The Golden State Warriors and their talisman Stephen Curry faced a massive blow as he bows out of the All Star game due to a left leg injury. Curry missed his fourth straight game after he picked up the injury against the Dallas Mavericks and will sadly miss the big All-Star game this season.
Curry was defending Mavericks player McKinley Wright IV and as he tried driving to the basket, Wright’s knee collided with Curry’s shin and rest was history as he felt the jolts and highlighted how he could have avoided it if he was placed differently.
“It was pretty big knock that kind of jolted the bone and ligaments in there, which was all terms I didn’t know existed before,” Curry said. “It was just a timing thing. If my foot’s elevated and it’s just more like a contusion you can kind of deal with it but because my foot was planted and a lot of weight on it, the force of the impact was a little more serious than I wanted it to be.”
He could not share a definite return date until he tries his leg on the court. However an MRI scan showed partial tear to his superior tibiofibular ligament and interosseous membrane on his left leg. While the Warriors staff and Curry himself is positive of playing again this season, it is the ligament tear that is creating doubts in his mind.
He shared how he firstly thought he could shake it off and hence went to the bench and then returned to the court. However he understood it was something more when he could not simply put weight on his left leg. But he is happy that there was no broken bones as it would delay his return even more.
“At first it felt like it was a normal contusion, just a real serious one, that’s why I went to the bench and thought I could kind of just shake it off, then I got up from the bench and felt something different and was like ‘Nah, that’s not right,’” Curry said. “I knew it was something more than just a normal contusion because I couldn’t put any weight on it and was hobbling around. Thankfully there weren’t any broken bones or anything.”
Curry is averaging 29.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.4 assists and is looking to help his franchise defend the title. The Warriors have also welcomed their former player Gary Payton II from the Portland Trail Blazers. GPII was with the Dubs last season and was a crucial part of the bench unit that played a big role in helping the Warriors win the NBA Championship.
Despite all the challenges of this season, Curry feels that the Warriors shine when their backs are against the walls especially in the playoffs. Hence he believes in his team and is very optimistic of their chances of doing well in the postseason.
“I know we’re a different team than we were, I know we have different challenges than we did last year but it still has been proven that if we’re healthy come playoff time and we have a shot to get into a series, that we’re a tough out,” Curry said. “That’s where all the optimism is until proven differently.”
