Warriors guard Stephen Curry injury update

A terrific Golden State Warriors season has hit a roadblock. Via the San Jose Mercury News:

Warriors star Steph Curry will miss an indefinite amount of time with a sprained ligament in his left foot, according to reports.

Curry injured his foot when Marcus Smart rolled over his leg during Wednesday night’s game against the Celtics. Curry had an MRI and X-rays that did not reveal a fracture or major damage to the ligaments…

Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson played together on Monday for the first time in 1,005 days only to be broken up again by injury a game later.

The regular season ends April 10. Hopefully Curry is able to be 100 percent, or somewhat close, by the start of the playoffs.

Stephen Curry is still getting better, says Draymond Green

Stephen Curry yesterday passed Ray Allen to become the NBA’s all-time leader in regular season three-pointers made. Here’s the San Jose Mercury News with more:

The people who mattered most to Steph Curry in his lifelong journey to becoming the NBA’s all-time 3-point king were at Madison Square Garden Tuesday night to share the moment with the Golden State Warriors’ transcendent star.

As coach Steve Kerr said, “The fact that they’re here with him tonight tells you everything about Steph.”

One of those people is Brandon Payne, the personal trainer whom Curry has worked with since his rookie season. Payne, who lives in North Carolina, dropped everything to traverse the country over the past week to make sure he was there in person.

Not only does Curry credit his longevity for allowing him to reach the 3-point record, at age 33, by all accounts, he is only refining his physique.

“I don’t think he’s ever been stronger, physically,” Kerr said.

“I think he’s still getting better, which is scary,” added Draymond Green.

Official 2020-21 All-NBA teams announced

Center Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets, the 2020-21 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player, and two-time MVPs Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks and Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors lead the 2020-21 All-NBA First Team, the NBA announced today.

Antetokounmpo was the only player to receive All-NBA First Team votes on all 100 ballots, earning his third consecutive First Team selection and fifth All-NBA Team honor overall. Jokić, the first player to be named the Kia NBA MVP as a member of the Nuggets, received 99 First Team votes to make the First Team for the second time in the last three seasons. Curry, who averaged an NBA-leading 32.0 points this season, received 98 First Team votes in his fourth selection to the First Team and seventh All-NBA Team honor overall.

In addition to Antetokounmpo (500 total points), Jokić (498 points) and Curry (496 points), the All-NBA First Team features Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Dončić (402 points; 55 First Team votes) and LA Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (323 points; 28 First Team votes).

Leonard has been voted to the All-NBA First Team for the third time and earned his fifth All-NBA Team selection overall. Dončić, 22, has been selected to the All-NBA First Team for the second season in a row. He is the first player to make the All-NBA First Team at least twice in his first three NBA seasons since Tim Duncan (three times from 1997-98 – 1999-2000) and becomes the fourth player to have multiple First Team selections before age 23, along with Rick Barry, Kevin Durant and Max Zaslofsky.

The 2020-21 All-NBA Second Team consists of Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (372 points), Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (352), Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (311), New York Knicks forward Julius Randle (253) and Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (174).

The 2020-21 All-NBA Third Team is composed of Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (148 points), Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (131), Clippers forward Paul George (89), Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal (71) and Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving (61).

James has extended his league record for most All-NBA Team selections to 17, which includes a record 13 selections to the First Team, three to the Second Team and one to the Third Team. Paul has been voted to the All-NBA Team for the 10th time, the second most among active players behind James.

This is the sixth All-NBA Team selection for Lillard and George, the fourth for Gobert and Butler and the third for Embiid and Irving. Randle and Beal have each been selected to the All-NBA Team for the first time.

Stephen Curry passes Wilt Chamberlain to become all-time Warriors points leader

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry scored his 17,784 career point in the first quarter of tonight’s game against the Denver Nuggets, passing Wilt Chamberlain (17,783) to become the franchise’s all-time points leader.

Curry entered tonight’s game with averages of 29.9 points (second in the NBA), 6.0 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 1.33 steals in 33.9 minutes over 45 games (all starts) this season. A three-time NBA Champion and two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, Curry has spent his entire 12-year career with the Warriors.

Curry scored his first career point in his NBA debut on October 28, 2009 vs. Houston on a 19-foot jumper and broke the franchise record tonight on a three-foot driving layup with 1:40 remaining in the first quarter.

Stephen Curry named 2021 NBA All-Star Game starter

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has been named a starter in the 70th NBA All-Star Game, the league announced today. Curry will make his seventh All-Star Game appearance (all starts), matching Rick Barry’s franchise record for All-Star starts and trailing only Paul Arizin (10 appearances) and Barry (eight) for most All-Star selections in Warriors history. Curry made six consecutive All-Star appearances from 2014-19.

Curry is averaging 30.0 points (second in the NBA), 6.0 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.21 steals in 34.0 minutes over 29 games (all starts) and leads the league with 145 three-pointers. The two-time NBA Most Valuable Player is shooting 49.2 percent from the field, 42.5 percent from three and 93.5 percent from the line. Curry set a new career high with 62 points on January 3 vs. Portland and has hit double-digit three- pointers in a pair of games this season, including a season-high 11 threes in a 57-point performance at Dallas on February 6. Following his NBA season-high 62 points, he was named Western Conference Player of the Week (Week 2).

Curry has hit a three-pointer in 91 consecutive games, the fourth-longest streak in NBA history, and matched an NBA record by hitting at least four threes in 13-straight games from January 20 – February 11. On January 23 at Utah, Curry passed Reggie Miller (2,560) for second place on the NBA’s all-time three-point field goals made list.

