The Warriors entered Friday’s contest vs. Minnesota shorthanded, with leading scorers Stephen Curry (patellofemoral pain syndrome in right knee) and Jimmy Butler (torn right ACL) sidelined and Draymond Green a late scratch due to a lower back issue.
Golden State lost another veteran contributor to injury during the game, as Al Horford experienced right calf tightness and was ruled out for the remainder of the contest, the team announced (via Twitter).
Horford sustained the calf injury in the first quarter. He played five minutes, recording three points and one rebound.
The 39-year-old center/forward entered Friday’s game averaging 8.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 blocks on .425/.361/.846 shooting in 42 appearances (22.1 minutes per contest). Horford has mostly come off the bench in his 19th season — Friday was his 12th start.
Second-year big man Quinten Post is a candidate for more playing time with Horford out. The Dutch big man missed Wednesday’s loss to Chicago and was questionable entering Friday’s game due to bilateral foot injury management before being upgraded to available. De’Anthony Melton also returned to action Friday following a one-game absence because of a left adductor injury.
Horford holds a player option for next season worth a little under $6MM.
There is almost nobody left to play for the warriors. All 5 starters out. Playing 3 2 way players. Its like a G team vs the t-wolves.
Summet League style
OK, so it’s over. The problem is there’s five tanking teams below them in the west so they’ll get the 10 seed and have a play-in game.
If they lose, they’ll be somewhere between 11-14 or so in the draft before the lottery for the first three.
It is what it is.
Quick sidenote Porzingis sure has a lot of skill. The guy can shoot and he’s just an offensively talented guy.
Yes, but he’s like AD going forward.
Yes, true he is like AD. He’s talented and can score etc. but you can’t count on him to play 75 games. Porziņģis is AD.
And like AD, he wants a big contract and as aoon as he gets one, he will be hurt and not play.
Melton is pretty worrisome too. I would not give him a big contract.
Porzingis is a UFA this offseason and is looking at the Mid-Level at best given the uncontrollable nature of his absences.
AD is owed 60M+ next season which is probably more money than KP will collectively make over the rest of his career. AD would still be able to command 40M per season on an extension.
AD is a fraud. He has 2 more yrs left on his contract and he wants another extension when he hasnt played at all.
AD obviously WANTS a big extension, but likely understands this season largely eliminated that prospect.
He’s like AD with a chronic illness, I don’t think Golden State will keep him around after this season with how bad their cap situation is. Trading for him was a desperation heave to get rid of Kuminga and find someone who might actually be a positive contributor instead of just sitting on the bench fantasizing about being traded.
How is there cap situation bad?
For next year its at about $174 counting the options on harford and Melton. They have money for a MLE. They also have money for KP unless some foolish GM offers KP a huge contract but highly doubt that happens.
Porz fits Kerrball perfectly.
lmao
Does anyone still care? This team was done for as soon as they extended Jimmy Butler
I care. I’m watching the wolves game tonight. Let’s see if the Warriors can pull one out?
Didn’t work out tonight, but oh well, I was entertained. It ain’t over till it’s over.
I respect that but you can be realistic, this team is cooked
Unless Giannis demands to go to GS or they can a crazy trade done, I dont see any hope
Team is already looking to next year. They could have 1 last run next year if they can get Butler back late mid season, Curry stays healthy, and J KP on the court.
This injury is great news. Post will be playing full tile now. Why in the world wasnt he playing all along?
He wasn’t playing all along because he’s pretty raw.
Warriors had playoff aspirations and even after Jimmy’s injury. With Steph, all things are possible. I think he writes that on his shoe?
But now that Steph is down for the count, it’s not looking good. So yeah play the young guys from here on out and see what happens in the play-in game. Curry will make an appearance and Porziņģis will get hot lol.
He sprained his ankle, so probably will miss time.
Wiggins or Barnes would be nice right now cough Jimmy
Hopefully Kristaps can win another ring then retire
Barnes rejected every GSW offer they made, as he (like many) hates playing under Kerr.
Wiggins has 1.6 VORP right now, he never sniffed that under Kerr, who got the least out of him as he missed dozens of games rather than play under Kerr.
Kerr IS the problem.
Oh gawd. Would you stop with your idiotic hatred of Kerr. Barnes left the Warriors because they needed the cap space to sign Kevin Durant. They had to renounce Barnes rights. They also had to renounce Ezeli’s rights and trade Bogut. Two big men. Learn something before you make up this crap.
Warriors shouldn’t even be allowed on an NBA court with that team. Just forfeit them every game until Steph and Dray are back.
