Why the Warriors are confident about reintegrating Curry amid playoff
pressure
Veteran teammates see Steph Curry working to return from injury in NBA
playoffs
>Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, front, celebrates after
guard Jordan Poole, back, hit a 3-point basket late in the second half
of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets on
Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
>Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, front, celebrates after
guard Jordan Poole, back, hit a 3-point basket late in the second half
of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets on
Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
By MADELINE KENNEY | mkenney@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: April 6, 2022 at 5:45 a.m. | UPDATED: April 6, 2022 at 9:55 a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/04/06/warriors-not-worrying-about-reintegrating-steph-curry-come-playoffs/

SAN FRANCISCO — Klay Thompson hasn’t noticed any significant changes to
Stephen Curry’s preparation for the postseason despite him being
sidelined with an injury for the rest of the regular season.

“He’s just doing what he’s always done, and it’s working as hard as he
can,” Thompson said Tuesday after practice. “The great thing about Steph
is you don’t have to worry about him getting the work in, he’s going to
do it. So we’ll welcome him with big arms when he comes back because
we’re obviously not the same team without.”

Curry sprained a ligament in his left foot in a home loss to the Boston
Celtics March 16. There was a hope that he would return for the
Warriors’ last few games, though it became clear last week that he would
need a little more time before he was game ready.

Curry hasn’t been fully reintegrated back into practice as of Tuesday,
coach Steve Kerr said. But he’s making strides, which is fueling the
team’s optimism he’ll be ready for Game 1 of the playoffs, which begin
April 16.

Though his timeline remains unclear, the Warriors know they need Curry
if they want a shot at the title.

Golden State is 5-10 this season without Curry and 3-6 since he went
down with his injury. The Warriors are just starting to rediscover their
brand of basketball after a tough month of March with three games
remaining in the regular season. It helps that Draymond Green, the
team’s most vocal leader and best defender, is “rounding the corner”
after playing like a lesser version of himself in his first two weeks
back from a disc injury.

Luckily for Golden State, Curry has a positive track record in previous
returns from injuries around this time of year. And the team doesn’t
believe Curry will have an issue picking up where he left off.

“Steph is probably the easiest person to just insert on any team…
because [of] how selfless, how amazingly talented he is across the
board, and just… the sheer firepower that he brings the gravity that he
brings when he’s on the court,” Damion Lee said.

The team’s core of Curry, Thompson and Green are well battle-tested,
having played together for nearly 10 years and appearing in more than
100 postseason games.

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Thompson believes that experience will make Curry’s return near seamless.

“It’s been so long and we’ve done so [much] together, that I think
[it’ll be] muscle memory and just playing basketball, it’s a simple
game,” Thompson said. “We love to play off each other. So I think it
would just be like riding a bike.”

The Warriors are going to have to make adjustments on the fly.

“That’s what it’s going to take because we don’t have any other
options,” said coach Steve Kerr, who shares Thompson’s optimism about
the core’s experience paying dividends this month. “It is meaningful
that Steph Draymond, Klay, Andre [Iguodala and Kevon Looney,] those guys
have all been through the battles deep into the playoffs, into the
Finals. They’ve been through it together. So that’s really helpful
leaning on that experience because they will not have had any practice
time together.”

--
Madeline Kenney | Warriors reporter