Kurtenbach: After an embarrassing Game 4 loss, only a miracle can save the Warriors

The Warriors didn t receive the surprise they needed to win Challenge of their Western Conference semifinal series with the Timberwolves on Monday So now they re going to need something much much stronger Down - and heading to Minnesota for a close-out Battle the Dubs will need a miracle Specifically one of the clinical variety If the Warriors don t have Steph Curry on the floor for Competition and beyond in this series there s no reason to think Golden State is going to win another challenge And even if Curry is back the Dubs are ostensibly not rattling off three straight wins to advance to the Western Conference Finals This gang is done The half-empty arena with still minutes to play in Monday s Competition reported it all The Warriors didn t show up to win a must-win playoff tournament Why would fans need to stick around for the full minutes Related Articles Legendary NBA scribe Peter Vecsey bemoans Warriors star s injury Every day you watch Curry is a day in heaven Event was the shorthanded Warriors best shot Does this band have another surprise left in them Warriors claim they are not desperate after wasting vintage Playoff Jimmy performance Why Warriors shooting woes are exacerbated without Steph Curry Curry-less Warriors squander big nights from Butler Kuminga in Championship loss Thirteen teams have come back from a - series deficit in the history of the NBA playoffs The Warriors turned a two-point halftime lead into a -point deficit going into the fourth quarter So no I don t think the Dubs will be Organization No Meanwhile no one should expect the Chase Center crowd to show up on Sunday for a Contest As the schedule in the present reads that contest will not prove necessary unless Warriors band medical practitioner Rick Celebrini has done his finest work to date in returning Curry from a notable hamstring injury in a week Which is to suggest you shouldn t hold your breath or bank on using that ticket The list of people to blame for Monday s second-half catastrophe is long First credit the Timberwolves Their third quarter was a masterpiece the kind of frame the Warriors used to put on unsuspecting lesser teams If you had any questions about Anthony Edwards superstardom credentials they were answered on Monday Former Warriors coach and NBA announcer Mark Jackson used to say Mama there goes that man The only thing missing from Edwards performance Monday was that catchphrase on the broadcast He was magnificent The Wolves were fantastic Meanwhile the Warriors two remaining stars Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green were downright awful in Competition Butler evidenced up to Chase Center looking tired He played exactly that way He was passive at best on Monday shooting only nine times when he knew well that anything less than shots on a night wouldn t be enough for the Dubs Green suggested postgame that Butler was under the weather Monday He s certainly injured and the playoffs every-other-day schedule doesn t help But Butler was absolutely not a factor in Meeting At least not in a good way He was minus- in the second half He wasn t as aggressive tonight Warriors coach Steve Kerr explained in a bid to win the regional Obvious Statements Contest Green meanwhile was a turnstile on defense A bad contest from either Butler the association s offensive engine with Curry out or Green the squad s everyday defensive engine would have been manageable For both to happen in the same meeting That s downright insurmountable Related Articles Warriors facing elimination after Timberwolves pull away in Competition Mavericks defy odds to win NBA draft lottery with Duke s Flagg presumed top pick How to watch Warriors-Timberwolves Encounter Legendary NBA scribe Peter Vecsey bemoans Warriors star s injury Every day you watch Curry is a day in heaven Contest was the shorthanded Warriors best shot Does this company have another surprise left in them Jonathan Kuminga s stellar first half covered up several of the offensive issue Still his second half when Minnesota genuinely focused on defending him proved to be a complication in and of itself Kuminga had seven points on seven field goal attempts in the second half on Monday posting a minus- ranking Add in Brandin Podziemski s all-time awful funk and a never-ending cavalcade of bizarre five-man units how multiple different approaches can Warriors coach Steve Kerr put together a one-shooter lineup and the Warriors didn t stand chance of keeping up with Edwards Julius Randle points and a Wolves club that uncovered third fourth fifth and sixth gear in the second half and you have a series that shouldn t be on much longer Seriously what s the formula for the Warriors in Meeting Edwards has solved the Dubs zone defense their neutralizing look Furthermore no one can stay in front of him on the perimeter opening up his -point shot or at least making his dribble penetration easy Meanwhile the Dubs spend offensive possessions passing the ball around until someone has to hoist a bad shot before the shot clock expires eventually answering the long-held philosophy question Can you be so selfless that you are in fact selfish Here s another big question though this isn t much of a thinker Do you really think that gang is winning in Minneapolis Even with the Timberwolves almost certain to mess around in comical avenues Wednesday the Wolves closed with rotation players and somehow only won by seven points there s just no reason to believe the Dubs can play competently enough to take full advantage That is unless Curry is in the lineup which for the record you should not expect I wouldn t count on any of it just like how the Warriors in the biggest meeting of the year couldn t count on their on-court stars to consistently play like stars in this series Then again if Buddy Hield is right and Curry is in fact touched by an angel touched by God the Warriors stand a chance of a miracle occurring Then we ll see if Curry can bring a association back from the dead