The Warriors evened their first-round series against the Kings on Sunday after escaping with a 126–125 Game 4 win in a wild game at Chase Center. But, while Golden State can take joy in securing the crucial victory, an untimely, late-game blunder by Stephen Curry nearly led to a much different result.
With the Warriors up 126–121 with 47.1 seconds left in regulation, Curry attempted to bring the ball up the floor after a Kings miss before being met by a soft double team from forward Harrison Barnes and guard Davion Mitchell. Suddenly, Curry, after glancing over at the Warriors’ sideline, called a timeout even though his team didn’t have any remaining.
Curry’s mental mistake resulted in a technical foul, allowing Kings guard Malik Monk to step to the line for a free throw. On the ensuing possession after Monk’s make, star De’Aaron Fox nailed a three to cut the deficit to one with 28.1 left in the game. A missed Curry mid-range jumper opened the door for a stunning comeback, but the bid fell short after Barnes missed a game-winning three as the clock expired.
After avoiding the near-disaster, Warriors coach Steve Kerr defended Curry’s decision by taking the blame, telling reporters post-game that it was “100 percent my fault” that the call occurred.
“I knew we didn’t have any timeouts left … That’s on me. I’ve gotta remind the guys we don’t have any timeouts,” he said, via KNBR.
Steph called a timeout even though Warriors didn't have any 😬 pic.twitter.com/T1VNINo8JY
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 23, 2023
Although Curry’s Chris Webber moment will likely be a topic of discussion to start the week, the four-time champion certainly did his part to keep the Warriors’ season alive. Curry poured in a team-high 32 points on 11-of-22 shooting (5-of-11 3PT) to go with five rebounds and four assists.
After surviving on Sunday, the reigning champions will have little time to rest before heading back to Sacramento for a huge Game 5 on Wednesday night.
