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Stephen Curry is the latest to reach out to the wise seer of Hollywood, also known as Los Angeles Lakers icon Kobe Bryant, for tips on how to play with an injured finger.
The Golden State Warriors point guard was listed as probable for Wednesday's tilt against the Lakers, but missed the prior game against the Sacramento Kings with a right hand contusion and a swollen right ring finger, which he estimated stemmed from jamming it upon going for a steal.
Bryant had dealt with similar issues during his career and called it one of the “more painful injuries he’d experienced in his career,” noting it did not heal quickly.
Stephen Curry played through the discomfort, but was clearly still adapting to shooting the ball with a hand wrap. The Warriors point guard said that as long as he has his pointer and middle fingers, he'd be able to shoot the ball.
Steph Curry says he will wear a wrap on his injured right ring finger tomorrow, but "I only need these two fingers (pointer and middle) to shoot" pic.twitter.com/AbyXeIxJh3
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) November 28, 2017
Shooting the ball in itself is a violent motion, as the further the distance, the more snap is required from the wrist, as well as to finish the release, in Curry's case, from his pointer and middle fingers of his right hand.
The Warriors superstar struggled shooting the ball from deep, off to a 1-of-7 night from beyond, even air-balling three times from distance, but picked it up in the overtime period — making all three of his shots from the field, including his two 3-point bombs to open overtime.
Kobe Bryant said padding on that finger was very painful but can be managed, according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, while Curry admitted his touch and feel for the basketball was off Wednesday night. The latter, however, figured out ways to adjust to this predicament.
“It hurts,” Curry said. “But guys have played through worse than this. Obviously with your shooting hand, it's one of those things you got to get adjusted to. I'm not used to playing with tape, a brace, wrist wrap, all that stuff. But I'll get better with it.”
The two-time MVP went on to lead the Warriors in overtime en route to a victory in Tinseltown — thanks, in part, to Kobe Bryant's advice.
Curry didn't say if the finger will require surgery, but ruled out any potential of him sitting out against the Orlando Magic on Friday, claiming his adjustment will have to happen one way or another. The two-time MVP scored 13 of his 28 points in overtime, finishing 9-of-20 from the field in a 127-123 win on the road.
