Kerr mulls rest vs. push for play-in position
The Golden State Warriors had their season extended Sunday before they even played the Utah Jazz, courtesy of the Houston Rockets, who bowed out of the NBA play-in chase with an afternoon loss to the Dallas Mavericks.
The Warriors clinched at least a berth in the Western Conference’s four-team play-in tournament after the 11th-place Rockets suffered their fifth consecutive loss, potentially informing Golden State how it might manage its final five games of the regular season.
“I think we’ll know more every single day,” head coach Steve Kerr said pregame when asked how he’d handle player minutes and the rotation the rest of the way. “We want to go out and win. … See where everything shakes out. We may get to a point here in the next week where it’s kind of decided where we are. At that point, we’ve got to think about all of our options.”
Which is why Friday night’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks was consequential.
Had the Warriors (43-35) won, they would have gained ground on the eighth-place Sacramento Kings (45-33) and the ninth-place Los Angeles Lakers (45-34). Having already lost the tiebreaker to Sacramento, Golden State plays the Lakers on Tuesday with that tiebreaker at stake.
The play-in tournament consists of three games for two playoff spots: No. 7 hosts No. 8, No. 9 hosts No. 10 and the loser of the first matchup hosts the winner of the second. (The winner of No. 7 vs. No. 8 automatically advances as a result).
Added Kerr: “That Dallas game, in my mind, shifted things a lot and put us in a much tougher spot in terms of trying to climb the ladder. Now it’s a matter of refocusing and figuring out the best path forward for our guys.”
The Warriors’ first order of business? Resting Stephen Curry on Sunday for the first time this season. He missed six games for minor knee and ankle injuries but hadn’t yet rested on a game day, playing 71 games.
Kerr said the Warriors considered sitting the 36year-old Friday following a Thursday victory over the Rockets, “but obviously that Dallas game was a really big game. And he was feeling great,” playing a team-high 35 minutes.
“He needed (the rest),” Kerr said. “It’ll serve him well for next week.”
Other veteran players on Golden State’s roster include Chris Paul (38), Draymond Green (34) and Klay Thompson (34).
Kuminga returns; Wiggins out again: Jonathan Kuminga returned to Golden State’s lineup Sunday after missing six consecutive games with bilateral knee tendinitis. The third-year forward, 21, entered the day averaging 16.3 points on 52.9% shooting.
Andrew Wiggins missed a second straight game with left ankle soreness sustained Thursday in Houston. Gary Payton II, listed as probable with left ankle impingement, played 16 minutes.