The Golden State Warriors will be shorthanded when they face the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena tonight, as Stephen Curry is among five Warriors ruled out for the important game.
Stephen Curry “Trending In Right Direction” When The Warriors Get Him Back, and When Will Kristaps Porzingis Make His Debut
Curry is having an outstanding season, though he will miss his third straight game with a right knee injury. On the positive side, Curry did tell ESPN’s Anthony Slater that his knee is “trending in the right direction.” He is dealing with Runner’s knee.
“It’s a matter of learning as I go what works rehab-wise,” Curry said. “Because it’s still painful. You have to try to get rid of all the inflammation and pain. It’s something we still have to monitor and injury-manage, but it’s something where, if I come back too early, it could flare up.”
While there is no set timetable for Curry to return, Slater expects him to miss more time. Curry has dealt with the issue for the past two weeks, including a flare-up during an individual workout. Curry missed the game against the Timberwolves on January 27. He played his typical minutes against Utah in the Warriors next game, but left their January 31 game against the Pistons (January 31) in the third quarter.
Here is the problem with runner’s knee: it can be extremely stubborn. It sounds like Curry has a moderate case, since he already missed a week. Therefore, he likely won’t return until after the All-Star break. After the game against the Lakers, the Warriors have two more home games: against Memphis (February 9) and San Antonio (February 11).
Golden State (28-24) sits in eighth place in the Western Conference, though the Warriors are just four games back of the Lakers, who lead the Pacific division. While the Warriors did defeat Phoenix 101-97 on Thursday, they are just 5-8 without their star guard.
More problematic is the Warriors’ issues on offense. The Warriors, who are getting outscored by over eight points without Curry, average 105.6 points and allow 113.8. Without Curry, the Warriors’ offense collapses in late-clock situations. They also don’t get as many paint touches, and have poor weakside spacing.
It will be interesting to see what lineupSteve Kerr goes with tonight. Kerr has used two different starting lineups in the past two contests. Draymond Green and Moses Moody will definitely be among the first five. Gui Santos has played well as a starter and has been in the starting lineup in each of the last three games in which Curry has sat.
Pat Spencer, who has also performed well as a starter, will likely replace Curry in the starting lineup, as he has in four of his five previous starts. That means that the final spot will likely go to either De’Anthony Melton or Brandin Podziemski. Melton scored 17 points in his first start of the season against Phoenix, while Podziemski, listed as probable due to illness, has started 19 times this season. However, the Warriors are just 6-13 in those games, and Podz has been more efficient as a reserve. So, expect Curry go with Melton.
Kristaps Porzingis won’t play against the Lakers
Despite rumors to the contrary, Kristaps Porzingis will not play against the Lakers. Porzingis has played only 17 games, with his last outing a month ago (Jan. 7), and is out tonight with left Achilles tendon injury management.
Presumably, Golden State will want to see how Porzingis fits before the All-Star break. So, expect the 7-foot-2 to make his Warriors debut against Memphis. However, the Warriors may decide to wait until Curry returns before debuting him.
Jimmy Butler is also out for the game, as isLJ Cryer (hamstring), and Seth Curry (back). Cryer has only played in three games this season and is out due to injury management. Seth Curry has not played since early December and has only two games overall. He has been in on-court workouts for a week and is expected to get re-evaluated during the All-Star break.