Warriors instant analysis: GSW endures Steph Curry injury scare in loss to Kings

Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News on Apr 11, 2026

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Only three minutes had elapsed in the Kings-Warriors game at Golden 1 Center when Steph Curry fell to the ground in pain.

Sacramento Kings guard Devin Carter stole the ball from Curry at midcourt, and it appeared that Carter banged knees with Curry. It looked as if Curry also twisted his ankle in the Golden State Warriors 124-118 loss.

Curry went down, and then limped off the court after timeout was called a few moments later. He spoke with both coach Steve Kerr and medical director Rick Celebrini, and remained in the game despite looking noticeably less explosive after taking the fall. He remained on the floor until 2:11 left in the first quarter.

Curry also played in the second quarter, but he had no lift on his shot and missed both of his field goal attempts in the period. However, Curry seemed to regain some of his agility during the halftime break, and finished the night with 11 points in 27 minutes.

Curry missed 27 consecutive games as he dealt with swelling and soreness in his right knee. He returned last Sunday and also played Tuesday. The Warriors decided to rest him on Thursday against the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Warriors are locked into the No. 10 seed, and will play at either Portland or the Los Angeles Clippers in a play-in tournament game on Wednesday. With the Blazers defeating the Clippers 116-97 on Friday, the Blazers just need to win their season finale against the Kings on Sunday to clinch the No. 8 seed.

The Warriors finish their regular season at the Clippers on Sunday, and will stay in LA if the Blazers win Sunday.

Porzingis and Horford return

The Warriors’ center rotation gained a pair of much-needed reinforcements in Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis on Friday night. Porzingis had missed the previous game with an illness, while Horford was returning from a month-long absence caused by a calf injury.

The pair had perhaps the highlight of the night with around three minutes left in the third quarter. Horford, operating out of the high post, found a cutting Porzingis for a dunk. The Warriors outscored the Kings 38-19 in that quarter, leading 89-82 by the end.

They also played together in the early stages of the fourth quarter, and their combined shot-blocking ability was evident as they forced the Kings into a stream of contested jumpers.

Porzingis finished with 26 minutes, shooting 4 of 12 with seven rebounds and 11 points, while Horford played 18 minutes and had 10 points.

Playoff rotation?

Kerr called Sunday’s game a “dress rehearsal” for the play-in, calling the matchup a chance to form what could be a preview for the rotation in the play-in. If Friday was any indication, the Warriors will play an eight-man rotation.

That being a starting lineup of Curry, Gui Santos, Porzingis, Draymond Green and Brandin Podziemski, and a bench of Gary Payton II, De’Anthony Melton and Al Horford.

Podziemski scored a career-high 30 points.

Charles Bassey, Pat Spencer, Will Richard and Malevy Leons all played, but the veteran trio got the most minutes with members of the starting five. Podziemski was the only starter who cracked the 30-minute threshold.

Tempers flares

Green got involved in a couple of scuffles in the third quarter. Carter tackled Green on a screen, and after an official review, Green shot two free throws after the infraction was upgraded as a flagrant.

At the 9:44 mark in the third quarter, only a minute after that flagrant, it was Green’s turn to show displeasure with a King. After Green was called for a foul, he made contact with Maxime Raynaud, a rookie from Stanford. The two walked alongside one another for a few moments, which led the Green swiping Raynaud’s arm away.

No technical was called, and Green finished the night with seven points, four rebounds and six assists. Gary Payton was rung up for two separate technical fouls, the final one occurring during a timeout at the 6:48 mark of the fourth quarte and leading to his ejection. Devin Carter had just hit a game-tying 3-pointer and began jawing with Payton II.