The Warriors are still jockeying to climb up the play-in standings. For weeks, every game has had a playoff-like feel. Even after officially clinching a postseason bid Sunday with Houston’s loss, there’s value in carrying momentum into the play-in by peaking at the right time.
Despite all of that, the Warriors decided to give Steph Curry the night off on Sunday.
Curry, 36, was inactive for Golden State’s matchup at home against the Jazz. It’s only the seventh game he’s missed this year.
“He needed it,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “This is the most games he’s played in a long time. It’ll serve him well for next week.”
Kerr said the Warriors considered resting Curry against the Mavericks, on the second night of a back-to-back, but the point guard said he woke up “feeling great” after Golden State’s win in Houston.
Against the Mavericks, Curry played 35 minutes — more than the 30-32 the Warriors like to keep him at — in a two-point loss.
Had Klay Thompson’s corner 3 at the buzzer fell instead of short-rimming, the Warriors would have an even better chance at scaling up the standings. In that hypothetical, it’s possible Curry suited up against Utah.
“So that Dallas game, in my mind, shifted things a lot,” Kerr said. “Put us in a much tougher spot in terms of trying to climb the ladder. So now, it’s a matter of refocusing and figuring out what’s the best path forward for our guys.”
A 5-0 finish to the season would still give the Warriors a decent chance at either the ninth or eighth seed. But it seems like Golden State will put more of an emphasis on getting their best players healthy and rested for the play-in than going all-out down the stretch.
That’ll be key, as Golden State’s roster is aging and banged up. Jonathan Kuminga, who missed the past six games with bilateral knee tendinitis, returned to the court against Utah. Andrew Wiggins, who’s dealing with a sprained ankle, was ruled out for a second straight game. Thompson has recorded his highest game total since suffering his torn Achilles and torn ACL — he’s missed just three games this season.
If the Warriors make the kind of deep run in the playoffs they believe they’re capable of, it will likely require winning two sudden death games on the road before traveling to the top-seeded team’s arena for a grueling series. The play-in games will likely be played on April 17 and, if applicable, April 19.
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Curry is at his best when he’s fully rested, and he’ll get three full days between games by sitting out against the Jazz. He has occasionally shown signs of fatigue this year, particularly after his ankle sprain. In the month of March, Curry has shot 43.7% from the field and 38.7% from deep — both well below his career averages.
The new officiating trends that have allowed more contact to go unpunished also appear to have affected Curry. In one recent five-game stretch, Curry attempted just five total foul shots even while absorbing an abundance of contact on drives.
Curry has played 71 games this regular season — his highest total since 2016-17, when he was 28.
“What Steph does is superhuman,” Kerr said. “I think his most underrated quality is his endurance and his strength and his ability to fly around like he does. Absorb all the defensive pressure that teams are putting on him. Everyone puts him in pick and rolls to try to wear him down so he doesn’t kill them offensively. And he just keeps himself in immaculate condition.”