NEW ORLEANS — The pelvic contusion that knocked Steph Curry out for the prior two games before he returned to life the Warriors over New Orleans didn’t bother him, but he did feel it all game.
“I’ll feel it for a while, but I can play — I can’t make it worse,” Curry said.
He doesn’t know how long it’ll take for the discomfort to completely subside. When asked if it perks up more on lateral movement, or with explosive actions, the two-time MVP said, “pretty much everything.”
Still, Curry isn’t concerned about the lingering injury’s effects.
“It’s not at a level where I’m out there worried about it,” Curry said after the Warriors’ 111-95 win. “As long as I don’t fall, I’ll be fine.”
Even if the pain isn’t relieved, that’s a relief for the Warriors (42-31), who have to regain their swagger — and shooting stroke — with nine games left as they fight to avoid the play-in round.
This latest injury piles onto a string of nagging ailments Curry has dealt with this season. He has tweaked his ankle twice, toughed through bilateral knee tendinitis and played through a sprained thumb.
He suffered the injury falling hard on his back-side on a drive late last week against the Toronto Raptors. It reminded me of when he fell into the stairs in Houston in 2021, but that was worse; he had a hairline fracture then, while this is just a “deep, serious contusion.”
Curry led the Warriors with 23 points and turned in a 5-for-16 shooting split from 3 that looks pristine by comparison. The Warriors missed 17 of their first 20 3-point tries and as a whole shot 23.6% from deep.
“We’ve got to make shots,” Draymond Green said. “We haven’t as of late. But I’d rather that happen now than in a few weeks.”
Although Curry, Green and Steve Kerr concurred that the Warriors generated clean looks, it was the second straight Golden State shot under 25% from behind the arc.
“I think we’re getting great looks,” Green said. “We missed (22) 3s in the first half — I think 19 of them were great looks. Just missed them. So I liked the shots we created. I think the ball can hop a little more. It’s sticking a little bit at times.”
Friday was only Curry’s second game played in the past 10 days. He sat against Milwaukee because of what Kerr described as mental and physical fatigue. He said he felt physically good before the pelvic contusion.
Having about a week of rest and recovery had its benefits, especially ahead of what could be a deep playoff run, but it also forced Curry to regain his timing and endurance to play 34 minutes.
Related Articles
Warriors outlast depleted Pelicans in Curry’s return from injury
Steph Curry returns to Warriors lineup vs. Pelicans
Dawn of the Warriors’ dynasty: The birth of the Death Lineup
Can Florida guard Clayton channel Steph Curry’s championship form?
Warriors’ Gary Payton II out indefinitely with left thumb injury
Against the Pelicans without almost all of their regular rotation players, the Warriors committed eight first half turnovers but only two the rest of the way.
Jonathan Kuminga — who banged knees late with center Yves Missi — logged 16 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a steal in 23 minutes off the bench. But he was the only Warrior who was a negative in the plus-minus category. The team is still working to integrate him back into the fold in the Jimmy Butler era.
Moses Moody, who was key in the Warriors’ excellent stretch after the Butler trade, is now six for his last 32 (19%) from deep, perhaps a victim of clunkier spacing of late.
Like Curry, the Warriors are working on rediscovering their stride.
“Second half was much better with the ball movement and flow,” Kerr said. “Defense was good. All in all, positive outcome, positive effort on a night where we’re clearly trying to get our rhythm back as a group. I think tonight will lead to that. I think we’ll be much better in San Antonio.”
