Stephen Curry, right, wanted to play but was overruled — “weighing the pluses and the minuses, very easy decision,” coach says.
Team stays cautious with star point guard, who wanted to play
HOUSTON — Stephen Curry wanted to play in Game 3 against the Houston Rockets but was overruled.
“Weighing the pluses and the minuses, very easy decision,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
Curry had participated in shootaround before meeting with orthopedic team physician Bill Mahoney and team trainers. Kerr said he and general manager Bob Myers were also in on the decision-making process to have the reigning MVP miss a second straight playoff game because of a right ankle injury.
“We kind of teamed up on him,” Kerr said. “He wanted to play, but he’s also very practical and he understands the thinking and he understands that better safe than sorry.
“Without having done anything for four days — no conditioning, no rhythm, no actual live contact — it would have been irresponsible I think to put him out there.”
Curry suffered the injury Sunday and hasn’t played or participated in a full practice since then. After cutting short his pregame routine before Game 2, he appeared to go through shootaround before Game 3 without incident.
“He felt pretty good, he moved well, he wanted to play,” Kerr said. “But ultimately we didn’t feel comfortable after four straight days of inactivity throwing him in the middle of a playoff game not knowing how the ankle would respond.
“His thought was that he would be OK. We just felt a lot more comfortable putting him through a 3-on-3 (Friday), probably a 5-on-5 Saturday and really seeing if he’s OK or not. It wasn’t worth the risk if we had put him out there tonight and he had reinjured it. That’s too big of a risk, so we’ll see what happens the next couple days, and hopefully he’ll be ready for Game 4 (on Sunday).”
Shaun Livingston, who made a second straight start in place of Curry, expressed a desire to return to the team next season and beyond.
“I want to stay here as long as I can,” Livingston said. “It’s a unique and special situation. A lot of guys including myself, I want to be here for as long as I possibly can depending on the contract situation.”
The Warriors signed Livingston to a three-year, $16 million contract, with a team option for the 2016-17 season that includes partially guaranteed money — a buyout in the unlikely scenario he isn’t retained.
Myers strongly indicated the team would pick up that option after Livingston as the backup to Curry averaged 6.3 points and 3 assists in a second straight season of playing 78 games.
“It’s a good deal for us, and we see him in our future,” Myers told 95.7 The Game on Wednesday.
Curry was named to the Time 100, the magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Ballet dancer Misty Copeland, a honoree last year who appeared on the cover, wrote about Curry.
“He is showing us all how through belief in yourself, hard work and dedication, it is possible to achieve your dreams, prove your doubters wrong and go from an underdog to a Warrior,” wrote Copeland, a Warriors fan who knows Curry through their endorsement deals with Under Armour.
Joe Lacob said in a statement he was “shocked and saddened” by the death of Prince, who last month attended a Warriors game sitting next to the team owner and performed at Oracle Arena.
“That night was a real honor for me and, looking back, he appeared to be doing well and was in great spirits,” Lacob said.