Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry took the first major step in his bid to return in the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves after sustaining a Grade 1 left hamstring strain in Game 1.
According to Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Curry “went through a pretty strenuous workout” 90 minutes before the Warriors took a 102-97 loss in Game 3 on Saturday at Chase Center.
The loss was a major blow for the Warriors, who failed to hold on to a six-point lead early in the fourth quarter, in their effort to stay afloat while awaiting Curry’s return.
With the Warriors staring at a 2-1 series deficit, the clock is ticking away for Curry.
Slater reported that Curry “didn’t push it to full speed, according to a team source.”
He’s yet to burst or cut or test that left hamstring in a manner that’ll deliver him and Rick Celebrini — the team’s lead medical decision maker — the true information they’ll need on whether the hamstring is healed enough to return deeper in this series. But he went through a medium-speed shooting routine and rode the stationary bike. This was a notable advancement for Curry in his race against time.
Curry looked helpless on the Warriors’ bench late in Game 3 as their lead disappeared with Draymond Green fouling out inside the final 4:56 of the close contest.
Steph Curry Aims for Game 6 Return
Getty Stephen Curry could return for Game 6 at the earliest, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported.
Curry will not be back until at least Game 6, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported.
“He’s really been limited to just doing treatment, and he’s gonna be re-evaluated on Wednesday, which means he’s definitely out Games 3 and 4, so he’s going to miss at least three games,” Charania said on the “Pat McAfee Show” on Friday. “My understanding is he’s probably not going to return at any point until Game 6 at the earliest.”
Game 5 is on May 14, while Game 6, if necessary, is on May 18.
“And there’s actually a four-day gap between Game 5 and 6,” Charania said. “It’s a weird scheduling, but no, the NBA didn’t do this because Steph Curry got hurt. The NBA had already made this schedule, some alignment with the WNBA team there in the Bay, but because of that, they’re able to have that period of time. So maybe you get Stephen Curry back there.”
But the Warriors have to, at least, split the next two games to give Curry a shot at returning in the series.
Steve Kerr Still Optimistic After Game 3 Loss
Despite the Game 3 loss, Golden State coach Kerr was encouraged by the effort he saw from his Curry-less Warriors.
“We’re right there,” Kerr told reporters after their narrow Game 3 loss. “We feel great about our chances. This is what the playoffs are all about. There’s these emotional swings and momentum shifts, and we just got to take tomorrow off and get the guys refreshed, recharged, and come back in Monday and tee it up again.”
It was much closer than their 117-93 loss in Game 2, their first game in the series without Curry.
“I felt really good about the way the game went tonight, we just couldn’t close it out,” Kerr said. “But we controlled much of that game. [We were] up six or whatever it was with eight minutes to go, and I liked where we were. We just couldn’t finish.
“So the formula looks good. We’ll have some adjustments to make, but I like the matchup. I like what we’re doing.”
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