Preview: Warriors look to close out Rockets in Game 5 in Houston

Podziemski and Hield are the latest heroes to emerge from Golden State’s Splash Factory

Let’s talk about evolution and revolution, Dub Nation. As the Warriors roll into Houston with a chance to slam the playoff door shut on the Rockets’ season, we’re witnessing something that feels less like a changing of the guard and more like a spiritual succession.

Remember when Klay Thompson’s departure left a supernova-sized void beside Steph Curry? The basketball universe abhors a vacuum, and nature has found its way. Enter Brandin Podziemski and Buddy Hield, the unlikeliest heirs to the Splash Dynasty’s secondary thrones.

GAME DETAILS

WHO: Golden State Warriors at Houston Rockets

Warriors lead series 3-1

WHEN: Wednesday, April 30th, 2025: 4:30 pm

WATCH: TNT

Playoff Podz isn’t just happening; it’s becoming inevitable. The sophomore guard has transformed from early-season scapegoat to late-game assassin, dropping a franchise milestone 26-point playoff performance in Game 4 that made TNT’s Shaquille O’Neal pause mid-broadcast to make sure he pronounced “Podziemski” correctly. THAT’S how you know you’ve arrived.

The moment has very clearly wanted Podz. His shot selection – a delicious blend of calculated aggression and borderline recklessness – has shades of 2016 Klay Thompson. You know the shots: the ones where Chase Center collectively gasps “NO!” only to erupt in “YES!” approximately 0.7 seconds later when the ball rips through the net. If he keeps consistent, we’ll start to expect and then demand that play.

Meanwhile, Buddy Hield has undergone the basketball equivalent of a religious conversion under Kerr’s tutelage. Sometimes he can feel like the tunnel-visioned gunner who never met a shot he didn’t like; but we’re starting to see him as a dangerous flame-thrower who is capable of picking his spots with surgical precision. He’s morphed from liability to weapon, particularly when Houston overcommits to stopping Curry’s gravitational pull.

The Rockets face an existential dilemma tonight: continue focusing their defensive resources on Curry, who has masterfully accepted the role of decoy for stretches, or adjust to cover Golden State’s newfound perimeter threats. It’s basketball’s version of whack-a-mole, except every mole is carrying a flamethrower.

For Houston, their hopes rest squarely on Jalen Green rediscovering the supernova form he showed in Game 2. His disappearing act in Games 1, 3, and 4 (scoring in single digits in all of those contests!) has coincided exactly with the Warriors’ victories – a correlation that has officially achieved causation status.

But history and mathematics aren’t on Houston’s side. Teams facing a 3-1 deficit have low survival rate. As Jimmy Butler nurses a pelvic contusion back to health for round two, the Warriors’ supporting cast has discovered something vital – they aren’t just supporting anymore. They’re leading. In moments when Curry is being swarmed and taken out of a play, Podz and Hield are proving they can carry the offensive load without flinching.

These aren’t the Splash Brothers 3.0. That would be sacrilege. Call them the Splash Factory – manufacturing three-pointers with slightly different methods but eerily similar results.

Tonight, that factory looks to close up shop on the Rockets’ season and cement their place in Warriors playoff lore. Klay Thompson may be watching from home, but his spiritual successors are making sure his legacy lives on in the most fitting way possible – by raining fire from beyond the arc when it matters most. Splash on!