SAN FRANCISCO -- Less than 48 hours after his teammate Steph Curry broke his left hand, Draymond Green seems to still be reconciling the loss.
"It sucks," the Warriors forward said prior to Friday's matchup against the Spurs. "It's tough."
Moreover, Green seemed more concerned about how Curry -- who will miss three months after undergoing successful surgery on his broken left hand -- is dealing with the personal effects of the injury than its implication on Golden State's season.
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"I'm more worried about the Steph that can't pick up Canon," Green said. "The Steph that can't toss [his daughters] Riley and Ryan around. The Steph that can't pass [his wife] Ayesha a pot because she asks him 'hey, grab that pot.' That's the Steph I worry about. It sucks. Like I've said that before, you live that every day of your life and that's the part that is just tougher to me than anything."
For the Warriors, the absence of Curry is a big blow to an already battered team. In the last month, five players have missed games due to injury, including star guard Klay Thompson, who will be re-evaluated in February. Of the healthy bodies on the roster, Green is the longest-tenured Warrior and the only one with NBA Finals experience, a fact the forward is adjusting to.
"It makes everything a lot harder but for me, it's like, I went from the second brother-in-law to like the older brother, which is like a completely different thing," Green said. "I've never been that in my NBA career so its an adjustment. But on the court, leading all facets, offensive end and the defensive end, being more aggressive. A lot of things change, but that's the business we're in."
Curry's injury comes as the Warriors undergo a transitional period. No longer the prohibitive favorites to win the title, the team is expected to be without Thompson and Curry until at least the All-Star break, prompting most NBA observers to all but cancel the Warriors' postseason plans, a notion Green isn't subscribing to.
Golden State Warriors
"No, I play basketball for a living, I'm a competitor. I'm never throwing playoffs out of the equation," Green said. "We're going to compete every night and live with the results. Are things that's happened a bigger blow to our chances? Absolutely, but as someone's who's healthy I'm not saying 'welp, it's over for the playoffs.'"
While Green has eyes on his eighth straight postseason berth, he agreed that Golden State -- now without two star talents for at least three months -- has entered a transitional period as a franchise.
"In a sense, it is," Green said. "Because you're building and you're going to continue to build for the now and the future. So they're not wrong, it is about next year. But last year is also about last year and the year after that like you're always building towards the now and the future."
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As Curry starts his rehab, Green has gone through an injury spell of his own. Through the first four games, he's been dealing with a sore back while also recovering from an elbow contusion. Still, Green says he will continue to play as long as his body allows.
"As the season goes on, you get beat up, you get even more beat up as the season goes on," Green said. "That's a part of it. If you can play, you can play. If you can't, then you try to do whatever you can to get back out there."