Curry's masterpiece reinforces need for Warriors change before trade deadline

An historic night for Stephen Curry wasn't enough for the Golden State Warriors as the franchise fell to another overtime loss against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.

Curry joined the legendary Kobe Bryant as the only two players in NBA history to score 60+ points at age 35 or older, with the two-time MVP going go for 22 points in the fourth-quarter as he tried to almost single-handedly drag his injury-hit team over the line.

Stephen Curry's 60 points provided a timely reminder that the Golden State Warriors need to make a move before the trade deadline

In an all too familiar tale of the Warriors' season, Curry's brilliance went to waste in another heartbreaking defeat. Despite recent optimism and largely better performances over the last fortnight, Saturday was a timely reminder days before the trade deadline that yes, Golden State need a change of some sort.

The problem is that, like for so much of this season, the Warriors' issues were more than singular. Offensively they couldn't find enough offense outside Curry, and defensively they looked small against the Hawks' frontcourt, then struggled to handle Trae Young and Dejounte Murray once Andrew Wiggins left the game with an ankle injury.

The injuries are notable and do provide excuses to a degree -- come the overtime period Steve Kerr was without the options of Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga, while Chris Paul, Dario Saric, Moses Moody and Gary Payton II all remained on the sidelines through injury.

But given the aforementioned issues have been prevalent for most of the season, injuries cannot completely forgive another overtime loss. Golden State need to do something, with Curry asked about the looming deadline in the post-game.

"...You can't be naive and act like calls aren't being made. But for us as players in the locker room, you have to be able to control what you can control. Until it's said otherwise or decision are made, it's up to us to go out and perform."

So, what do the Warriors prioritize? Kuminga was down on his incredible production from the last month, Wiggins was out for the entire second-half, and Klay Thompson was awful even by his often disappointing standards this season. Their offense has been very good over the last 10-15 games, and perhaps they therefore don't need to overreact to Curry's virtuso performance.

Kerr had both Kevon Looney and Trayce Jackson-Davis at his disposal, yet chose to go with a four-guard lineup in overtime. That should be the pre-eminent takeaway from the game -- Golden State need a more trustworthy, genuine center option who can alleviate the pressure on Draymond Green. Can they pry Nic Claxton away from the Brooklyn Nets by the deadline?

There may no longer be the avenue to acquire a co-star for Curry before the deadline, but the Warriors owe it to their franchise superstar to not stand pat and allow their season to fade away to nothing.