Curry may play against Bucks
MILWAUKEE — Warriors point guard Stephen Curry is listed as questionable with a sprained right ankle for Friday’s game against the Bucks.
Curry, who practiced fully with no problems Thursday evening at Marquette’s Al McGuire Center, will be evaluated Friday morning.
“It’s really up to the training staff,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “They’re going to tell me what makes sense.”
Curry rolled his ankle when he slipped toward the end of a shoot-around Wednesday morning. The Warriors decided to hold him out of that night’s game against the Clippers for precautionary reasons.
It is understandable that the Warriors are being cautious with Curry. Early in his career, some wondered whether Curry’s balky ankles would cut his short his stay in the NBA.
In May 2011, after spraining his right ankle several times in his second NBA season, Curry underwent surgery to repair torn ligaments. The following season, he suffered five ankle sprains and missed 56 games.
Uncertain how Curry would respond to his latest ankle surgery, the Warriors signed him on Oct. 31, 2012, to a four-year, $44 million contract extension. It came to be known as one of the biggest bargains in NBA history and freed up enough salary for the front office to put a dynastic roster around him.
Last month, after spraining his right ankle in New Orleans, Curry missed 11 games. In the five games he has played since his Dec. 30 return from that injury, he’s averaged 35.2 points.
Guard Klay Thompson, who rested for Wednesday’s loss, is expected to be back for Friday’s game. Swingman Andre Iguodala (left knee soreness) and guard Shaun Livingston (left knee contusion) are listed as probable.
All-Star voting: Curry is on track to become a team captain in the 2018 NBA All-Star Game, which would force him to make a tricky decision: Who does he select to join his squad?
Under the league’s new All-Star Game format, the player from each conference who receives the most fan votes will choose rosters for the Feb. 18 game from a pool of players voted as starters and reserves. With 1,369,658 votes, Curry was the Western Conference’s leading vote-getter in the second fan returns announced Thursday.
Warriors forward Kevin Durant, with 1,326,059 votes, was a close second. Curry and Durant are on pace to be named starters, with teammates Draymond Green and Thompson still within striking distance. Green (616,730) holds the third and final starting spot among West frontcourt players. Thompson (686,825) is fourth among West guards, two slots out of a starting spot.
For the second straight year, NBA players and basketball media will join fans in selecting the All-Star Game starters. Fans will comprise 50 percent of the vote, with players and a media panel accounting for 25 percent each.
TNT will announce the All-Star Game starters, including the two captains, on Jan. 18. The network will reveal the reserves, selected by NBA head coaches, on Jan. 23. Team rosters will be announced Jan. 25.