Stephen Curry injury update: Former MVP heads to locker room in first quarter of NBA Play-In Game

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry headed to the locker room near the end of the first quarter of Wednesday night’s NBA Play-In Game between the Warriors and the Los Angeles Clippers. He, however, was back on the bench by the beginning of the second quarter.

Prior to his injury, Curry scored three points and boasted a +1 plus/minus. The Amazon Prime broadcast gave a quick update on the future Hall of Famer, leading into the second quarter.

“One thing I’ve learned is when [Curry] speaks, you listen,” Prime’s sideline reporter Allie Clifton said. “This is good news for the Warriors. Steph is back on the bench as you see. I saw him in the hallway as he was walking back to the floor walking normal. With a little chuckle he said, ‘don’t worry about me… I’m good.”

Curry was on a minutes restriction heading into Wednesday night’s game, as he has been battling on-and-off back injuries for the entirety of the season. He has played in just 44 games this season (including Wednesday’s game), which marks the third-least amount in a season across his illustrious 17-year career.

Golden State Warriors have dealt with season-long injury bug

Golden State has been battling the injury bug all season long. Along with Curry, Kristaps Porzingis and Draymond Green have also been nursing back injuries. Al Horford, who is also on a minutes restriction against Los Angeles, has been dealing with a calf injury. While all of these players will play Wednesday night, the Warriors will be without one of the greatest Playoff performers in recent NBA history.

Star guard Jimmy Butler is out for the remainder of the season after suffering a torn ACL in early January. Butler garnered the reputation as one of the NBA’s best Playoff performers for his all-time performance in 2023, when he led the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals as a No. 7 seed. It fell to the Denver Nuggets in five games, but Butler’s run that postseason will never be forgotten.

For the third consecutive season, the Warriors are in the Play-In Tournament. They failed to advance to the Playoffs in 2023-24, but defeated Memphis last season and snuck into the Playoffs as a No. 7 seed. The Warriors then upset the No. 2 seed Houston Rockets in the First Round before falling to the No. 6 seed Minnesota Timberwolves in the Semifinals.

If Golden State can knock off the Clippers Wednesday night, it will have to upset the Phoenix Suns to slip into the Playoffs as the no. 8 seed.