The Nuggets entered this Monday’s clash against the Warriors without Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Christian Braun, so you’d think the team from California had dibs to take home the win. However, Denver was still able to stop Golden State’s seven-game win streak with a 114-105 victory.
Many have pointed their fingers to Stephen Curry, who committed seven turnovers and missed 10 of 14 3-point attempts last night. This is why coach Steve Kerr defended his superstar during the postgame interview, and admitted that the point guard is “exhausted” and needs some rest.
Going into the match, the Warriors veteran was listed as questionable due to a right lower back strain, so after a poor performance now he is “potentially” considering to rest him on Tuesday’s clash against Milwaukee.
“He’s tired,” Kerr said after Curry’s 35 minutes against Denver. “Steph’s been carrying us for a month. He’s been amazing. He’s tired, so we got to get him some rest. Just you can see it. He doesn’t have his energy right now.”
When asked about his condition, Curry said his back pains started during last Thursday’s pregame warmups against the Kings. That same night, the 37-year-old became the first NBA player to ever reach 4,000 career three-pointers.
“I feel fine,” said the player who is averaging 26.6 points and 6.6 assists in 33.5 minutes in March. “Obviously I didn’t play great at all, so everybody including Coach is going to try to figure out why. Mostly the turnovers, dumb plays all night, but I had a really good run.”
The superstar then added: “You expect to have a level of consistency and whatnot, so when it doesn’t happen it becomes a question. I feel like [it is] more so my back I was dealing with the last couple of days, see how that responds tomorrow, but otherwise feel pretty solid.”
As for teammate Jimmy Butler, who has lost only two games since he arrived in Golden State, understands his co-star’s situation. “It’s OK to be tired, and that’s on myself and on us as a unit to pick up the slack for him,” said the veteran, who had 23 points, 8 rebound and 6 assists last night.
