This was expected. When you have the best player in the game and your focus is a ring in June, you’re not going to risk much for a regular season game in December.
Golden State’s Stephen Curry will be out Thursday night when the Warriors face the Houston Rockets.
For tonight: Stephen Curry (bruised left lower leg) and Festus Ezeli (sore left toe) are out. Barbosa, Barnes and Looney are not with team.
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) December 31, 2015
This is his second game in a row out, in the first one the Warriors’ offense stagnated and the Mavericks blew them out. They face an up-and-down Houston team that beat the Spurs on Christmas then dropped both games since.
The Warriors offense is 17.5 points per 100 possessions worse without Curry’s playmaking, shooting, and gravity to draw defenders away from Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and the rest. The question is can Houston exploit that, Dallas played a fantastic game against Golden State. Shaun Livingston likely gets the start in Curry’s place.
Curry’s MRI came back negative, he’s day-to-day and is not expected to be out for long.
