Warriors Eliminated by Anthony Edwards, Wolves as NBA Fans Lament Steph Curry's Injury
The Golden State Warriors' season is over after a 121-110 road loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday.
Golden State only led this game for 41 seconds after Brandin Podziemseki hit a three-pointer for a 3-2 lead early in the first quarter. From there, it was all Minnesota, which led by seven after one, 15 after two and 21 after three. Golden State never cut the lead to single digits in the fourth.
Minnesota shot 62.8 percent for the game and made 12-of-24 threes after three quarters, including this Julius Randle triple for a 58-47 lead late in the second.
Six Timberwolves players scored in double digits led by Julius Randle's 29 points. Anthony Edwards posted 22 points while matching his career-high assists total (12). Mike Conley was also sensational with 16 points, eight assists and six rebounds.
For Golden State, Podziemseki led the way with 28 points, while Jonathan Kuminga added 26. Jimmy Butler had a relatively quiet offensive night with 17 points on 4-of-11 shooting in 42 minutes.
And with that, the Warriors' season has ended. Simply put, Golden State could not recover after losing superstar Stephen Curry to a left hamstring strain in Game 1 of this series. Golden State finished Game 1 without Curry with a 99-88 win but proceeded to lose four straight by a combined 47 points.
It's not hard to see why the Warriors couldn't manage without Curry, a two-time NBA MVP, 10-time All-NBA player and four-time NBA champion. The 37-year-old remained tough to beat in his 16th season, averaging 24.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He also led the Warriors with 24.0 PPG in a seven-game series victory over the Houston Rockets in the first round.
And he formed a tremendous rapport with Butler. Including the regular season (22-5), play-in (1-0) and the playoffs (4-3), Butler and Curry went 27-8 when they shared the court together after Golden State acquired the ex-Miami Heat superstar. So hopes were high entering the playoffs, even as a No. 7 seed.
However, Minnesota controlled this series from Games 2-5 and cruised in the series finale, even when Golden State finally showed some signs of life in the fourth.
It was too little and too late, though, and now the remaining question at the end of this Warriors season is "What if?"
In the meantime, fans and analysts criticized the Warriors' performance without Curry on the floor.
As for the series winner, Minnesota now advances to the Western Conference Finals for the second straight season to play the winner of the Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Denver Nuggets second round matchup.
