Will Steph Curry return this season? Warriors ‘running out of games’ to bring him back

SAN FRANCISCO — While Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry still wants to play this season as he continues rehabbing from what the team has called “runner’s knee,” the Warriors, for the first time Friday night, acknowledged they are running out of time to try and bring their superstar back.

“The way I would phrase it is we’re not bringing him back for the Play-In game. He needs to play some games, and we need to give him a runway if this is going to work,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said when asked if there is still no drop-dead date for Curry to return. “And we are running out of games, that’s fair to say.”

The Warriors issued an injury update before Friday’s game against the Washington Wizards, stating their hope Curry would participate in some 5-on-5 scrimmages in the “coming days.” That was also the team’s goal last weekend, but the Warriors’ training staff decided he needed more time before taking that step.

The Warriors (33-38) have nine games left this season, including Friday’s contest against the Wizards. They began Friday night in the 10th spot in the West, two games behind the LA Clippers for eighth.

In a recent interview with The Athletic, Curry said he was still pushing to play this season and brushed off the idea that he should sit the rest of the campaign even if he were healthy, as some have suggested.

“That’s not who we are,” Curry said March 15 after the Warriors’ road game against the New York Knicks. “If we have stuff to play for, we play. So I’m working to get back.”

At the time, Curry expected to get some regular-season games under his belt to regain his rhythm before the Play-In Tournament, though there wasn’t a set number in place. He last appeared in a game Jan. 30 against the Detroit Pistons.

Kerr reiterated that Curry is still rehabbing “with the mindset that he will be back.” But if Curry cannot participate in a 5-on-5 scrimmage this coming week, time might be up for his potential return this season. While Kerr didn’t say exactly that on Friday, his words hinted that those conversations are on the horizon in the near future, if they haven’t happened already.

When asked why Curry still desires to return this season when the Warriors don’t appear to have much at stake, Kerr offered a simple explanation.

“It’s just inherent,” he said. “It’s just in his blood. He’ll probably be the same way when he’s 78 returning from an injury that’s affected his golf game. He’s just an unbelievable competitor. It might be the thing about him that a casual observer would not know. Because they see his joy and they see the flow, the beauty, the grace, but he is an absolute fierce competitor, and you don’t teach that. It’s just how he’s built.”