“Must-Win for the Warriors”: Charles Barkley Explains Why It’s Important for Steph Curry and Co. to Handle Business vs Memphis

The 2025 NBA Play-In tournament is officially underway. The tourney begins with the Atlanta Hawks battling the Orlando Magic, then the headliner of the evening: the Golden State Warriors playing the Memphis Grizzlies. The winner of each game will help determine the No. 7 seeds for the Eastern and Western Conferences. However, the loser will still have another chance at the 8-seed by playing the winner of the 9th and 10th-seeded games tomorrow.

The matchup that everyone has their eyes on in the West is the Grizzlies and the Warriors. The Dubs finished the season incredibly strong since the arrival of Jimmy Butler in February, yet the squad still finds themselves in the Play-In fighting for a bottom seed. The situation is less of an indictment of the Warriors and more of an endorsement of how tough the West has been this season.

Charles Barkley is looking forward to the game. The NBA legend broke it down with the rest of the NBA on TNT crew ahead of the Magic vs. Hawks. Chuck didn’t sugarcoat the matchup though. He claimed that the game is a must-win for the Warriors, otherwise, he fears they will be headed home early from the postseason.

“This is a must-win for the Warriors tonight,” stated Barkley. “With the age they got on that team if they lose tonight and have to play again Friday and only have a day or a day in a half before they have to play one of those elite teams, they are going home quickly.”

Funnily enough, the NBA on TNT broadcast showed a tweet aimed at Barkley about how “it’s the playoffs, and all games are must-win.” Chuck didn’t take too kindly to that. “You can lose tonight and still keep going, dummy. Just sit at home and watch TV and shut the hell up,” he fired back.

The Warriors don’t have a good track record in the Play-In

Chuck’s statement is valid, though. The Warriors are 0-3 in Play-In games since the tournament was added in 2021. That year, they lost to the Lakers and Memphis in back-to-back games, then dropped a game to the Kings last year.

The Grizzlies just faced the Warriors too, which was the infamous Ja Morant “rifle celebration” game. The Golden State Warriors certainly don’t want any part of playing an additional game. Regardless, they will end up either facing the Thunder or the Rockets if they advance.

Will those losses to the Spurs and the Clippers come back to haunt the Warriors? Or will they finally put their play-in woes behind them and progress to the 7th seed? Only time will tell.