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Golden State Warriors are one Stephen Curry injury away from missing playoffs

By Nathan Beighle

OAKLAND, CA - JUNE 12: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors holds up the trophy during the Victory Parade on June 12, 2018 in Oakland, California. The Golden State Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 4-0 to win the 2018 NBA Finals. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jack Arent/NBAE via Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - JUNE 12: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors holds up the trophy during the Victory Parade on June 12, 2018 in Oakland, California. The Golden State Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 4-0 to win the 2018 NBA Finals. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jack Arent/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Like the Lakers in the 2018-2019 season with LeBron James, the Golden State Warriors could be one Stephen Curry injury away from missing the postseason.

It’s the sad truth. The Golden State Warriors could miss the 2020 playoffs if Stephen Curry doesn’t play 60-plus games. The injury-prone Curry played 69 games last season and just 51 the year prior.

That said, there are a few reasons why Curry’s presence is so important, and it starts with the improved Western Conference.

While there would be many things internally the team would have to take care of if Curry went down, the major factor when considering the playoffs is the external competition. The West is as deep as it’s been in over a decade.

The Lakers, Jazz, Clippers, and Rockets are teams that’ll reach the postseason with ease.

A fully healthy Golden State is in that discussion as well. Aside from those five, the Blazers, Nuggets and Mavericks all saw a few ideal additions to their respective roster. Add in the always-relevant Spurs and you have at least one of these teams missing the postseason.

It’s easy to assume Golden State will be in there, but is a Warriors team without Curry better than the Mavericks with a rested Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic? With elite rotational players, the Mavericks will be solid this upcoming season.

As for the Warriors internally, they’ll have very little depth behind Curry.

Russell would slide over to be the team’s point guard while Alec Burks would likely slide into Russell’s two-guard position. Rounding out the lineup with Alfonzo McKinnie, Draymond Green and Willie Cauley-Stein is just cringy to think about.

Depth has been an issue for Golden State the past few seasons. This season, it’ll be an especially weak area for the team as over $100 million of their salary cap is wrapped up in Curry, Russell, Green and injured guard Klay Thompson.

Oh, yeah, injured guard Klay Thompson is another reason why Curry is so important.

A Thompson-Russell-Green-led lineup would easily compete with the West’s best, but with Thompson, who has notched five straight seasons of 20 or more points per game, out until after the All-Star break, Curry’s importance skyrockets.

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Depth, external forces and the absence of Klay Thompson puts Curry’s importance at an all-time high for this team.

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