Pivotal Game 5s on tap for Bucks-Celtics, Warriors-Grizz

Memphis’ chances of staving off elimination are even tougher now.

The Warriors put the Grizzlies on the brink of elimination after they rallied late in Game 4 on May 9 to grab a 3-1 series lead as Memphis star Ja Morant sat out with a sore right knee.

Morant is doubtful for the remainder of the postseason after an MRI and further evaluation revealed a bone bruise on his injured knee, the team announced Tuesday night. The NBA’s most improved player and All-Star guard had been averaging 38.3 points a game.

The Golden State Warriors now head to Memphis needing one victory to advance to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2019 — when they lost in the NBA Finals before missing the last two postseasons.

That’s been a long wait for a franchise that won three championships in the last decade.

“Wednesday is going to be the hardest one yet,” Warriors guard Klay Thompson said. “It always is, the closeout. We have to put this behind us and put together a good game plan.”

Even without Morant, Memphis still led for all but 45.7 seconds of Game 4 before Golden State rallied for a 101-98 victory. It was the first time Memphis had been held under 100 points this postseason.

“We’re back home,” Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. said. “We’ve got our fans. It’s going to be loud, so we’re

excited to get back home and go play again, man. We have another chance to play. They’re a good team. We obviously know how the game went. Yeah, we get another chance at it.”

And that it is pushing this series back to San Francisco for Game 6 on Friday.

In the Bucks-Celtics series, Boston’s Al Horford has tapped into a level of his game during the playoffs that many thought he’d lost at age 35.

It reached a new height in Game 4 during the Celtics’ 116-108 win over the Bucks on Monday night. The fivetime All-Star scored 16 of his playoff career-high 30 points in the fourth quarter to help Boston tie the Eastern Conference semifinal series with the defending

NBA champions at two games apiece.

Equally important, the Celtics have reclaimed home-court advantage as the series shifts back to Boston for Game 5 on Wednesday.

After spending a challenging season in Oklahoma City last year, Horford was packaged in the Thunder’s trade for Kemba Walker.

Horford said he feels like he’s experiencing the fruits of an offseason in which he focused on being ready to play meaningful games again. He has gone from averaging 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds during the regular season to 15.9 points and 9.4 rebounds in the playoffs.

“That’s from sitting at home,” Horford said.

“That’s from watching the playoffs, not knowing what my future was holding and really just hoping to have an opportunity to be in this type of environment.”

The resurgence has coincided with Boston needing someone to step up after big man Robert Williams III was sidelined for the second time this postseason, sitting out Game 4 with soreness in his surgically repaired left knee. He is questionable for Game 5.

After missing an opportunity to take a 3-1 series lead, Bucks guard Wesley Matthews said there’s no time to sulk.

“If it was easy to get to the semis, every team would get to the semis. It’s hard. It’s hard as hell,” he said.

TONY AVELAR —THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Grizzlies guard Ja Morant watches from the bench during the first half against the Warriors in Game 4of their Western Conference playoff series. Morant was injured, did not play and might not play the rest of the series.