UPDATE: Per ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Golden State Warriors are targeting a potential Game 6 as the earliest return for Steph Curry
The outlook for the Golden State Warriors vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves series turned on its head in the opening game. While the Warriors were able to produce a 99-88 victory, the story of the Game 1 matchup was Stephen Curry leaving due to a hamstring injury.
The full timetable for Curry has not been laid out, but the Warriors are bracing for their star to miss multiple games, per Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.
It has also been officially diagnosed as a Grade 1 hamstring strain. This is the first strained muscle of Curry’s career, and no clear timetable has been established at this point. But the Warriors’ star has been officially ruled out for Game 2.
Steve Kerr also appeared pessimistic when speaking about the injury postgame, telling reporters, “We’re definitely game planning for him to not be available on Thursday. We don’t know yet. With a hamstring, it’s hard to imagine that he would play Thursday.”
The playoff outlook for the Warriors drastically changes because of the injury to Curry. Despite the Warriors holding a 1-0 series lead, Minnesota is a -165 favorite to win the series on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Warriors hold +135 odds of advancing in the series.
While Draymond Green and Buddy Hield have each been playing at a high level, and the addition of Jimmy Butler at the deadline changed the Warriors’ outlook completely, everything is built around Steph Curry. In his 16th season, Curry still averaged 24.5 points, 6.0 assists and 4.4 rebounds while leading the NBA in three-point makes and attempts per game.
There have been some encouraging results since Butler has been introduced to this Warriors team. But it is tough to feel confident in Golden State without their star, and the team’s fate will be largely dependent on Curry’s availability.
Minnesota is currently listed as a 10-point favorite for Game 2, while the Warriors hold +340 odds on the moneyline of getting the upset and taking a 2-0 series lead. Stay tuned for any new updates the Warriors will supply regarding Curry, but the writing looks to be on the wall for this being a series-impacting injury.
