Golden State Warriors to rest starters against Spurs
By Dre Elder
The Warriors will be without Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala when they take the court against the Spurs Saturday night.
Following his team’s road loss last night to the Timberwolves, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr announced he would rest his top players Saturday night against the San Antonio Spurs, as reported by ESPN’s Chris Haynes:
"“Those guys are all playing big minutes, and this would give them three days before our home game, and then we’ll have a whole week at home next week and a chance to get recharged. It’s my call, and it’s the right thing to do in terms of the way the season is playing out and the way minutes have gone and KD’s injury. It’s the right thing to do, so we’re doing it.”"
Tonight’s game in San Antonio will be the Warriors’ fourth road contest in seven days. The team appears to be reeling without superstar forward Kevin Durant, who remains sidelined with a sprained left MCL and bone bruise. The Warriors are now 2-4 since Durant went down two minutes into their game against the Washington Wizards.
Prior to Durant’s injury, the Warriors were still riding a 146-game streak without consecutive losses. They’ve now lost back-to-back games for the second time in six games. And during this stretch, reigning two-time MVP Steph Curry has shot just 28 percent (18 for 65) from distance.
Perhaps resting tonight will serve as the antidote for Curry, as his recent slump has confounded many. The Warriors will need to quickly get their secret stuff back. The Spurs are pushing them for the one seed in the Western Conference.
Next: Anthony Davis to face Hornets
With a win over the Warriors’ reserves tonight, the Spurs would be only a half-game back for the top spot out west. The Spurs will not have the services of MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard tonight.
Leonard suffered a concussion during the Spurs’ loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night. He will have to complete the league’s concussion protocol before returning to action.
The highly anticipated matchup between championship contenders has suddenly lost its luster. There will be no All-Stars and few familiar faces on the court tonight for the nationally televised game.
But, there will be four conference tournament championship games tonight. College basketball should provide a nice consolation.