OAKLAND — The questions surrounding Stephen Curry have suddenly evolved.
They no longer just center on Curry’s progress after missing the past 10 games with a sprained right ankle. Before the Warriors (28-7) host the Charlotte Hornets (12-22) on Friday at Oracle Arena, Warriors Steve Kerr reiterated Curry will “most likely” play on Saturday against the Memphis Grizzlies albeit on a minutes restriction. Instead, the questions now center on how Curry will play in his return.
“Anything’s possible,” Kerr said. “Nothing would shock me. He might make 10 straight shots. He might miss 10 in a row to start with, and then make eight. With Steph, all it is a matter of him finding his rhythm.”
Curry has spent recent days finding that rhythm by expanding his workout. Following Friday’s morning shootaround, Curry completed a shooting workout while also making hard cuts with Warriors assistant coach Bruce Fraser. Curry continued that routine before Friday’s game in Oracle Arena. Yet, the Warriors are not making a formal decision until Saturday to see how Curry’s ankle heals.
Then, the Warriors will also reevaluate reserve guard Omri Casspi, who will be sidelined on Friday because of a sprained right ankle. Kerr believes Casspi will return on Saturday against Charlotte, while all but guaranteeing he would be available on Wednesday in Dallas.
“It’s not too bad. There’s not much swelling,” Kerr said. “But it was definitely tweaked and it makes no sense to play him on back-to-back nights.”
The Warriors also did not see much sense in playing Curry on back-to-back nights. While Curry will play under his regular-season average of 32.6 minutes per game, Kerr said the team is mindful Curry would have time to rest before playing again on Wednesday in Dallas. The Warriors plan to have Sunday and Monday off, and then resume practice on Tuesday before flying to Dallas.
“He’s excited. He’s fired up,” Ker said. “The process was just going along with the medical staff’s recommendation and the daily progress he was making combined with the schedule.”
During that schedule, Curry often sat on the bench to cheer on his teammates while also hanging out in the locker room.
“He’s just Steph. When he’s around, everyone feels better,” Kerr said. “He’s a great teammate and great person, and settling influence. It’s good to have him in the building. But it’s more fun to have him on the floor.”
It appears that will happen soon.
