Thursday morning was a big one for the Warriors organization.
For the first time since spraining his left foot on March 16, Steph Curry scrimmaged with his teammates at the team’s practice facility. Curry’s target return date remains Saturday and he remains on pace to return after making it out of Thursday’s scrimmage with no setbacks.
“I played all right. Conditioning was good,” Curry said. “I was moving around the floor pretty seamlessly. … I turned the ball over a lot, but that’s just timing and getting used to being out there with nine other guys. I’ll be able to make those adjustments and be myself whenever I get back out there.”
According to coach Steve Kerr, Curry played three separate six-minute stretches during the scrimmage and he will be on a minutes restriction once he returns.
“I don’t know what the number is, but he’s not playing 30-35 minutes,” Kerr said.
The Warriors are still waiting to see how Curry’s foot reacts Friday and Saturday before the 5:30 p.m. PT tip-off against the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of the Western Conference first round, but Thursday’s scrimmage was a huge milestone for his rehab.
“Everything about it was awesome,” Curry said. “The moment, the playoffs, me being out for four weeks. Every step has been in the right direction in terms of trying to get back out there. I never enjoyed practice so much.”
Curry said he is trying to overcome physical and mental hurdles associated with such a long midseason layoff. He also had to fight through late-season injuries during the 2016 and 2018 seasons, so it’s nothing new for Steph.
“It’s everything,” Curry said. “You’re deal with an injury, you wanna make sure you’re over the limiting factors of how you move and the what the pain is like and all that. Then you worry about where you are conditioning-wise and rhythm-wise. You figure out how much is left to get to 100 percent.”
Listen to Bay Area sports talk now on Audacy and shop the latest Warriors team gear
Curry, Kerr and Klay Thompson each spoke to the media Thursday and said the same thing: there was a different bounce to the squad with Steph running up and down the floor.
“Steph looked like himself,” Thompson said. “He just gives everybody a lift, just his presence on the court. Great to have him out there.”
First the Warriors went two years without Klay. Then two months without Draymond Green. Then 12 games without Curry. After being limited to just 11 minutes in five quarters of play during the regular season, the trio will likely be reunited in Game 1, along with title-proven vets Andre Iguodala and Kevon Looney.
“We’ve been very in tune with each other in terms of what it’s gonna take,” Curry said, “in terms of communication, in terms of being able to be a little more versatile, in what guys are asked to do. Understanding the details that it takes to win a playoff game, especially against a good team like Denver. All those things – me, Andre, Klay and Draymond have that experience. We want to be able to bring our guys along to that level. Hopefully we’ll have a smooth transition when it comes to that and get off to a good start.”
