Warriors injury report for Thunder matchup may explain strange Kerr decision

There's little time for the Golden State Warriors to dwell on back-to-back losses, with the franchise set to host the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder at Chase Center on Wednesday night.

The Warriors will be out to beat the Thunder for the second time already this season, having already triumphed in a big 127-116 victory in Oklahoma City earlier this month.

Stephen Curry's knee issue may explain his long second-half rest during the Warriors loss to the nets

Golden State superstar Stephen Curry drilled seven threes on his way to 37 points in that first matchup, but the hosts may be without their best player on Wednesday due to a knee injury.

The Warriors have listed Curry as questionable to face the Thunder with patellafemoral pain in his knee, perhaps helping to explain why the 2x MVP sat for so long during Monday's loss to the Brooklyn Nets.

After Golden State once led by 18 early in the third-quarter, Brooklyn outscored them 60-34 over the remainder of the game to win 128-120. Within that was a nine-minute stretch in which Curry sat on the bench, with the Nets outscoring the Warriors by 13 during that period.

Curry's extended rest was certainly a talking point after the game, having played less than 30 minutes in the eight-point loss. The 36-year-old is currently averaging 29.7 minutes per game -- the lowest of any season (excluding injury impacted 2019-20) in his career since his third year in 2011-12. Head coach Steve Kerr confirmed to 95.7 The Game's Willard and Dibs that Curry and fellow veteran Draymond Green missed practice on Tuesday "with aches and pains."

Jonathan Kuminga too remains questionable for Wednesday's game, having missed the past two games due to illness. The signs do appear positive for a Kuminga return, with Kerr stating that the 22-year-old looked good at practice.

The Warriors have certainly missed Kuminga's scoring ability over the past two games, with the second unit having really struggled to create offense in his absence. The former seventh overall pick is currently among the league leaders in bench scoring so far this season.

Golden State will face a vastly different OKC team to the first meeting, having regained notable free agent signing Isaiah Hartenstein from injury. The Thunder are still without fellow big men Jaylin Williams and Chet Holmgren. the latter of which sustained a nasty hip fracture against the Warriors.

If Curry does play, his job could be made easier by the absence of Alex Caruso who is out with a hip strain. A Golden State victory would see them tie OKC with a 13-5 record at the top of the conference.