Steph Curry scores 44 points to lead Warriors past Timberwolves, 119-114

Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News on Oct 28, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS – The ball was rocketing toward the baseline with 8:02 left in the third quarter. The Warriors were up by 23. One possession would not win or lose the game between the Warriors and Timberwolves at Target Center on Wednesday.

Steph Curry, at age 38 and with two fragile knees and a Hall of Fame resume, raced after the ball as if his NBA career depended upon it. He threw himself to the ground and tried to save the ball before he slid out of bounds.

His effort to keep the ball inbounds was unsuccessful, and ended with the superstar surrounded by concerned coaches and teammates. Curry bounced right back up.

That inspiring effort, and a whole lot of shotmaking, helped Golden State win their second game in a row after an 0-3 start. The Warriors held on to win, 119-114.

Curry’s strong showing went far beyond hustle plays.

He did not manage to go a perfect 8 for 8 again, but for the second consecutive night, Curry torched a Western conference contender on the road.

He scored 44 points, his first game over 30 points this season.

That included 12 straight Warriors points in the second quarter, knocking down three triples and a high-arcing floater in a two-minute flurry.

The Warriors led by 10 with three minutes left in the fourth quarter and no timeouts left. After the Wolves cut the lead to seven, Curry responded by making a scoop layup, and then finding a streaking Yaxel Lendeborg for an emphatic dunk. The Wolves once again cut it back to four with 30 seconds remaining.

Curry turned the ball over, but De’Anthony Melton pinned Jaden McDaniels’ layup off the glass, and then McDaniel missed two wide open 3-pointers.

Jonathan Kuminga dueled against his de facto replacement, Lendeborg, on the wing. Kuminga finished with 20 points while Lendeborg had 26. Brandon Williams provided a spark off the bench and put in 11 points.

The Timberwolves understandably started slow. Their superstar, Anthony Edwards (knee), was missing his first game of what is expected to be a two-month absence.

A Curry flurry in the second quarter helped the Warriors pad their lead to 64-48 at halftime, eventually leading by as many as 23 before the Wolves began their rally and cut the deficit to 93-81 to begin the fourth quarter.

The Warriors (2-3) will have one day off before beginning a six-game homestand on Friday against the Lakers.

Lendeborg continues to join historic company

All throughout the predraft process, 24-year-old Yaxel Lendeborg was saddled with the moniker “the most pro-ready” prospect in his class. But even the most optimistic projector could not have seen him being this ready.

He scored 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and in the process joined a list filled with Hall of Famers.

He joined Elgin Baylor, Oscar Robertson, Maurice Stokes, Sidney Wicks and Connie Hawkins as the only players to have 100 points, 40 rebounds and 20 assists in their first five games.

Lendeborg is pro ready, but he is far from a finished product. Lendeborg had seven turnovers, a number of them the product of over-dribbling into traffic.

Niang gets the start, center rotation favors veterans

With Santos sidelined by a sore knee, Warriors coach Steve Kerr decided to keep some size in the starting lineup by giving Georges Niang his first start since April of 2025. Niang put in two buckets in the first quarter, burying a 3-pointer and laying up another.

He also displayed some real feel as a passer, attacking a closeout and hitting De’Anthony Melton for a triple in the corner.

The center spot was nearly exclusively manned by the Warriors veteran do of Draymond Green and Al Horford. Green manhandled Rudy Gobert for long stretches, including a play during which he snatched the ball from the 7-footer’s hands.

Charles Bassey received a few minutes in the first half, while Graham Ike received a DNP.