The Golden State Warriors are headed to the 2025 NBA Playoffs as the No. 7 seed in the West after securing qualification with a 121-116 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. The Warriors will now face the Houston Rockets in the first round, while the Grizzlies will await the winner of the 9-10 Play-In matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings.
The Warriors pulled out a contentious win, led by their superstar duo. Playoff Jimmy Butler showed up with 38 points (12-20 FG), seven rebounds, six assists, and three steals, while Stephen Curry put up 37 points (9-22 FG), eight rebounds, and four assists. The third-highest scorer was Gary Payton II with 12 points (5-10 FG) off the bench. Draymond Green had six rebounds and 10 assists but wound up fouling out.
Fans were thrilled to see the Warriors pull this off, although the questionable officiating we saw became the biggest talking point of the evening.
“A star player getting injured against the Warriors in a playoff game? Wow, I’ve never seen that before,” said one fan after Ja Morant went down with an ankle injury.
“‘Refs u suck’ chants when the refs been on the Warriors side the whole game,” said some fan pointing out the lopsided officiating.
“Not to be that guy, but I hope every single NBA outside of Warriors fans is seeing what the referees are doing right now,” said more fans piling on the referees.
“Jimmy Butler has 18 free throws, and these are the guys crying about free throw differential on here every night,” said one fan, specifically pointing out Butler’s whistle.
“Warriors have tried every imaginable way to blow this game, and the Grizzlies are not interested,” said a fan about the Grizzlies’ inability to seal this.
“Man is a real-life playoff dynasty,” said a fan about Butler’s sensational night.
“Jimmy Butler will def be a player you had to experience in real time,” said another fan remarking about Playoff Butler.
The Grizzlies saw Desmond Bane lead the way with 30 points (11-21 FG) and six rebounds, picking up the offensive slack after Ja Morant was hobbled in the third quarter.
Morant played through an ankle injury to end the game with 22 points (9-18 FG), while Jaren Jackson Jr. had 18 points (6-15 FG) and six rebounds. Zach Edey had 14 points (4-11 FG) and 17 rebounds, but the 7’5″ center looked out of place a bunch of times despite his impressive stats.
The Warriors rekindle their Playoff rivalry with the Rockets, but with Houston having the upper hand now. The last regular-season clash between the teams saw the Rockets hold Stephen Curry to just three points.
But given the Grizzlies had held Curry to two points in a game earlier this season, and he dropped 37 tonight, past achievements won’t go a long way here.
The Grizzlies will hope Morant isn’t seriously injured, as they can still secure a spot in the NBA Playoffs as the No. 8 seed.
