The Golden State Warriors are just trying to stay alive with Steph Curry out, as ESPN's Anthony Slater said on the Warriors Stock Report.
"In my estimation, right now they're just trying to tread water until there's this theoretical chance that they can maybe have Steph Curry and Kristaps Porziņġis on the floor when it matters most come April. Part of that is to keep the record decent enough to sit in that 7-8 play-in."
As Tim Bontemps chimed in, there are so many teams tanking that the Warriors would probably still finish in the top-10 in the West, even if they lost every game for the rest of the season. They're not trying to do that, as Curry should play again this year.
Even if Curry missed the rest of the season, the Warriors wouldn't be incentivized to embrace the tank. They've won 10 more games than the No. 11 and No. 12 seeds in the conference, the Grizzlies and the Mavericks, respectively, both of whom were sellers before the deadline and are dealing with injuries to their key players.
Warriors are trying to make it to the playoffs in one piece
Curry hoped to return following the All-Star break against the Celtics, but as he told Steve Kerr, his knee still wasn't feeling right. Runner's knee, the injury he's dealing with, is caused by overuse, so Golden State doesn't want to push him beyond his limits. He made the right choice to listen to his body.
Having him at his best in the postseason, whatever that looks like, is more important than having him take the court before he's ready to do so. The Warriors will need him once the play-in tournament rolls around in a few weeks, hoping to advance to the first round of the playoffs. Bonus points if Porziņġis is on the floor and healthy, too.
Relying on some Curry magic in the postseason really is all that Golden State can hope for at this point. This isn't exactly the position that the Warriors wanted to be in at the start of the season, when they thought they'd be able to cash in Jonathan Kuminga for a quality addition at the deadline. That was also before Jimmy Butler tore his ACL.
They have no choice but to try to make the most of the situation they're in, but fans know better than to expect much. Hopefully, at least, Curry will be able to return on Monday. There's something to look forward to.