Steph Curry reportedly suffered a setback in his recovery from the knee issue that has sidelined the Warriors superstar since the end of January.
Curry, who has missed Golden State’s past nine games, pushed too hard in an attempt to race back and ended up doing more harm than good, according to ESPN’s Marc Spears.
The setback occurred around the NBA All-Star break two weeks ago, Spears told Bay Area radio station 95.7 FM on Thursday.
“He was trying to work out, trying to get back and it pushed him back,” Spears said. “I’m not sure when he’ll be back, but I do know he wants to come back.”
Curry, 37, is set to be reevaluated by the Warriors training staff on Saturday. Golden State hosts the Lakers later that night, when Curry will miss his 10th game with patella-femoral pain syndrome, commonly known as runner’s knee, as well as a bone bruise in his right knee.
The diagnosis means that Curry is dealing with irritation around the front of the knee, according to UCSF orthopedic surgeon Dr. Nirav Pandya. The best method of treatment is rest, but the tricky part, Pandya said, is that there is no defined timetable.
“Sometimes it can be a couple days, sometimes a couple weeks, sometimes several months,” Pandya said on X. “Essentially it’s about getting that rest, getting that inflammation down, so that the player can be effective on the court without causing more aggravation.”
Curry expressed frustration about the nebulous nature of the injury in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle last week. “It’s frustrating not being out there, especially with an injury that doesn’t necessarily have a specific timeline you can trust,” he said.
Curry’s desire to hurry back is fueled in part by the Warriors’ position in the standings. Golden State’s veteran-laden roster would benefit from all the rest it can get by avoiding the play-in tournament.
With 23 games to go, however, the Warriors are fairly comfortably locked in to the No. 7-8 matchup in the Western Conference. The Trail Blazers and Clippers aren’t giving them much chase from the ninth and 10th spots, while the Warriors remain 3.5 games back of the Lakers and the No. 6 seed.
“This team is kind of in a no man’s land. They’re probably too bad for a playoff lock, a top-six spot. But they’re too good to not be in the play-in,” Spears said. “So Steph expects to be in the play-in. He wants to be in the play-in. He wants the chance to be in the playoffs.”
