with home-court advantage for the remainder of the series.

That doesn't necessarily mean the Grizzlies will capitalize as the Warriors game-plan to thwart Memphis' best efforts to get a stranglehold with Game 3 looming on Saturday night (8 p.m. ET on ABC). 

However, the Grizzlies' "Masked Marvel" has breathed life and purpose back into a team that looked overwhelmed and physically outmatched just two days ago.

It's about time his resume got an upgrade.   

All statistics are current as of May 6 and courtesy of NBA.com unless otherwise noted.  

Alec Nathan covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @AlecBNathan.