Warriors guard Stephen Curry is likely to be out for most if not all of Golden State’s remaining regular-season games, if you’re parsing the multiple reports of his injury Thursday. Curry hurt his foot during a loss to the Celtics on Wednesday when Marcus Smart dived for a loose ball and collided into Curry’s lower body. Though it appears Curry should be back in time for the playoffs, his injury could have an impact on how the postseason shakes out. Here are a couple of thoughts on the fallout of the Curry situation.
Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green have played only 11 minutes of NBA basketball together since the 2019 Finals, a deeply sobering statistic. Those 11 minutes came in three games—one of which Green only appeared in ceremoniously, the other was Wednesday when Curry sustained his injury. Golden State obviously doesn’t have to worry about the chemistry of that trio, though Steve Kerr is now going to be forced to figure out his playoff rotation on the fly. Kerr was finding success with the Steph, Klay and Jordan Poole group, but it’s still a little unclear what this team’s best closing lineup will be when everyone is healthy. At this stage in the season, the most dangerous contenders know exactly who they want to go to, down the stretch of a playoff game. The Warriors obviously have a deep institutional knowledge of how their best players coexist, but Kerr is going to be in a tricky position figuring out who works best together in the playoffs, especially when Golden State’s first-round opponent could be a high-powered group. Not having a firm grip on your rotation until the postseason is not typically how championships are won.
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