The Curry injury likely puts a spotlight on the Warriors' heralded strength

Curry injury likely puts spotlight on Warriors' heralded strength originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors approached the third game of the 2024-25 NBA season knowing the competition would be much more demanding than the first two. They didn't know if they would make it.
They didn't, and it's getting worse.

Not only did the Warriors lose the game 112-104 to the Los Angeles Clippers, but they also watched Stephen Curry limp off the floor after twisting his left ankle with 2:43 left in the third quarter.

After a quick trip to the locker room with the team's medical specialist, Dr. Rick Celebrini, Curry returned in the fourth quarter but left the game for just over 13 seconds later.

“He’s doing well,” coach Steve Kerr said. “He used the word 'mild' or 'moderate.' He's obviously sprained that ankle many times. He doesn’t think it’s that bad, but it’s a cause for concern.”

No matter what Golden State's roster looks like, any injury to Curry is a nightmare scenario. The majority of the team's offense is designed to maximize his unique abilities as a shooter, passer and constant movement man. For years everything has been about Steph.

With Curry likely to miss some time, the Warriors will be tested here in the worst possible conditions. Kerr has to consider contingencies. The first question is who would replace Curry in the starting lineup?

Andrew Wiggins, who finished with 29 points, 11 of which came in a stirring fourth-quarter comeback attempt, is the first to shoulder a larger scoring load.

“I don’t know,” Kerr said. “Wiggs got off to a great start and had a great evening tonight. He is a clear candidate to get the ball more often.”

The Warriors trailed by as many as 13 points with 7:35 left, but got within one point with 3:47 left. However, it was not enough to overcome previous self-destructive tendencies. They committed 21 turnovers, many of them unforced, from which LA scored 21 points.

“They were great defensively,” Kerr said of the Clippers. “Forced a lot of turnovers. Really annoyed us and we didn't handle the pressure very well. We shot way too many times.”

“We have to understand that most games are like that. They will come down to a handful of possessions. And if you give away 10 possessions, it's going to be really hard to win. And I thought we gave up 10 possessions.”

The Clippers also highlighted the Warriors' lack of interior size as 7-foot-1, 220-pound Ivica Zubac came through, scoring 23 points, grabbing 18 rebounds and providing most of the power behind a 58-38 lead in the Team provided points.

Zubac is one of the few interior defenders in the NBA, and the Warriors aren't built to handle that kind of crowd. This is something they will have to keep an eye on as the season progresses.

“Every time they needed a bucket, they seemed to get one from him,” Kerr said. “There are ways to combat this. You can double team, you can try to deny him the ball in the post. But a lot of the things he got were loose balls that he played out [James] hardening and [Norman] Powell and just finished.”

It was also clear that Clippers coach Tyronn Lue was emphasizing Golden State University sixth man Buddy Hield, whose bright start in the first two games was the biggest source of offense. Facing a variety of defenses, Hield scored eight points on 3 of 14 shooting, including 1 of 9 from long range.

If Curry misses significant time, the Warriors will need to get Hield back to his previous form. They will need Wiggins to continue his strong play. They need Jonathan Kuminga, who averaged 8.0 points in the first three games, to resume his production.

“We have a strong team,” said Kerr. “We talked about it. We have a lot of guys who can play, so we’ll be ready.”

In the meantime, they're hoping they won't have to wait long, if at all, for Curry's return.

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