Curry questionable for opener of series
Warriors guard Stephen Curry has been upgraded to questionable for Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals Saturday against the Pelicans.
“I think what we have to do is see how his body responds the rest of the day, and put him through another practice tomorrow,” head coach Steve Kerr said Thursday. “I think he needs to string together a few good days, but yeah, it was very positive today.”
Curry, who is expected to have his Grade 2 sprained left MCL re-evaluated Friday, participated in his first contact practice Thursday since sustaining the injury March 23 in a win over Atlanta. Kerr said that Curry looked “good” going through a controlled scrimmage. After the workout, Curry went through his full postpractice shooting routine, at one point hitting 14 straight three-pointers.
It was a feel-good development, given that Kerr told
reporters just four days ago that “Steph’s not going to play anytime soon.” Before Game 1 against New Orleans, Curry will participate in practice Friday and shootaround Saturday morning.
Given that Curry has played only 25 total minutes since March 8, the team might want him to participate in another practice or two before returning to the court. Though the league has yet to announce the full first-round schedule, Golden State expects to play Game 2 in Oakland on Monday, Game 3 in New Orleans on Friday and Game 4 in New Orleans on Sunday.
That lengthy hiatus between Games 2 and 3 could give Curry the extra time he needs to get into game shape and go
through more contact practices.
“I think it’s been coming along pretty well,” Kerr said of Curry’s rehab. “When we were in San Antonio and I was asked the question about how he was doing, I think that was a legitimate answer. He was doing great, but we hadn’t ramped him up yet.
“I think today was an important day because it was the first time he’s actually gone live action. It was the first time he was allowed to go through a full practice, and he was fine.”
Curry is expected to meet with reporters after practice Friday. In his absence, the Warriors won their first-round series against San Antonio in five games. Simulating Pelicans: The Warriors began preparations Thursday for New Orleans, and two members of Golden State’s organization — a coach and a player — filled roles as two of the Pelicans’ most notable players.
Player-development coach Willie Green “was really a nice Jrue Holiday, and Damian Jones was a nice Anthony Davis,” Kerr said. “We decided we couldn’t have (assistant coach) Jarron Collins as Anthony Davis. He’s normally our big guy, but it was just such a disparity in talent that we couldn’t have Jarron as AD.”