Warriors star Steph Curry is “making good progress” and will be evaluated again for his left shoulder injury in two weeks, the team said Saturday. Here’s what you need to know:
- Curry sustained a left shoulder subluxation that caused damage to his labrum, league sources told The Athletic, during a game against the Pacers on Dec. 14.
- He exited that game in the third quarter after partially blocking a Jalen Smith shot. He immediately clutched his left shoulder and jogged up the court slowly before a timeout was called.
- The Warriors said shortly after the injury that the MVP candidate will not need surgery.
Stephen Curry, who suffered a subluxation of his left shoulder on December 14 at Indiana and has missed the team’s last four games, was recently re-evaluated.
The re-evaluation indicated that Stephen is making good progress. He will be re-evaluated again in two weeks. pic.twitter.com/jo6FDCnxhY
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) December 24, 2022
Backstory
Curry is averaging 30 points, 6.6 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game on 50 percent shooting from the field across 26 games this season.
Golden State has gone 1-3 in the four games Curry has missed since the injury, most recently getting blown out by the Nets on Wednesday in Brooklyn to wrap up a disastrous six-game road trip. The 15-18 Warriors, 11th in the Western Conference, next play the Grizzlies (20-11) at home Sunday.
What Curry has said
Curry spoke to reporters two days after suffering the injury.
“From what I know about shoulder injuries and situations like that, anytime you can avoid getting surgery that’s great news,” Curry said. “Trust the process on trying to figure out how to get pain-free quickly, and then getting the strength back and then working your way back into it. It’s interesting because it’s the first time I’ve done it, and those usually take a little longer than if it’s a recurring thing. I just got to trust the plan we have and do my work.
“There’s (no treatment) right now, it’s just letting it settle. Once you get pain-free, then you work on getting your mobility and range of motion back, strength back and then back to basketball activities after that. The back end should be a lot quicker than the front end from what I’ve been told.
“Surgery would’ve been 4-6 months. Nobody was trying to deal with that right now.”
What this means for the Warriors
It’s no surprise. After his MRI last week, the organization expected Curry to miss around three to four weeks, so this remains along that timeline. But it comes at a tenuous time for the team. They’re in desperate need of a turnaround as they prepare for an eight-game homestand. They won’t have Curry for it. This pivotal stretch begins with a marquee matchup with the Grizzlies on Christmas Day. It seems likely that Andrew Wiggins and Donte DiVincenzo will return for it. That’s crucial. But they aren’t Curry. Every game will be a challenge without him. — Slater
Required reading
(Photo: Brad Penner / USA Today)
