{"id":158403,"date":"2022-12-15T08:37:15","date_gmt":"2022-12-15T08:37:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/after-steph-currys-shoulder-injury-whats-next-for-struggling-warriors\/"},"modified":"2022-12-15T08:37:15","modified_gmt":"2022-12-15T08:37:15","slug":"after-steph-currys-shoulder-injury-whats-next-for-struggling-warriors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/after-steph-currys-shoulder-injury-whats-next-for-struggling-warriors\/","title":{"rendered":"After Steph Curry’s shoulder injury, what’s next for struggling Warriors?"},"content":{"rendered":"
INDIANAPOLIS \u2014 About 30 minutes after the Warriors dropped to 2-13 on the road, Steph Curry sat at his Indianapolis locker with his left arm dangling to his side in an immobile position. The training staff wrapped a huge ice pack around the top and back side of his injured shoulder. An already shaky state of affairs for the Warriors had hit an even bigger patch of turbulence.<\/p>\n
Curry had 38 points on 19 shots late in the third quarter against the Pacers, expending so much energy that he delayed his return to the locker room at halftime to catch his breath. He had 27 points, but his team was down 20.<\/p>\n
\nSteph Curry’s delayed walk to the locker room at halftime after scoring 27 but still trailing the Pacers by 20 pic.twitter.com\/bjbg3rqQbj<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 15, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Curry was part of a rapid third-quarter comeback. The Warriors started Jonathan Kuminga in Kevon Looney’s place, shifting to a smaller, faster, more spread attack that cut the Pacers lead from 20 to five in under six minutes. Curry had 11 in the quarter and 38 for the game when he reached in on a Jalen Smith drive, grabbing all ball while inadvertently sending this Warriors season on another sketchy detour.<\/p>\n
\nThis is the play where Steph Curry came up grabbing his left shoulder. He’s still in the locker room as fourth quarter is about to begin. pic.twitter.com\/NDKEbHfuho<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 15, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Curry felt immediate pain in his left shoulder. He grabbed at it, crumpled away from the play, stumbled to the scorer’s table and eventually the bench after the Warriors called timeout. After a brief conversation with Drew Yoder, the team’s director of medical services, confirmed the concerning discomfort, Curry walked to the locker room with Rick Celebrini, their lead medical decision-maker.<\/p>\n
Here’s that moment.<\/p>\n
\nSteph Curry to the locker room during the timeout favoring that left arm. pic.twitter.com\/zZtpjFe8Kt<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 15, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
In that clip, you can see Curry keeping his left arm stationary. It still hung like that after the game while Curry wandered around the locker room, before and after he iced it. He is scheduled for an MRI on Thursday and plans to travel with the team to Philadelphia. Testing will give them a firmer idea of \u200b\u200ba possible timeline, but the postgame sense from those around the team was that the injury would force some sort of a multi-game absence that would presumably extend through the rest of the road trip.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe it’s going to get a little tougher if Steph’s out for a while,\u201d Steve Kerr said. \u201cI mean, if he’s out, it will for sure get tougher. But we just have to persevere. You just keep playing and keep fighting.\u201d<\/p>\n
It wasn’t a despondent postgame locker room. Besides the added discomfort and treatment, Curry was in a normal mood. Assuming tests don’t reveal more substantial damage than initially expected, this could prove to be only a speed bump. But the 14-15 Warriors already faced a stiffening challenge before their best player went down. The near term just got a whole lot trickier.<\/p>\n
So what’s next?<\/p>\n
This will be an important stretch for Jordan Poole<\/h2>\n
When Curry went down in March with a foot sprain, Jordan Poole ascended to an entirely different level. He led the NBA in made 3s in March and April, averaging 24.7 points on 47.3 percent overall and 41.9 percent from deep.<\/p>\n
They don’t necessarily need him to reach that zenith, but they’ll need Poole to be more efficient and protective with the ball than he’s been lately. Poole went 8-of-22 shooting and committed four turnovers against the Pacers. He went 6-of-17 with four turnovers to open the trip in Milwaukee. He’s made only five of his last 23 attempted 3s.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest thing with Jordan we’ve been trying to work on is to slow down,\u201d Kerr said. \u201cHe just gets in a rush. He has so much ability. I think sometimes it’s the guys with the most ability when they’re young who make the most mistakes because they’re trying to learn what they can and can’t do. He’s so gifted, so fast, so shifty that he’s frequently getting himself in trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n
Do we see more of Moses Moody?<\/h2>\n
Despite the absence of Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson, the Warriors didn’t go to Moses Moody for the first 18 minutes against the Pacers. Kerr had two-way player Ty Jerome ahead of Moody in the initial rotation.<\/p>\n
But the Warriors struggled with Jerome, Anthony Lamb and JaMychal Green on the court together. They were a minus-17 in Jerome’s first nine minutes. That pushed Kerr to throw Moody out there. He hit a corner 3 and snuck in a layup his first few minutes on the court. Down 20 at halftime, Kerr rearranged his third-quarter rotation and Moody was the first sub off the bench.<\/p>\n
Moody finished with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting, three assists and several other helpful plays within the margins. Both Moody and Kuminga, who started the second half, were key in maintaining the game’s competitiveness, nearly stealing away a late win. Green and Donte DiVincenzo also played big roles.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m really pleased with his play,\u201d Kerr said when asked if Moody had earned more run. \u201cHe’s got his opportunities and made the most of them. Every game is different. What’s made this year tricky is you’ve had different guys out, different combinations and a lot of new people. So we’re trying to find the right combinations. But Moses has done a great job and I imagine he’ll be out there next game.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nSteve Kerr on the rotation tonight and the second half play from Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody pic.twitter.com\/o0miyTV2Kp<\/a><\/p>\n