The Golden State Warriors will look to win their 15th-straight game against the Houston Rockets at Chase Center on Thursday night, but more importantly they'll be out to break an increasingly concerning five-game losing streak.
As if the challenge wasn't already difficult enough against the second-ranked team in the Western Conference, it's now going to be a far harder task after the Warriors confirmed that star duo Stephen Curry and Draymond Green will miss Thursday's game.
The Warriors have another starting lineup question to face
Green missed Tuesday's loss to the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena due to a calf issue, while Curry will be out with an ongoing knee concern after missing last week's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
It's not an ideal time for Golden State to be without both parts of the storied duo for the first time this season, with a third starter, Andrew Wiggins, also questionable as the 2022 All-Star deals with an ankle concern.
Curry and Green's absence will likely leave a young and inexperienced starting lineup, with 22-year-old Jonathan Kuminga and 21-year-old Brandin Podziemski having already started on Tuesday. The latter is expected to slide over into Curry's vacant role, meaning there is once again a starting spot up for grabs.
Without Curry the Warriors will assuredly need more shooting on the floor, likely eliminating Gary Payton II from that discussion. That leaves three potential options -- Buddy Hield, Moses Moody and Lindy Waters III.
Hield is the leading scorer and 3-point shooter of that trio, but the 31-year-old's form has declined in recent weeks, not to mention he's started only one game this season. Waters started seven-straight games immediately following De'Anthony Melton's season-ending knee injury, yet failed to impress and was left out of the rotation completely against the Nuggets.
Based on the most recent form, Moody is the most obvious choice after catching fire in the second-half on Tuesday. The fourth-year wing had 13 points in an eight-minute period to give Golden State momentum, only for them to be overrun in the final six minutes.
Kerr's faith is set to be tested by this predicament -- does he really want to start three players 22 or under, particularly when the Warriors have placed themselves in such a hole over recent games? The head coach's treatment of Moody has been a notable storyline throughout the past few years, with Thursday's game another key marker on where Kerr sees the former 14th overall pick in the pecking order.