Stephen Curry and the Warriors could take a sigh of relief Thursday after an MRI scan showed that his shoulder injury was not nearly as bad as it could’ve been.
Curry partially dislocated his left (non-dominant) shoulder in Wednesday’s loss to the Indiana Pacers. It’s unclear how long he’ll be sidelined but he was relieved to learn he wouldn’t need surgery to repair the damage to his shoulder.
“That changed the whole dynamic of the conversation personally and as a team,” Curry told reporters after shootaround Friday. “Just trying to stay positive and understand I’ll be back sooner than later, hopefully, and hopefully I won’t miss a beat in terms of how I’ll feel the rest of my body, my game and how I’ve been playing.”
Reports have suggested Curry could miss anywhere from two weeks to a month-plus. Curry isn’t trying to predict how long he could be out. He said he’s trusting the process, a cliched but fitting approach for the journey that lies ahead.
This is the first time Curry is rehabbing a shoulder injury, so this is all uncharted territory for the Warriors star. He will first have to take time off and let his shoulder settle. Once he’s pain-free, he’ll start working to increase his mobility, regain his range of motion and strengthen his shoulder before he can return to basketball activities.
“The back end should be a lot quicker than the front end from what I’ve been told,” Curry said.
Curry left for the locker room toward the end of the third quarter of the Warriors’ 125-119 defeat to the Indianapolis Pacers after he tweaked his shoulder trying to strip the ball from a driving Jalen Smith. Curry was seen grabbing his shoulder and wincing in pain, prompting coach Steve Kerr to call a timeout. The Warriors guard headed to the locker room and did not return to the game.
Curry underwent an MRI the next day in Philadelphia, where the Warriors play Friday. The scan revealed the left shoulder subluxation.
The Warriors have been reliant on Curry through the first two months of the season. He’s averaging team highs in points (30) and assists per game (6.8). He’s also snatching a career-high 6.6 rebounds this season.
This season, the Warriors have lost all three games Curry has missed. They’re 67-133 all-time without Curry since he was drafted in 2009.
Injury report
Draymond Green will join Curry and Andrew Wiggins as being inactive for the Warriors’ game in Philadelphia.
After initially being listed as questionable, Green was downgraded to out Friday afternoon with a bruise on his right quadriceps. It’ll be the fourth game he’ll miss this season.
Klay Thompson popped up on the team’s injury report Friday, being listed as questionable with soreness in his surgically repaired left knee.
Thompson didn’t play in Wednesday’s game, which was the latter half of a back-to-back. He hasn’t played in two consecutive nights since his return last season from consecutive ACL and Achilles tendon tears that kept him out for 2 1/2 years.
Thompson didn’t have any issues after playing in a simulated game Dec. 3, the second night of a back-to-back. It’s unclear whether he went through a similar court workout Wednesday, also a latter part of a back-to-back.
