Steve Kerr had to wave the white flag with 2:19 remaining on Wednesday night. He deemed the 14-point deficit in Game 3 of the NBA Finals insurmountable.
Steph Curry scored 31 points in 37 minutes but Kerr had seen enough after came up hobbling from a loose-ball scrum. Klay Thompson found his rhythm through the first three quarters but faded in the fourth. Draymond Green played an ugly game and heard an earful of NSFW chants from the Boston crowd all night before fouling out at the 4:07 mark.
So the three title-tested Dubs had to sit on the bench and wear it. They had to soak in the Celtics’ rabid fanbase cheering beneath the 17 banners, surrounding the parquet court.
Boston bulldozed its way to a 116-100 win in Game 3 of the NBA Finals and asserted its grasp on the series once again. 2-1 Celtics. It’s getting real now.
On the same play that Green fouled following a mean scrum on the floor for a loose ball, Curry came up limping and poking his left foot. Yes, the same foot that he sprained against the Celtics on March 16 that caused him to miss the final 12 games of the regular season.
Last time, it was Marcus Smart going for a loose ball. This time, Al Hoford was going for the ball during the rugby-esque sequence with about four minutes left in the fourth quarter. Dub Nation held its collective breath and Curry laid prone on the ground grimacing in pain momentarily, but he got up and was able to walk around.
“I’ll be all right,” Curry said. “I got caught underneath Al (Horford). Obviously, be some pain but we’ll be alright. ... I don’t think I’ll miss a game though. Take advantage of these next 48 hours to get ready.”
The Warriors didn’t offer an official update on the injury after the game but Steph said it felt similar to his March sprain, but “not as bad.” Still, Dub Nation is all too familiar with playing the waiting game for injuries this year and the next 48 hours will be nail-biting until Friday night's 6 p.m. PT tip-off.
“It's a big body, obviously,” Curry said of Horford. “I haven't seen the play, so I don't know if it could have been avoided or not. I was in that situation with Marcus back in the Bay, and you just want to get your foot out of there. That's all I was trying to do at that point, knowing the position I was in.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Curry’s foot didn’t send him to the bench. He simply felt it was time to pull the plug on abysmal fourth quarter when Golden State was outscored 23-11.
“The injury didn't force him out of the game, but I took him out down 14 with two minutes left because we weren't going to catch up,” Kerr said.
Curry also appeared to be wincing and grabbing his right rib cage late in the game after taking some contact from Smart on a drive.
Curry missed games during the 2016 and 2018 postseasons while dealing with injuries, but it sounds like he might be able to work his way back on Friday.
The Warriors can ill-afford to lose Curry for any game time, especially midway through the Finals. He has been playing at a very high level through the first three games, averaging 31.3 points, 6.0 made 3-pointers, 5.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 48.5 percent from the floor and 48.6 percent from beyond the arc. Not to mention he sat out the entire fourth quarter of the Game 2 blowout after showing off his two-way ability in the third quarter.
“We need him if we want to win this thing,” Klay Thompson said. “I know Steph is going to do everything he can in his power to play. I am really hoping he's okay because he's our identity, and without him, it will be very difficult.”
If the Warriors go on to win the title, Curry is laying the groundwork to win his first career Finals MVP. But that chatter is still premature, seeing as the Celtics have the upper hand in the series.
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