Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry admitted to Andscape's Marc J. Spears on Monday night that he doesn't expect to return for Wednesday's must-win Game 5 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk.
Draymond Green said after Monday's 117-110 Game 4 loss that the Warriors wouldn't plan to “Superman” an expedited Curry return from a left hamstring injury to try to save their season. Curry responded to Green's comments by saying he knows he can't physically do it.
“Even if I wanted to be Superman, I couldn't,” Curry said.
Warriors' season on the brink without Stephen Curry
The Warriors were riding high to start Game 1 against the Timberwolves, with Stephen Curry leading the way to a double-digit lead. But then the series shifted once Curry suffered that hamstring injury, sending Golden State on a path to a second-round exit.
While the Warriors were able to pull out Game 1 on the road without Curry for most of it, they got smoked in Game 2 and have now lost consecutive games at home to go down 3-1. Game 3 saw the Dubs earn a prime opportunity to steal another win with Curry injured, but Jimmy Butler and Co. faded down the stretch after a terrific first three quarters. Butler didn't have the juice in Game 4, with Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle dominating in yet another Minnesota victory.
At this point, there's little reason to expect Golden State to go to Minnesota and win Game 5 without Curry. Butler is running on fumes and the rest of the roster just isn't good enough, even with Jonathan Kuminga's resurgence. The Warriors have no answers for Edwards or Randle, and the Timberwolves will look to deliver the killer blow at home.
Golden State shouldn't rush Curry back and risk a more severe injury in these circumstances, and he's admitting it's just not in the cards even as he has taken small steps toward a return. If the Warriors are able to pull a Game 5 stunner they wouldn't play again until Sunday, so perhaps a return for a Game 6 would be possible. But, again, it's hard to see the Dubs pulling it off.
It's a tough way to go out when it looked like Golden State had a great chance to advance to the Western Conference Finals in that first quarter of Game 1.