The Golden State Warriors set the record for most wins in a regular season, and many expect them to go through the majority of the playoffs relatively unscathed. The one thing that can bring this team down is injuries, particularly an injury to soon-to-be two-time MVP Stephen Curry.
Well, Curry missed game two of the Warriors series against the Houston Rockets with a foot/ankle injury, but the Warriors still won. Curry's injury doesn't seem to be all that serious, which is great news for Golden State, but the great debate is whether they should just sit him for the rest of this series. Draymond Green believes that Curry should at least rest for game three on Thursday night.
"As far as Steph being in the next game, I know he doesn't want to miss two games," Green said. "But at the end of the day, there is no reason for him to be out there. We have to continue to pick him up. We plan on playing until June. To try to force him back out there now is not really the best idea."
While most teams wouldn't be able to deal with losing their best player in a playoff series, this Warriors team is a whole different animal. Without Curry in game two, they still won the game with relative ease as Green, Klay Thompson and Shaun Livingston stepped up in his absence.
Curry tried to play in game two but did not feel good enough after warming up, so he sat down. As Green said, Curry always wants to be out there and especially doesn't want to miss two straight playoff games, but with the long haul in mind, it is likely the best decision.
Curry went for an MRI on Tuesday to see if there was anything seriously wrong with his ankle/foot, but those results came back clean, which is a great sign. Curry is officially listed as questionable for game three, but based on what he has said and what his teammates think, it looks like he will be playing.
You can't blame Curry for wanting to be on the court, especially during the playoffs, but taking another game off would likely be the right decision. The worst thing that could happen is Curry reinjures the ankle because he didn't give it enough time to heal. Curry, after all, has had ankle issues throughout his career, which should stick in the Warriors' minds when mulling this over. The Warriors will likely get through their series with the Rockets in four or five games, even if Curry doesn't suit up again, so Green has a good point when he says that there is no reason for the reigning MVP to play in game three.
