History shows Warriors shouldn't be alarmed by blowout loss

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

History shows Warriors shouldn't be alarmed by Game 5 blowout loss

By Sean Keane | Last updated May 1, 2025 7:04 PM ET

Going into the night holding a 3-1 series lead, the Golden State Warriors suffered an embarrassing blowout loss on the road to Dillon Brooks' team Thursday. But it's not too alarming. The last time it happened, the Warriors went on to win the title.

Golden State lost to the Houston Rockets in Game 5, 131-116. The Rockets led by as many as 31 points in the third quarter, and the Warriors pulled their starters with 18 minutes left to play. It was reminiscent of Game 5 of their second-round series in 2022, when the Memphis Grizzlies led by 55 points in the third quarter and beat the Warriors, 134-95.

In both games, the Warriors got shellacked early and couldn't stop turning the ball over, then pulled their starters. Draymond Green threw in the towel early in 2022, or more accurately, waved a towel while dancing on the sidelines when the Warriors were down 46 in the fourth quarter.

Steph Curry watching the PA play ‘Whoop that Trick’. Draymond Green enjoying it. pic.twitter.com/R2TP1AFnHT
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) May 12, 2022

What happened next? The Warriors returned home and took care of business. They defeated the Grizzlies, 110-96, as Klay Thompson scored 30 points and Steph Curry went for 29. Golden State advanced to the Western Conference Finals and eventually won the title, going 9-3 after the rout.

This series has a number of similarities to 2022. The Warriors gave up extremely early in each Game 5, opting to wave the white flag and rest their veterans. The opposing team had Dillon Brooks and Steven Adams, now members of the Rockets. Green got into early trouble for flagrant fouls in the series, but behaved himself the rest of the way.

The biggest difference is that the Warriors dominated the glass in Game 6 with Kevon Looney grabbing 22 rebounds in the closeout game. The undersized Warriors are going to have to win a different way against Adams and Co. this season.

But the Warriors have still only lost one Western Conference playoff series since 2014-15. They looked terrible in Game 5, but Steve Kerr's teams have a way of bouncing back from even the ugliest losses to survive and advance.

Sean Keane

Sean Keane is a sportswriter and a comedian based in Oakland, California, with experience covering the NBA, MLB, NFL and Ice Cube’s three-on-three basketball league, The Big 3. He’s written for Comedy Central’s “Another Period,” ESPN the Magazine, and Audible. com

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