Golden State Warriors: 5 Takeaways From Game 5 vs. Cavaliers

Following their disappointing loss in Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals, here are five takeaways for the Golden State Warriors heading into a pivotal Game 6.

It’s official. With the Golden State Warriors suffering a 15-point loss — just their fourth defeat at Oracle Arena during the 2015-16 campaign — in Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals, Draymond Green owes his teammates a performance for the ages in Game 6.

Coming off a monumental road victory in Game 4, the Dubs had all the momentum. They had a 3-1 series lead, they had LeBron James‘ number once again and they had a chance to close out the series in their own building, where they boasted a 50-3 record.

We all know what happened from there: Green’s crotch shot on LeBron was upgraded to a Flagrant 1, earning him enough flagrant foul points for a Game 5 suspension.

Everyone from Klay Thompson to Marreese Speights to Ayesha Curry started talking trash, LeBron internalized all of it like a cyborg receiving his search-and-destroy coordinates, and he and Kyrie Irving came out in Terminator mode with a combined 82 points to stave off elimination in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Game 5 victory.

Now the series heads back to Ohio after Stephen Curry and a motivated Warriors team completely fell apart in the second half, failing to clinch another championship in front of their home fans. Here’s a look at five takeaways from Game 5 heading into a pivotal Game 6 that could change the narrative of this series.

Next: No. 5