Image Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

Golden State Warriors’ Play-In Nightmare Returns – Is This the Year They Break Free?

Image Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

The Dubs nation is shook after what has transpired to be one of the worst weeks of the season for the Golden State Warriors. The Steph Curry-led side folded against the LA Clippers in a 119-124 overtime defeat. Everything that could have gone wrong went wrong for the Warriors: Draymond Green missed an open layup, Jimmy Butler bottled the winner, and the bench misfired on all cylinders.

As a result, the Golden State Warriors have fallen into the Play-In territory, something that they had to avoid at all costs due to the aging core players on the side. The fans aren’t very skeptical of the team given its woeful Play-In record. The Warriors are yet to win a single game in the post-regular-season tournament.

CLIPPERS-WARRIORS WHAT AN ENDING TO THE NBA REGULAR SEASON 🔥

Harden: 38 PTS, 10 AST, 7 REB
Kawhi: 33 PTS, 7 AST, 6 REB

Curry: 36 PTS, 6 3PM, 6 AST
Butler: 30 PTS, 9 AST

Clippers win to clinch the 5th seed, Warriors headed to the play-in with the 7th seed 🍿 pic.twitter.com/C1B2qKhl70
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 13, 2025

In their first Play-In tournament game back in 2021, the 7-time NBA champs faced the Los Angeles Lakers. They lost the match by inches with a score of 100-103. This meant they had another chance to overcome the odds of crashing out. This time they faced the Memphis Grizzlies for the 8th seed. Result, another close loss of 112-117.

Also Read: Nikola Jokic Creates NBA History as Denver Nuggets Clinch No. 4 Seed and Home Court Advantage for Playoffs

The Golden State Warriors went on to participate in the Play-In tournament last season as well. After finishing in 10th place, they faced the Sacramento Kings in a direct knockout fixture. The Kings ramped through the dull Warriors with a 118-94 victory. So, all in all, Play-In tournaments are not a thing for the Steve Kerr side.

Home Court, Head-to-Head Edge Fuel Warriors’ Hopes

But not everything is gloomy for the Golden State Warriors. Yes, they lost the momentum, the hard work that Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry carried out these past few months. But there is a silver lining. The Golden State Warriors will host the Memphis Grizzlies at the Chase Center in the first Play-In match. GSW has the home court advantage that it never had in its previous Play-In tournament pursuits.

Moreover, the Golden State Warriors have an in-season record of 3-1 against the Memphis Grizzlies. The Warriors also won the most recent game against Memphis early this month by a margin of 134-125. The Grizzlies’ aggressive play is the only problem for an aging Warriors side. But in such defining stages of the season, Experience overrides the charades of physicality on the court.

Grizzlies record against other top-8 teams in the West:

OKC: 0-4
Houston: 1-3
Lakers: 1-3
Nuggets: 1-2
Clippers: 0-3
Warriors: 1-3
Wolves: 2-1

Kinda says it all.
— Matt Infield (@Matt_Infield) April 12, 2025

Experience Might Be the X-Factor for Golden State

Draymond Green willingly attended the post-match press conference despite having a bad game and a crucial basket miss. The DPOY candidate said, “We’ll be fine. Playoffs, you’re playing no back-to-backs or anything like that, so just got to get there. We’ll be alright. We’re high-level basketball players. We’ve been training all year for this.”

Warriors could turn around their disappointing week despite drowning in the Play-In tournament. Yes, the Dubs have a poor record in the tournament, but during all their past endeavors in the Play-In, the Warriors had a poor team that had no energy, momentum. But this year, GSW has shown that it can turn adversities into opportunities. With the leadership of Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler, the Warriors can be fine come Tuesday.

Another silver lining for the Dubs is that they will face the Houston Rockets in the playoffs if they manage to win against the Grizzlies. The Golden State Warriors are 7-3 in their last 10 matchups with the Rockets.