Pelvis injuries continue to rue a Golden State team fighting and clawing to stay out of the play-in tournament. Jonathan Kuminga was ruled out against Memphis on Tuesday night with a right pelvic contusion.
“We think he’ll be able to go in L.A. (on Thursday), but it’s day-to-day,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told media in Memphis.
Kuminga was injured on a hard fall with 6:59 left in the second quarter of Golden State’s victory in San Antonio Sunday. The fourth-year forward was ruled out with an ankle injury at the time. Kuminga missed 31 games with a severe right ankle sprain earlier in the season.
Steph Curry missed two games with a pelvic contusion – losses to Atlanta and Miami – before returning for wins at New Orleans and San Antonio.
The Warriors (43-31) head into Tuesday’s game as the sixth seed after winning those two in a row. They were a half-game behind the free-falling Grizzlies (44-31) and a half game ahead of Minnesota (43-32), which is in the play-in tournament slot as the seventh seed.
“It’s right there, and if we win, we get the tie-breaker over Memphis,” Kerr said of Tuesday’s game. “At this stage of the season, it’s a huge game.”
Memphis stunned the NBA world when it fired longtime coach Taylor Jenkins on Friday.
“It was surprising, and Taylor’s a great coach,” Kerr said. “I felt terrible for him … and I’m also aware that every organization has their own decisions to make and dynamics, and I’m not privy to any of that stuff. From afar, it was shocking, and I know he’ll land on his feet.”
The Grizzlies have lost three games in a row, and six of their last seven. All-Star guard Ja Morant has played in each of Memphis’ last two games, scoring over 20 points in each of them.
Without Gary Payton II, who is out with a thumb injury, Kerr said the Warriors will take a team-oriented approach to stopping the explosive slasher and keeping him out of the paint.
Draymond Green earns accolade
Draymond Green’s case for the Defensive Player of the Year award became stronger on Tuesday when the league announced that the veteran forward was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Month.
Green averaged 1.9 steals and 0.9 blocks per game in March as Golden State forced a league-best 16.7 turnovers per game.
“He’s had a fantastic year, and no doubt he’ll be All-Defense and I think he’s got a great shot at Defensive Player of the Year,” Kerr told media on Tuesday afternoon. “It’s pretty cool coming at 35.”
One of his best performances came in a March 15 victory over Milwaukee, when Green held perennial MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo to 0-for-7 shooting in a 104-93 victory. In the postgame press conference, Green made his case to be the DPoY.
Moody enjoys homecoming
Curry won’t be the only visitor to draw loud cheers from the home crowd when he makes a play on Beale Street.
Arkansas native Moses Moody expects to have a large contingent of friends and family in attendance at FedEx Forum. His hometown of Little Rock is only two hours west of Memphis.
“I have a lot of tickets (I’ll need) to find, but I love being here and being close to Arkansas and close to home,” Moody told media at shootaround. “Buddy (Hield) just gave me his tickets, so I’m going to have my people in the house, and it’s going to be like a home game for me.”