With his Golden State Warriors up 3-0 in their first-round series against the San Antonio Spurs, it doesn’t look like the defending champs will need Stephen Curry on the court to close this one out.
Though, with the New Orleans Pelicans also up 3-0 in their series against Portland, it’s becoming increasingly important that Curry does return to the court soon.
There’s now comes good news on this front.
Sidelined for the past month with a sprained MCL, Curry is now slated to resume practicing with the Warriors on Saturday.
ESPN Sources: Golden State guard Stephen Curry will begin participating in portions of practice starting tomorrow. His re-evaluation occurred today.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) April 20, 2018
It was previously noted that Curry was targeting a return in the conference semifinals. With both the Warriors and Pelicans looking to finish off sweeps, they’d meet in the earliest of second-round series around the NBA. That might play a role in Golden State’s decision to expedite Curry’s rehab.
The Warriors also noted that Curry will once again be evaluated in a week.
Warriors say Stephen Curry (Grade 2 left MCL sprain) continues to make consistent functional progress and will participate in modified team practices tomorrow and the intensity of his on-court rehabilitation will continue to increase. He will be re-evaluated again in one week.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) April 20, 2018
While the defending champs have looked like a juggernaut with Curry sidelined against San Antonio, the level of competition is going to heat up as the playoffs continue. The hope here is that the two-time MVP is able to return for Round 2.
Curry averaged 26.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 6.1 assists while shooting at a 50 percent mark from the field. It goes without saying that Golden State will need him near 100 percent to repeat as champs in what is an increasingly competitive NBA landscape.