Warriors-Grizzlies Summer League Finals Preview, Top Players, Prediction

The Golden State Warriors are riding high after beating the Lakers in the summer league semifinals on Saturday.

Now, they get the final boss.

Since losing their second game, the Grizzlies (4-1) have won by 21 against the Warriors, 32 against the Hawks and 11 against the Rockets.

Their 106-85 win over Golden State was particularly impressive. They made 17 threes and 16 turnovers.

The Warriors (4-1) are the underdogs. Can they upset the Grizzlies to win their first Las Vegas Summer League championship since 2013?

Top Players

Cameron Boozer

The No. 3 overall pick had 12 points and seven rebounds in Memphis' victory over Golden State. Notably, he was matched up with Yaxel Lendeborg at times, which will probably be a common sight for years to come.

Lendeborg didn't shy away from the fact that this could be a rivalry.

"Yeah, absolutely. I’m always gonna circle that matchup," Lendeborg said. "... I’m excited to see him again, and hopefully we can get on the winning side."

In the semis, Boozer had 12 points (3-of-13 shooting) and 12 rebounds. Boozer hasn't totally dominated in summer league, yet the Grizzlies are in the title game anyway due to a strong supporting cast that includes a few people mentioned below.

Yaxel Lendeborg

Lendeborg bounced back from a three-point performance (1-of-9 shooting) to post 15 points, four rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal against the Lakers.

He's admitted he's not in game shape, but he still had an impactful game in the semis.

Whether he has enough energy left to play well in the final is a big question mark.

But motivation should not be an issue. He gets another shot at Boozer just a few days after saying he's gonna circle the matchup.

Cedric Coward/Javon Small

Perhaps what's most scary about the Grizzlies is Coward was just 2-of-7 from the field in the first matchup against the Warriors, and yet Memphis still scored 106 points.

Javon Small had 26 points (5-of-8 from three) in that game, and Brendan Hausen came off the bench with six threes.

In the semis, Coward had 28 points and Small added 17.

Jahmai Mashack and Olivier-Maxence Prosper each added 15, and Taylor Hendricks chipped in with eight.

All of those players have gotten real NBA minutes before. In a summer-league roster sense, the Grizzlies are loaded.

LJ Cryer/Graham Ike

In the semis, Cryer and Ike tied for the team high with 16 points.

How they perform will have a big impact on the final.

Cryer went just 3-of-11 shooting in the first game against Memphis. Ike had just six points and was a minus-28.

The Grizzlies have more NBA length and athleticism than any summer-league team, so it will be a huge challenge for Cryer and Ike to repeat their semifinal performances.

Prediction

The Grizzlies have won their last three games by a combined 64 points, with one of those coming against the Warriors.

They are the team to beat.

The way the Warriors pull off the upset is by staying about even in the possession game and using their supposed advantage from the three-point line to edge the Grizz.

Golden State is shooting 38.2 percent on threes, while Memphis is shooting 33.8 percent.

But the Grizzlies showed in the first matchup that they can make threes (17-of-32). If they shoot anything like that, they'll win the championship.

Grizzlies by 7

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