NBA Wednesday: Steph Curry goes off as Warriors take Game 5

The Hawks are now one game away from advancing to the first conference finals in franchise history, all because their leader made a huge play. Yet a lot went on before Horford even got to the ball. Much of the criticism has been centered on Nene because Horford was his man, but it’s actually Pierce himself that made the biggest mistake.

In a postgame interview with TNT’s David Aldridge, Horford described what the Hawks were trying to do on the last play.

I mean ...

Paul Pierce is awesome! It’s just that this stuff is legendary when he wins, and kinda corny when he doesn’t.

While yet another Pierce hero moment had to be deflating for Atlanta, Horford took it upon himself to make sure he would be the true hero, securing an 82-81 Hawks victory with a putback layup in the final seconds. The win sends Atlanta back to Washington with a 3-2 series lead, putting the Hawks on the brink of their first ever Eastern Conference Finals appearance.

Not only was Horford exceptional offensively, but he came up big on defense as well. The big man blocked five shots, including this monster rejection in the third quarter:

After putting up a dud of an offensive performance on their home court in Game 4, the Grizzlies came out firing in this one. Randolph went to work early on, scoring 11 first-quarter points and even knocking in a rare three-pointer. Memphis ran out to a 13-point lead before Golden State kicked it into gear on both ends of the floor.

Defense turned into offense as the Warriors closed the first quarter on a 16-2 run to take a one-point lead into the second quarter. Curry was the catalyst offensively, pouring in four first-quarter three-pointers. Golden State had seven turnovers in the opening frame, but Memphis had six of its own, with most of those occurring in the latter half of the quarter.

THINK FAST.

Hey Harrison Barnes, careful while you’re defending Courtney L --

SWEET MERCY

The Truth hurts. Pierce made the go-ahead three-pointer with under nine seconds for Washington, but Atlanta answered with Al Horford’s game-winning putback in the final seconds to steal Game 5. The Hawks have a 3-2 series lead as it heads back to D.C. on Friday.

Update: here’s the screencap!

At one point in time, it looked like Wednesday was going to be a very good night for Washington D.C. sports fans. John Wall made his return for the Wizards and had Washington out to an early lead. The Capitals scored an early goal to take a 1-0 lead in Game 7 against the Rangers.

Even late in the games, it looked like D.C. sports fans might end the night celebrating. Paul Pierce buried a 3-pointer to give the Wizards an 81-80 lead with less than 10 seconds to play.

That’s a solid way to end a quarter.

This is the face of a man who cannot even believe his own heroics:

Perfect.

Horford then saved the day for Atlanta to cap off a wild fourth quarter.

The game was sloppy from the start, with the Hawks turning the ball over at a high rate and the Wizards struggling to knock down shots in the opening minutes. However, Wall made it a point right off the bat to show that his injury wasn’t going to be a problem, turning on the jets on several occasions and finishing with that injured left hand on the break.

Al Horford was great throughout Game 5 on Wednesday, and he put a dagger in the Wizards to end the game. Hawks take a 3-2 series advantage with an 82-81 win.

Horford’s shot came seconds after Paul Pierce had given Washington the lead:

This happened during Wizards vs. Hawks Game 5 on Wednesday night:

Oh, what an unfortunate happenstance! That couple was so in the throes of passion they didn’t realize they were spilling a beer on some hapless bystanders! BUT WAIT.

Five. Broken. Bones. It doesn’t matter. This is the only thing going well for the wiz right now

“Great, thanks a lot dad. Now I have to transfer schools.”

And because you all expect this of us (and for good reason):

John Wall has five broken bones in his hand, but it didn’t stop him from doing this.

What an effort from Bradley Beal.

Who will start for the Wizards at point guard in Game 5???? It’s not like the whole world already knows.

What gamesmanship by Washington on their own whiteboard. Who will get the start? Gilbert Arenas? Garrett Temple? Only time will tell.

That doesn’t appear to the case, however, if Game 4 was any indication. The Warriors came out firing on all cylinders at FedExForum, shooting 48 percent with 14 three-pointers, and held the Grizzlies to 38 percent shooting with 16 turnovers. Now the series is tied 2-2 and the Warriors are back to having homecourt advantage.

Sessions helped the Wizards to a big win in Game 3 on Paul Pierce’s buzzer-beater, but The Truth couldn’t come through again with a clutch make late in another close game Monday night. Now Washington will have to try and win a big Game 5 on the road without its best player and essentially a seven-man rotation.

So the Hawks appear to be in the driver’s seat with the healthier roster and homecourt advantage, but we haven’t always seen the team take advantage of its opportunities this postseason. The ball is in their court, though, so this is a chance to assert themselves in the series.