The Golden State Warriors will already have $90 million on the sidelines for opening night against the Los Angeles Lakers, meaning they can ill afford to also be without franchise superstar Stephen Curry.
Yet just days out from the Warrors' season opener, they're dealing with another Curry injury concern after the two-time MVP limped off the floor during Sunday's open practice at Chase Center.
Warriors facing another Stephen Curry injury concern they can ill afford
Curry was favoring the right knee that caused him to miss 27-straight games toward the end of last season, having been diagnosed with 'runner's knee' which will require some level of management over the final years of his career.
Any time Curry misses will put an already injury-hit Golden State team in even more trouble, starting with the Lakers on Wednesday night where, without the 12x All-Star, they're simply unlikely to have enough firepower to match Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and company.
Update: Steve Kerr has said it's an ankle, not knee issue for Curry
Steph Curry limps off the court at open practice and he just went back to the locker room @NBCSWarriors
— Dalton Johnson (@DaltonJ_Johnson) October 18, 2026
Real quiet in here now pic.twitter.com/cLEFcOwTGt
The Warriors will already be without Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody who continue to recover from long-term knee injuries, while Kristaps Porzingis is also out as he faces another mysterious illness that saw him miss the entirety of training camp and preseason.
If Curry were to miss Wednesday's game against the Lakers, it would leave Golden State with over $150 million on the bench. To put that into context, the NBA salary cap for this season sits just over $10 million above that at $165 million.
Warriors' season in jeopardy before it even begins
While there's not yet any clarification on Curry's injury, fans and everyone in the organization will be holding their breath knowing a season that's already with little optimism could be in further jeopardy before it even gets underway.
The Warriors are already seen by many as a Play-In team with Curry, and they're likely to become one of the worst teams in the league if the 38-year-old is forced to miss time. That was evident at the end of last season when Golden State finished the season with an 8-19 record after the All-Star break.
It could be even worse this time around considering teams no longer have the same incentive to tank after the NBA's draft lottery reform, not to mention lower-seeded teams generally do at least try earlier in the season.
The Warriors face the Lakers on Wednesday, before a back-to-back against the Memphis Grizzlies (Saturday) and Phoenix Suns (Sunday) to round out the opening week of the regular season.
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