SAN FRANCISCO– Just about the only thing pretty about the Golden State Warriors' undermanned performance against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs was the Valkyries' brand new jerseys that Stephen Curry and the other Warriors were showcasing.

Otherwise, the Spurs had their way with a Warriors team missing nine of their key rotational players, defeating Golden State 126-113, a very deceptive final score. With Kristaps Porzingis, Quinten Post, and Al Horford sidelined, Wembanyama waltzed into 41 points and 18 rebounds in only 29 minutes.

But despite the loss, Warriors coach Steve Kerr applauded the skeleton crew's performance, taking the glass-half-full approach.

“Just how scrappy our guys are,” Kerr said when asked for his takeaway from this game. “We got a lot of guys who play hard and played the right way.”

Kerr went down the list of the rotation, singling guys out for the hustle and grit they each displayed.

Kerr pointed to two-way player Malefy Leons playing through a wrist injury in his dominant right arm and how he shot free throws with his left hand because the team needed the warm body. He highlighted two-way player Nate Williams, playing 47 of the 48 minutes. And he applauded rookie LJ Cryer's aggressiveness on offense after a rough first half.

“I think the main takeaways from this game are you get a really good look at a lot of our young players,” Kerr concluded. “More than anything, this is about watching a lot of the young guys and giving them a chance to play. And they did a great job.”

Warriors waiting on Stephen Curry's return

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) drives to the hoop between Golden State Warriors guard Pat Spencer (61) and center Omer Yurtseven (77) in the fourth quarter at the Chase Center.
Cary Edmondson-Imagn Image

While injuries have completely derailed the Warriors' hopes of contention this season, it doesn't mean they're giving up. Make no mistake, the plan is still to hopefully get Stephen Curry back this Sunday to make a run at winning two win-or-go-home play-in games and get to the eighth seed.

The Warriors have been firm on that plan– from Kerr and the coaching staff to Curry and the players. They have no intention of tanking out the rest of this season, even with the enticing opportunity of getting better odds in this upcoming lottery.

“It's that's not what we do,” Kerr said pre-game on the possibility of tanking. “We just compete. That's the job. And, you know, Steph's in the final stages of his career. He has a chance to compete in the playoffs. He's going to want to, and our group's going to want to.”

And the real silver lining from this game is the fact that Curry went through a shootaround pre-game in front of everyone. After a successful 5-on-5 live scrimmage the previous day, Curry gave the Warriors' fans a taste of what he looks like right now, as well as some hope that he'll be back by Sunday.

“He said yesterday he wanted to shoot on the court,” Kerr said. “I think it’s purposeful instead of shooting downstairs [on the practice court]. I think he wants to feel the crowd and show the crowd that he wants to come back.”

Curry's scheduled for another scrimmage before the Warriors take on the Cleveland Cavaliers on the back-end of this back-to-back.