The Golden State Warriors saw their NBA Cup night fall apart in minutes, losing both the game and Stephen Curry to injury. The injury came late and didn’t shift the crowd’s energy, but Steve Kerr still struck a tone that surprised fans. Speaking to reporters, Kerr told ESPN’s Anthony Slater, “When I heard it was a quad, I was actually relieved. Better than an ankle or a knee.” It was blunt. It was honest. And it captured exactly how fragile this season feels.
Curry left the game against the Rockets after taking a sharp blow to his quad. Soon after, the Warriors confirmed the diagnosis and said he would undergo an MRI. From that point, the team’s offense flattened the moment he exited. The crowd tightened. Even the players’ body language shifted. The Warriors have fought inconsistency all year, and losing Stephen Curry to injury, even briefly, forces every possession to change shape. In that sense, Kerr’s reaction didn’t dismiss the injury. It framed it. A quad bruise hurts. But it doesn’t haunt.
Kerr’s perspective and what comes next for the Warriors
Steve Kerr explained that hearing “quad” felt like dodging something far more dangerous. There was no ligament scare. No ankle twist strong enough to stir old nightmares. Just a painful contusion that needs time. And for a Warriors team grasping for steady footing after their NBA Cup exit, that difference is everything. They can breathe. They can adjust. And they can hope the MRI simply confirms what the initial tests suggested.
From there, the Warriors wait. They wait for updates on Curry, to see if the roster behind him can stabilize their season, and to find out who seizes the responsibility he leaves behind. In that stretch, every minute without Curry becomes a measure of their identity.
So the injury wasn’t good news. But it wasn’t catastrophic — and that’s why Kerr’s relief still echoes under the arena lights.
