DENVER — Steph Curry was riding the bus to Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles when a text message from coach Steve Kerr popped up.
"Hey, I think we should go back to your old rotation," Kerr texted last weekend.
"Yes, sir," Curry texted back.
Curry knew the switch back would come eventually. With Klay Thompson back in the mix and Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala nearing returns, getting the old gang back together means the Warriors can return to a familiar cadence.
"It was just a matter of when. Hopefully it will give us a good scope of games for everyone to be comfortable with it," Curry said recently. "It helps me get into the rhythm and get into the tune of the game and helps the second unit know that they will have a certain stretch of time, know certain calls and sets and hopefully get some chemistry with that group. So we'll see."
Since that loss against the Lakers on Saturday, Curry has been playing a variation of the rotation pattern he used primarily through the team's championship years, taking one break per half.
This year, he'd been taking two rests per half in order to have him play the beginning and end of each quarter.
In years prior, Curry played the entire first and third quarters while splitting time in the second and fourth quarters. That won't be the case this year. Expect Kerr to bridge those two rest periods between quarters, essentially playing nine minutes per quarter, exiting with three minutes remaining in the first and third quarters.
"It's going to be basically one rest (per half) instead of two," Kerr said on Sunday. "We'll probably bridge the first and second, third and fourth. It kind of depends on how he's going in the first and third quarters. Now that we have Klay back, and now that we are in a situation where we're heading for the stretch run, it feels important to get Steph into that rotation pattern."
This pattern allows Kerr to bring Curry back quicker into tight games without concerns about him getting enough rest. When Curry played in a 12-6-12-6 rotation pattern, Kerr felt obligated to ensure Curry got a full 5-to-6 minutes during the second and fourth quarters on the bench before re-entering the game.
Now, the bridged rest periods gives Curry an extra bit of rest during the natural stoppage between quarters while also allowing him extended periods to go on scoring runs.
And the Warriors desperately need Curry on the court as much as possible. Golden State is plus-10.4 points per 100 possessions better than their opponent when Curry is on the court and -2.1 points worse when he's off, per NBA stats.
The old rotation pattern has worked in the two games since the switch.
Despite their loss in Los Angeles, Curry scored 30 points with four 3-pointers and Jordan Poole led a recharged bench unit with 23 points on four 3-pointers. Jonathan Kuminga chipped in 18 points of the bench with three from 3-point land. Against the Clippers, Curry only finished with 15 points but the bench thrived again. Poole scored 20 and Kuminga 21.
Curry sounded the alarm after the Warriors' loss to the struggling Lakers, saying he was determined not to let the team "give in to this losing spirit." The schematic shift signals a sense of urgency for Golden State after losing five straight and 9-of-their-last-11 games prior to a win against the Clippers on Tuesday.
The skid dipped them into the Western Conference's third seed with 16 games to play until playoffs begin. Now the Warriors will duke it out with the Grizzlies, Jazz, Mavericks and Nuggets for a higher seed.
Curry and the Warriors will give the new/old rotation another shot against the Nuggets on Thursday night in Denver.
