Stephen Curry has not played since Jan. 30, when the Golden State Warriors lost to the Detroit Pistons 131-124. Not only was Steph dealing with knee issues midway through the season, but he was not looking good after an awkward layup attempt in the third quarter of this game. Curry left the game not feeling like himself and was later ruled out due to right knee pain.
Since this moment, the Warriors have gone 2-3 without their leader and were expected to be ready to go after his lengthy absence at the All-Star break. However, head coach Steve Kerr revealed on Wednesday evening that Steph will not play against the Boston Celtics on Thursday after the break, and it is possible that he may receive a second MRI to determine the exact nature of his knee pain.
"Steph didn't practice today," Kerr told reporters in San Francisco, via ClutchPoints' Kenzo Fukuda. "He will be re-evaluated by our training staff tonight, but he was not where he needed to be for testing. It's unfortunate, but we will have an update tomorrow after he spends his time with the training staff."
Curry has been trying to get back on the field for the Warriors behind the scenes and during the All-Star break, yet the pain in his knee is still there, and he doesn't feel he is ready to go through a full workout.
Warriors continue to downplay Stephen Curry's knee injury
Over the past three weeks, Curry has been suffering from right patellofemoral pain syndrome, also known as runner's knee, on the Warriors' injury report, which typically takes several days of rest and time off to heal. Initially, the team was labeling Curry day-to-day due to his knee injury.
Friday will mark exactly three weeks since the injury.
Despite Kerr's concerning announcement on Wednesday and Curry not attending Thursday's game against the Celtics, the Warriors have continued to downplay Steph's knee illness. Team sources told ClutchPoints that the organization does not see it as a major concern in the final stages of the regular season, and described the situation as being handled with utmost caution by the franchise.
Since the Warriors are already without Jimmy Butler for the remainder of the year and not where they were expected to be in the standings as a result, there is no margin for error. That's why Golden State is taking an abundance of caution with Curry and will continue to wait for him to be 100 percent before returning to the court.
Still, the health of Curry's knee for the remainder of the season is not a concern for the Warriors at this time, with sources saying he would play if the playoffs started today.
As the Warriors prepare for the end of the regular season, they find themselves 29-26 overall, three full games behind the Phoenix Suns for the 7-seed in the West standings. Although the Dubs are battling injury problems and hovering around .500 on the year, the organization is still optimistic about their chances of competing for a 6-seed or better in the Western Conference.
With six games remaining against those currently ranked in the top four of the West standings, there are plenty of opportunities for Golden State to prove themselves as competitive threats this season. Butler may be out for the year with his ACL injury, but the Warriors will get their first look at Kristaps Porzingis when he makes his debut against Boston on Thursday.
As for Curry, his knee will continue to receive treatment and he hopes to return soon. At this time, there is no clear timetable for when he will actually return, simply because it is a pain-tolerant injury based on the overall strength of his knee.
The Warriors understand that their playoff hopes are completely dependent on Curry's overall health, which is why he will not be rushed back into action.
In 39 games this season, Curry is averaging 27.2 points and 4.8 assists while shooting 46.8 percent from the floor and 39.1 percent from 3-point range. He once again leads the league in both 3-pointers attempted (4.5) and 3-pointers attempted (11.5) per game.
Thursday night will be Curry's 17th absence of the season, meaning he will officially be ineligible for season-ending honors and awards if he misses another game.
