Subscribe
Follow Us
Gary Payton II has not played for the Golden State Warriors since suffering a torn ligament in his left thumb on Mar. 25 against the Miami Heat. Although the Warriors have won three straight games without Payton, he is essential to their success down the stretch run of the season and into the playoffs.
The good news surrounding Payton is that he has been making great progress behind the scenes and could be ready to return in a matter of days.
Payton was recently re-evaluated for his thumb injury and has progressed to doing light individual work, league sources told ClutchPoints. The Warriors announced on Thursday that he is considered day-to-day, but will miss their game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday.
There is hope that Payton will be available to play in either Friday's game against the Denver Nuggets or Sunday against the Houston Rockets, sources said.
Since the start of March, Payton has been an essential part of Steve Kerr's nightly rotations. In the 11 games he played before his injury, Payton averaged 11.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game while shooting 64.3 percent from the floor and 46.4 percent from three-point range. He played over 20 minutes in eight of these games.
Without Payton in the rotation, the Warriors have received key contributions from Brandin Podziemski, Gui Santos, and Moses Moody.
Whether in the starting lineup or coming off the bench, Payton has asserted himself as one of the main driving forces behind the Warriors' success. He ranks sixth on the team in scoring and has one of the highest net ratings (min. 10 games played) since the start of March. Defensively, Payton has often been tasked with guarding the opposition's best player.
While he is only listed at 6'2″, Payton plays well above his height. As a result, Kerr and the Warriors utilize him in different ways, sometimes even having him be their small-ball center when Draymond Green or others are out of the game.
The Warriors will be in Los Angeles to play the Lakers on Thursday night in a pivotal Western Conference battle that will hold a lot of influence on how the playoff picture shapes up.
After winning 134-125 against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night, a game in which Stephen Curry scored 52 points with 12 made threes, Golden State is now 44-31 overall. This win allowed the Warriors to gain control of the West's 5-seed, just two full games behind the Lakers and Nuggets in the standings.
If the Warriors can win their fourth straight game on Thursday night in Los Angeles, they will inch closer to potentially earning home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. A loss to the Lakers puts them in a momentary four-way tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves, LA Clippers, and Grizzlies in the standings.
