The Golden State Warriors made easy work of the San Antonio Spurs in the first round, but the New Orleans Pelicans are a different monster. They play much faster and they have Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday, and Rajon Rondo in all his “Playoff Rondo” glory.

With this, the Warriors were greeted with more bad news as Stephen Curry was announced to be unavailable for the series opener, per ESPN's Chris Haynes.

Golden State guard Stephen Curry will not make his return tonight for Game 1 against New Orleans. The team is aiming for Game 2 on Tuesday.

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The Pelicans are facing the Warriors with an ax to grind, having been eliminated by the defending champions in New Orleans' last playoff appearance. Back then, Curry was announcing his entry into the Mount Olympus of the NBA. However, Davis has grown so much better and wiser from three years ago.

Golden State without Curry is still an elite team. Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson are all capable of leading the Warriors at any given night.

Head coach Steve Kerr even notes that their first three regular-season matchups with the Pelicans can now be thrown out of the window. New Orleans has changed a lot since the arrival of Nikola Mirotic, adding a new dimension that has strangely made the team better even without star center DeMarcus Cousins.