Golden State Falls to Lakers in Game 6, Ending Championship Hopes

LOS ANGELES — The reigning champion Golden State’s freewheeling, 3-point-centric type of play modified the N.B.A. and made Stephen Curry a family identify. But on Friday evening, the workforce couldn’t muster up one final overwhelming flurry of deep photographs, bowing out to the Los Angeles Lakers in six video games within the Western Conference semifinals.

The Lakers gained Game 6, 122-101.

It was one of the vital extremely anticipated playoff matchups in years, pitting Curry in opposition to the Lakers star LeBron James for the primary time for the reason that 2018 N.B.A. finals, when James was on the Cleveland Cavaliers. But the sequence finally didn’t match the hype, with blowouts in Games 2, 3 and 5 after an exhilarating Lakers win to open the sequence.

In Game 6, Golden State appeared out of kinds proper from the beginning. The Lakers opened the sport on a 24-9 run. Golden State’s Klay Thompson missed 9 of his first 10 photographs; Curry missed 4 of his first 5. Then, simply earlier than halftime, a last-second desperation shot by Lakers guard Austin Reaves despatched Crypto.com Arena right into a frenzy and Los Angeles to the break with a 10-point lead. In the third quarter, James led the push to increase the result in 19 and the Lakers had been in agency management getting into the fourth quarter. Golden State by no means recovered.

This means the Golden State dynasty — 4 championships since 2015 behind Curry, Thompson and Draymond Green — could also be at an finish or at the least on its strategy to a makeover. With one of the vital costly rosters within the league, and a brand new collective bargaining settlement geared toward curbing heavy spenders, Golden State is prone to attempt to carry down prices. It may very well be a stark transition for the workforce, provided that it went from a rudderless middle-of-the-road franchise to one of the vital financially useful ones with Curry on the helm over the previous decade.

But this season was a slog for Golden State. It completed at 44-38 for the Western Conference’s sixth seed and had one of many worst street information within the league, at 11-30.

But there have been moments when the workforce was capable of dig for classic performances.

Curry had one of many most interesting video games of his profession within the first spherical of the playoffs. Golden State confronted the third-seeded Kings in Sacramento for a decisive Game 7. Curry scored 50 factors — probably the most ever in a Game 7 — and hit seven 3-pointers. It was a reminder of the magic that had made his workforce so nice.

In the convention semifinals, in opposition to the seventh-seeded Lakers, Golden State had home-court benefit. But shedding Game 1 at dwelling set the tone for the sequence. While Golden State appeared dominant in Games 2 and 5, each at dwelling, Game 4 was a series-turner: Golden State made a number of uncharacteristically sloppy errors down the stretch, dropping the workforce into a frightening 3-1 gap within the sequence.

It was finally an excessive amount of for Golden State to beat.

The sequence served as a reminder: It’s onerous to remain on prime for lengthy.

Green, a four-time All-Star, has a participant possibility for subsequent 12 months and is predicted to check free company. He had one among his higher seasons this 12 months however turns 34 subsequent March, and Golden State could balk at providing him a most contract. Green has proven a penchant for impulsive habits, like punching teammate Jordan Poole in coaching camp, and he had the second-most technical fouls within the league within the common season.

Thompson, a five-time All-Star, nonetheless has moments when he seems to be like among the finest shooters in N.B.A. historical past, however at 33 years outdated and after two main accidents, he has noticeably slowed on protection. His contract expires after subsequent season.

Golden State will even must determine what to do with its younger gamers, who the workforce has tried to develop whereas chasing a championship — a path criticized for putting an excessive amount of of a load on the 35-year-old Curry. In specific, Poole, a 23-year-old guard, struggled mightily within the playoffs, a lower than ultimate situation provided that Golden State signed him to a four-year contract extension in October price as much as $140 million. Other younger gamers, like Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, each 20, had been out and in of the lineup all season.

In addition, the contract of Bob Myers, the workforce’s common supervisor for the final decade, ends this 12 months. Carrying the dynasty into its subsequent stage could fall to a unique architect.