Curry has taken part in NBA All-Star Weekend festivities in eight of his previous 10 campaigns, averaging 17.0 points, 6.7 assists, 6.0 rebounds, 1.33 steals and 27.8 minutes in his six appearances in the All-Star Game (2014-19). Curry has also participated in the Three-Point Contest six times (2010, 2013-16, 2019)—winning the event in 2015 and finishing as runner-up to teammate Klay Thompson in 2016—in addition to the Shooting Stars Competition (2014 & 2015), the Rising Stars Challenge (2010 & 2011) and the Skills Challenge (won the event in 2011).

Joining Curry in the starting lineups are: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks), Bradley Beal (Wizards), Luka Doncic (Mavericks), Kevin Durant (Nets), Joel Embiid (76ers), Kyrie Irving (Nets) LeBron James (Lakers), Nikola Jokic (Nuggets) and Kawhi Leonard (Clippers).

The two NBA All-Star captains (LeBron James and Kevin Durant) will draft the eight remaining players from the starter pool in the First Round and then all 14 players from the reserve pool in the Second Round, making selections without regard to a player’s conference affiliation or position. TNT will air the 2021 NBA All-Star Draft on Thursday, March 4 at 5 p.m. PT.

The 2021 NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, March 7 at 5 p.m. (PT) in Atlanta. TNT and ESPN Radio will air the game live in the United States. TNT’s NBA All-Star coverage will begin at 2 p.m. PT with TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by CarMax, followed by the Taco Bell® Skills Challenge and MTN DEW® 3-Point Contest starting at 3:30 p.m. PT. Coverage of the 70th NBA All-Star Game will begin at 5 p.m. PT, with AT&T Slam Dunk taking place at halftime. The game will follow the same format as last year, with the teams competing to win each quarter and playing to a Final Target Score during the untimed fourth quarter.

Video: Game highlights of Stephen Curry’s 62 points

On Sunday, the Warriors beat the Trail Blazers 137-122. In the win, Stephen Curry scored an NBA career-high 62 points. In 36 minutes, Steph shot 18/31 FG, 8/16 from three-point range and 18/19 from the free throw line for 62 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Enjoy these video highlights from Steph’s 62-point game:

Stephen Curry already impressed with Warriors rookie James Wiseman

Stephen Curry is already very impressed with Warriors lottery pick James Wiseman. Here’s ESPN.com quoting Curry from a KGMZ-FM 95.7 radio interview:

“He’s just going to be a force, man,” Curry said of Wiseman. “To the point of all the things we need to learn as fast as possible, I can’t imagine for a 19-year-old to be able to ingest all that information, go out and play, but the things that he does well, you really can’t teach. His size, his athleticism, his presence to protect the paint, the speed to run up and down the floor, put pressure on the rim, we can use that right away. So you’re going to see a different player probably from Game 1 to Game 72, but early in the season he should be able to show what he’s about and provide a lot of value for us on the interior and play Warrior basketball. So I’m excited, man. You can see the look in his eyes. He’s chomping at the bit right now.”

The Warriors will be a team to watch this season, even if they’ll be without star shooting guard Klay Thompson for a second straight season.

Steve Kerr discusses the past Warriors season

The Warriors had a rough season in 2019-20. And yes, that’s putting it very mildly. But, had Stephen Curry been active all season? Things still would have been tough, says head coach Steve Kerr. Here’s NBC Sports Bay Area reporting:

When 95.7 The Game’s Damon Bruce asked Kerr what Golden State’s season would’ve looked like with Curry healthy the whole year, Kerr said the Warriors still would’ve faced an uphill climb into contention.

“Well to be honest, I think it still would’ve been a struggle, Damon,” Kerr said on “Damon, Ratto & Kolsky.” “I think there were just too many factors that were going against us. Obviously, we would’ve won a lot more games. Steph is so talented that he would’ve undoubtedly won plenty of games on his own.”

Curry, Draymond Green, Kevon Looney and Jacob Evans were the only Warriors who dressed in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals and in the first game of the 2019-20 regular season. The Warriors had seven new players in their opening-night lineup, aside from Damion Lee, who played 32 games with Golden State during the previous regular season but none in the playoffs.

The Warriors still have a lot of work to do in free agency this coming offseason. Their frontcourt is thin and their bench is limited. On paper, they should be a good team in 2020-21. Certainly a playoff team. But as for contending for a championship, roster moves need to happen.

Warriors forward Eric Paschall says Stephen Curry never stops moving

Everyone knows that Warriors guard Stephen Curry is an awesome player, but it’s always fun to hear the precise wording other players choose to use when discussing him and other greats. Especially when it’s a teammate sharing their particularly unique perspective. Here’s NBC Sports Bay Area reporting:

Eric Paschall didn’t get to share the floor with Steph Curry a lot during his rookie season, as the Warriors star played just five games after breaking his non-shooting hand in October.

But that doesn’t mean the Villanova product didn’t get an up-close look at how true greatness works and operates. In the mere five games that Paschall played with Curry, he was able to see what makes the Warriors star so hard to defend.

“He does not stop moving,” Paschall told Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck on “The Full 48.” “It’s kind of crazy, like, you just see him like, move, move, move, move, move. It kind of messes you up because you’re not used to it especially as a rookie but when you play with him you start to understand where he’s going and what the plays are. I felt like I ended up getting an understanding and seeing what it’s like to play with him and it’s pretty fun.”

Eyes will be back on the Warriors during the 2020-21 offseason. It’ll be a pivotal free agency period for a squad that is back to revolving around famous trio Steph, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, plus Andrew Wiggins, who was acquired last season. Paschall was a big bright spot for the Warriors last season, and should certainly be in the rotation going forward. But more roster work is needed heading into 2020-21 if the team aims to be true championship contenders once again.