Watch: Steph Curry gets ejected from Warriors vs Grizzlies game after throwing away his mouthpiece in frustration
Golden State Warriors superstar point guard Steph Curry was ejected for just the third time in his career on Wednesday night versus Memphis. Curry’s ejection came late in a tightly contested game with the Warriors leading 116-114 with 1:14 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Curry had grown frustrated with teammate Jordan Poole for his poor shot selection with the game on the line and threw his mouthpiece in frustration. This prompted officials to immediately kick the star guard out of the game.
Steph was just ejected from the game after throwing his mouth piece ... https://t.co/b1rl7cEMXq
Curry was visibly confused and frustrated by the call considering what was at stake at that point in the game. The referee may have just been following the letter of the law. However, most fans would agree that refs should do their best to avoid any game-altering calls late in close games.
The fact that the game was a highly anticipated national TV matchup between two teams with a budding rivalry only made Curry’s ejection more confounding.
Despite his ejection, Curry still finished with a game-high 34 points, two rebounds, three assists, two steals and four made 3-pointers on 52.6% shooting. Meanwhile, Memphis was led by All-Star point guard Ja Morant with 29 points, four rebounds, 12 assists and two steals on 50.0% shooting.
How did the Warriors fare without Steph Curry?
Luckily for Warriors fans, Steph Curry’s ejection didn’t end up costing Golden State the game. The team held on for a 122-120 victory after Jordan Poole redeemed himself with a clutch game-winning layup with 1.0 second remaining. This came after Grizzlies big man Brandon Clarke had just tied the game on a dunk with 6.3 seconds remaining.
JORDAN POOLE CALLED GAME
WARRIORS WIN.
#NBARivalsWeek https://t.co/K3DcglqJHr
Poole finished the game with 21 points, five rebounds and seven assists on 57.1% shooting. He then met up with Curry in the tunnel and jokingly threw his own mouth piece before the two embraced.
JP threw his mouthpiece when he saw Steph 🤣 https://t.co/ZSInkuY0P7
Following the win, the Warriors move back to .500 at 24-24 and 8th in the Western Conference. Meanwhile, Memphis has now lost four straight games to fall to 31-17 and second in the West.
Also read: Golden State Warriors Rumors: NBA exec thinks Malik Beasley could bolster Warriors' bench