SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors had planned on treating Friday’s preseason finale against the Los Angeles Lakers as one last test drive before next Wednesday’s season-opener in Portland. But an injury to superstar point guard Steph Curry made Golden State call an audible.
Curry, 36, sprained his right index finger during practice on Thursday, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. The injury is minor, but ruled Curry out for the game nonetheless.
“Not serious,” Kerr said. “Just precautionary.”
Instead of the preseason finale serving as a precursor to the regular season, the Warriors will scale back the minutes on their regulars. Draymond Green is only expected to play the first half, Kerr said, a decision made after Curry’s injury.
The Lakers, on the second night of a strange preseason back-to-back, are also certainly not treating Friday as a dress rehearsal. Los Angeles sat LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and D’Angelo Russell.
“This is definitely not a dress rehearsal,” Kerr said. “I think we had planned on it, but with Steph going out, it changed our thinking.”
Curry jammed his right index finger a week ago in last Friday’s preseason contest against the Sacramento Kings. He left that game and didn’t return, instead working out in the second half on his own in the weight room.
Curry returned after one missed game and put together his best night of the preseason, registering 16 points and six assists in a win over the Lakers in Las Vegas.
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Overall this preseason, Curry is averaging 11 points in 18.3 minutes per game, shooting an uncharacteristic 28% from behind the 3-point arc.
For Friday’s contest, De’Anthony Melton replaced Curry in the starting lineup, joining Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis. Kerr said the team still hasn’t made a decision on the starting lineup for the season-opener.
Kerr wanted to see Curry play with that unit once more, but will have to settle for one game of tape on that combination. This entire preseason has been an experiment in lineup trial and error for Kerr and the Warriors as they try to fold in three new veterans and generate more points in transition, more 3-pointers and more defensive-minded groups.
The regular season will be the true test, but the Warriors have accomplished much of their objectives in the preseason. At 5-0 entering Friday, they’re the only undefeated preseason team in the league.
“I like winning, so that part has been good,” Kerr said. “I like that we played fast last game, and that’s what we’re looking for, particularly from (Wiggins), (Kuminga), and Trayce. When those guys run the floor hard both ways, we’re a different team. That’s what I’m looking for. We’ve done a good job in camp of adding some new things, getting more organized offensively and working on different things. I like where we are, but we still have a lot of work ahead of us.”