Stephen Curry isn’t fully healthy at this point in the season, and he and the Golden State Warriors are admitting that will be the case the rest of the way.
Curry’s ankles have been a problem for the guard at various times throughout his career, but lately a string of aggravations have kept him out of the Golden State lineup for the past two games. On the whole, Curry has battled an ankle issue on a few occasions this season, most notably missing three weeks of action in December.
Curry is expected to return for Golden State on Friday against the Atlanta Hawks, but when he spoke to reporters on Thursday he admitted that the ankle injury he suffered will not fully heal until after the season. So, for now, it’s all about pain management and keeping his ankle as healthy as possible.
Steph On his ankle pic.twitter.com/eyyv4pqook
— Melissa Rohlin (@melissarohlin) March 22, 2018
“If you’re being really nitpicky, it’s definitely not 100 percent,” Curry said. “There’s nothing that’s going to happen between now and the end of June that’s going to change that.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr also addressed the injury and echoed much of what Curry said: it won’t fully heal until the season is over.
“He’s as close to 100 percent healthy as can be,” Kerr told reporters on Thursday. “I wouldn’t say it’s 100 percent healthy. I think a summer will ultimately do him some good. I think there’s things to be gained from a summer of some rest and specific rehab that won’t be able to address now.”
Kerr, too, noted that Curry is still going to deal with issues the rest of the season, but he stressed the team has done all it can to get him healthy again.
“Everything we have been able to address, we’ve addressed I think he’s good,” Kerr said. “But I wouldn’t tell you he’s 100 percent.”
Warriors fans will hope an offseason doesn’t come for Golden State so soon, but it’s clear the team has wanted to be careful with Curry in an effort to keep him healthy for the postseason. At some point, though, there’s just nothing you can do but give the injury time, which they unfortunately do not have for another three months (they hope).
