Golden State Warriors: Is Stephen Curry Playing vs. Utah Jazz?

The Warriors are having Curry sit out their game against the Jazz for rest. This comes after the sharpshooter played 35 minutes in their narrow loss to the Dallas Mavericks last Friday.

“Steph Curry is out tomorrow at home against the Jazz. The Warriors are resting him. Curry is at 71 games played this season. Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga are questionable. Gary Payton II is probable,” Anthony Slater of The Athletic reported on the Dubs’ injury report.

Sure enough, it isn’t a surprise why Steve Kerr and Co. decided to sit Curry. The Warriors head coach has already hinted as much prior to their showdown with the Mavs, noting that there’s a possibility they let their superstar rest even amid a crucial stretch of the season.

Curry has taken a massive workload this season, with his minutes this year the most he has played since the 2018-19 season when he logged 2331 minutes. So far this 2023-24, Curry has already played 2,320 minutes, per Stat Muse.

The 71 games he has played is also the first time he breached the 70-game mark since the 2016-17 campaign when he suit up for 79 games. Curry was 28 at the time. Now, he’s already 35.

Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors’ Playoff Chase

Sure enough, the Golden State Warriors are thinking long-term here by resting Stephen Curry. They are four games behind the sixth seed, and even if they win their remaining five games, odds are they are heading to the Play-In Tournament.

With that said, the Warriors will benefit more by resting Curry and keeping him fresh for the Play-In. They will likely have to play two games in order to make it to the postseason, so making sure their top player is healthy and at his best by that point is of utmost priority.

The Paly-In surely won’t be easy, with the Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers and New Orleans Pelicans occupying the 9th, 8th and 10th seeds. Both the Kings and Lakers were playoff teams last season, while the Pels were in the Play-In as well.

Curry is averaging 26.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists on 44.8 percent overall shooting and 40.3 percent 3-point clip. The Warriors have no one to replace that kind of production. And so even if they lose a couple of their last few games, Curry’s presence in the games that matter more will go a long way in their playoff bid.