Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors have been on a roll over the past two months following Jimmy Butler’s arrival, but their path to a deep playoff run remains steep. Locked in a tight race to escape the play-in tournament, the Warriors stumbled on Wednesday with a costly 114-111 loss to the struggling San Antonio Spurs.
The defeat pushed the Warriors down to seventh in the Western Conference standings, a costly stumble with just one game left—especially with that game coming against the Los Angeles Clippers, who sit a game ahead in fifth. Draymond Green, the vocal anchor and leader of Golden State, called out his team for their lackluster showing against the struggling Spurs.
“Mess around with games in this league and you lose,” said the Warriors forward in his post-game interview. “Lack of grit.”
The Spurs are closing out a forgettable season with a mix of inexperienced youngsters and aging vets, yet they still managed to outplay the Warriors. Golden State struggled offensively, connecting on just 41.9% of their shots and only 33.3% from beyond the arc on Wednesday.
The Warriors opened the fourth quarter with an 88-76 lead and seemed poised to cruise to a comfortable win. Instead, the Warriors let the Spurs claw back into it.
Draymond Green and the Warriors falling short against the Spurs
Golden State turned the ball over three times in the final two minutes against the Spurs, with Warriors sharpshooter Stephen Curry's 11 minutes off the bench seeing them lose by 16 points. With Quinten Post sidelined due to illness, they tried Gui Santos in their usual second-quarter lineup but got outscored 19-3. When they inserted Jonathan Kuminga for Santos to start the fourth, it also didn’t improve their situation.
After Draymond Green sank two free throws to tie the game at 111 with just three seconds left, former Warrior Harrison Barnes delivered the knockout blow—a buzzer-beating three that sealed the upset.
This game meant very little to Barnes’ team. With a 33-47 record, the Spurs had already locked in their lottery position and were essentially coasting into the offseason. Still, Barnes likely relished the chance to deal a potentially crushing blow to the Warriors’ playoff push.
Thanks to their 22-6 run following the Butler trade, the Warriors entered Wednesday with control over their playoff fate. Winning their final three games would’ve locked in a top-six seed and secured a full week of rest ahead of the first round. All they had to do was take care of the Spurs, Trail Blazers, and Clippers.
The Warriors have lost control of their regular-season fate. Even if they win their last two games, they’ll miss out on a top-six seed if the Grizzlies sweep their final three matchups against the Timberwolves, Nuggets, and Mavericks — and if the Clippers defeat the Kings on Friday and the Nuggets take down the Rockets on Sunday.
If the Warriors fall early in the playoffs — or stumble in the play-in tournament — they'll likely point to this game as the one that slipped through their fingers without explanation.
