The Warriors have been dealt a major injury blow.
According to Steve Kerr, Chris Paul suffered a fractured left hand in the team’s 113–109 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Kerr said that Paul will undergo surgery on his hand next week, but did not provide a timeline for recovery.
Paul suffered the injury midway through the third quarter as Pistons guard Jaden Ivey led a fast break. Paul’s hand got caught by Ivey. He immediately looked at it, grimaced, then walked down the tunnel and into the locker room before being quickly ruled out.
In Paul’s stead, Kerr said that he would lean on Brandin Podziemski (who the team has hesitated to play as a pure point guard) and Cory Joseph. Joseph was the one-for-one replacement for Paul Friday night, hitting a 3-pointer and picking up a couple assists in his nine minutes.
Perhaps the biggest change to the lineup will be the reintroduction of Moses Moody, who entered the game after Paul’s injury in the early third quarter. He received chants of his name from the Chase Center crowd and a rapturous applause when he checked in for six minutes in the fourth quarter.
Kerr said that he’s excited to bring Moody - whose camp had been unhappy with his lack of involvement, according to Jason Dumas - back into the fold.
“I’m excited to see Moses back out there,” Kerr said. “It was great to hear the fans chanting his name.”
This is as good a chance as any for Moody, though it remains to be seen how extensive his involvement will be. It also may alter some trade deadline calculations.
Anthony Slater of The Athletic said with Steiny and Guru Friday (click here for that story and audio) that he believes the Warriors will make a deal at the deadline. Paul's injury, and the way players like Moody and Jonathan Kuminga play, will affect that.