Player grades: Warriors vs. Timberwolves Game 5

Assessing every Golden State player’s performance in the team’s 121-110 loss to Minnesota.

The Golden State Warriors lost on Wednesday night, falling 121-110 to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals. It ended the Warriors season, as they lost the series 4-1, and head into the offseason wondering what might have been had Steph Curry stayed healthy.

Since this is the last game of the season, it’s the last time you have to read my grades for at least five months. Rejoice! And I’ll try to make these ones quick … no use crying over grading spilled milk. So for one final time, here we go.

As always, grades are based on my expectations for each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.

Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. League-average TS this year was 57.6%.

Jimmy Butler III

42 minutes, 17 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 4-for-11 shooting, 0-for-3 threes, 9-for-11 free throws, 53.7% TS, -17

After the game, Steve Kerr confirmed what we all could see with our eyes: Butler was still reeling from the injury he suffered in the first round. Butler refused to say as much, but even his denial served as confirmation.

We’ll always wonder what would have happened had the Warriors not been dealt a severe injury to their best player, and a serious injury to their second-best player. Maybe we’ll find out next year.

Anyway, Butler gets a better grade than he would have under normal circumstances, simply for gutting it out when the team needed him most.

Grade: B-
Post-game bonus: Tied for the team lead in rebounds and assists, worst plus/minus on the team.

Draymond Green

36 minutes, 10 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 4 fouls, 4-for-11 shooting, 1-for-6 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 42.1% TS, -9

Dray was fine. Nothing more, nothing less. He made some plays, did some awesome things on defense, and had some slip-ups. Personally, I can’t wait to see him come out with a vengeance next year.

Grade: B
Post-game bonus: Tied for the team lead in rebounds and assists.

Trayce Jackson-Davis

7 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1-for-1 shooting, 100.0% TS, -6

TJD spent the end of the playoffs reminding everyone that he can still be a critical part of the Warriors going forward. He played good minutes in this one, even though it wasn’t the best matchup for him.

Grade: B+

Buddy Hield

30 minutes, 8 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 4 turnovers, 5 fouls, 2-for-9 shooting, 0-for-4 threes, 4-for-4 free throws, 37.2% TS, -13

Hield proved this postseason that he’s in indispensable part of the team’s core. But he ran out of steam down the stretch, and this was one of his worst games of the playoffs.

Grade: C-

Brandin Podziemski

39 minutes, 28 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, 11-for-19 shooting, 4-for-6 threes, 2-for-5 free throws, 66.0% TS, -2

Podz really struggled in this series … until Game 5. My goodness what a performance he had. Gutsy, clutch, you name it. Podziemski wasn’t going down without a fight. From opening tip until final whistle he gave it his all.

Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points, tied for the team lead in rebounds.

Jonathan Kuminga

32 minutes, 26 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 2 fouls, 11-for-23 shooting, 3-for-9 threes, 1-for-3 free throws, 53.5% TS, -12

Kuminga was a better scorer in this game than the stats suggest. His efficiency plummeted late in the game when he was taking quick, forced shots as the team’s desperation sunk in (he also had a full-court heave in the first half). He was an offensive weapon, even though he still needs to learn more about drawing contact. He was a defensive weapon, even though his rebounding wasn’t great.

It was an impossible situation he was put in this series, and he made the most of it.And made himself tens of millions more, in the process.

Grade: A-

Gary Payton II

6 minutes, 0 points, 1 steal, +2

This just wasn’t a series for Payton … at least not once Curry went out. Hopefully it’s not the last we’ve seen of him in a Warriors jersey.

Grade: C

Gui Santos

16 minutes, 2 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block, 1 foul, 1-for-4 shooting, 0-for-3 threes, 25.0% TS, -1

Santos made his way back into the rotation and did some good things. He had the energy and effort level that the team needed, though he just wasn’t quite good enough or polished enough to really contribute in this series.

Grade: B

Kevon Looney

6 minutes, 0 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, -11

All I’ll say is this: I hope this isn’t the last game that Looney plays as a Warrior.

Grade: B-

Quinten Post

10 minutes, 3 points, 3 rebounds, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 1-for-4 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 37.5% TS, +9

Post was part of the fourth quarter rotation that nearly got the Warriors back in the game. He did some great things during that stretch, though also looked a bit un-polished. It was a fitting end for a strong debut season.

Grade: B

Pat Spencer

6 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 1-for-2 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 50.0% TS, -5

Spencer was in the rotation in the first quarter. Can’t blame Steve Kerr for giving that a go, but uhh … yeah, didn’t go so well.

Grade: C-

Moses Moody

12 minutes, 12 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 3-for-6 shooting, 2-for-3 threes, 4-for-5 free throws, 73.2% TS, +10

Moody was out of the rotation until the fourth quarter began, and Kerr needed to try something, anything. Moody was that something, and he played so outrageously well, that it almost made us forget about how much he struggled in the first four games of the series.

Just a sensational performance by Moody, who played with both composure and desperation, and helped the Warriors make the fourth quarter interesting.

Grade: A+
Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.

Wednesday’s DNP-CDs: Braxton Key, Kevin Knox II

Wednesday’s inactives: Steph Curry