Wolves weren’t even going full speed in the 2nd half.
Only one more Warriors player needs to go down for me to get that 10 day contract.
Dear lord, four guys in one game?! That’s insane.
When I said all this was gonna happen at the beginning of the season
Inside rumors for the warriors brass is they know a championship run is out this year so they want to get a betteer draft pick by getting into the 10th seed. Curry may not be back for play in. There is a team that wants Post as their back up center and willing to send a top 5 pick if they end up there for Post and warriors 1st round pick.
I just heard they’re going to sit Curry the rest of the year.
I’ve got my violin out of the case and getting the strings tuned up as we speak…
Sounds like he will not be ready until play in now.
I wonder what team? Jazz or Pacers?
didn’t say they are monitoring where that pick falls. Maybe warriors holding out hope that a dallas move up happens for them
It is a deep draft. Depending on where the ball bounces. Trade back for both of OKC’s picks?
Wouldn’t mind them doing that. i got a feeling OKC is going to trade those 2 picks for a future 1st round pick.
Are the Warriors tanking?
yes
They’re done.
Curry’s out for the year now. Not announced officially, but those who know are privy to the info.
So I guess you could call this tanking? Anytime you throw out a team like they did last night versus the wolves.., you would say that’s definitely “tanking.”
Kinda hard to, they are locked into a minimum of the 10th seed.
With 16 games left, they could rise up, but it does not appear Steve Kerr wants to win, that’s why he played Seth Podz Spencer Melton all at the same time last night and they immediately went down -10. Pat Spencer is the worst player in the NBA, yet Kerr is using him like he is a main piece.
Kerr is seeing how bad Spencer defense is by playing him less minutes lately. If it wasn’t for injuries Spencer would be mop up time.
Cryer is a much better player than Spencer. Spencer literally got an NBA contract by playing like, 4 good games. On a roster already stacked with guards. GSW acting like Pat was the only PG avail in the league. They could have gotten Cryer, or better, both Cryer and Mike Conley. But instead Kerr wants to play his sons, Pat and Podz, who are absolute garbage.
Podz is SO inconsistent, yet gets a million chances. Kuminga got like, 10 minutes before getting DNP’d for months.
Warriors fans are the most valid fans there are, everyone can see this team’s FO+HC shooting themselves in the foot by keeping this mashed potato-brained head coach in charge, and his subservient GM who fills a roster with 10 undersized guards. How do you not feel bad for that team’s fans? Every team has to do right by their fans, but GSW has not since the 2023 Poole/Green incident, another thing no team’s fanbase deserves to go through. Your fave team does not do this. GSW are the only team in the league with 10 undersized guards on the roster. That sucks no matter what team it is. I feel bad for any team who does this nonsense to their fans, this is basketball, not soccer – you need bigs!
According to insiders the warriors are looking at next year team. So they are seeing what these other bench players can do. So Spencer might be an experiment if he fails. He is failing. Look how the raptors got TJD and was like hey he looks great first game but now is back of their bench after seeing he can’t play good defense. This is a tanking team finding out who to keep for next year.
My GSW wishlist, aside from new, younger superstar/s that replace Dray+Jimmy+KP:
– bring in TWO real PG’s to back up Steph, preferably with length/size. Taking a flyer on Ben Simmons as the third backup PG role is a move I want them to do. At least he passes. KD might want to come back if Ben was here too.
– get rid of Melton, Seth, Spencer, GP2 and Podz and replace them with guards with size/length.
– get more wings and bigs who do not get injured often.
– get less injury-prone players in general (hard to do though)
Warriors are stuck with Butler’s contract. No team wants a guy making $52 million that may never play again. Green will not be traded unless he wants out which he doesn’t. Who knows what happens to KP? they do not need another injury prone Simmons. KD will never play with warriors again. He wants to win without Curry.I hope they offer Podz around the league and do trade him for a bigger wing.
Butler will play again, are you insane?
What is with all this Warriors-dooming that have infiltrated these comments sections? Yall are acting like they are the worst team in the league with no hope or future, but they are literally a top 4 team if healthy and they ARE in the POSTSEASON whether yall like it or not. March 10 games dont matter, postseason does. Its like yall forgot and are just acting like total morons about the reality that no, GSW does not even need to win any more regular season games at all to still be a postseason threat and to be a threat next year and the years after. Kerr is a moron, but suddenly he’s “right” when he talks down about his own team? Stop listening to him. Listen to me: a healthy Curry means this team is a contender. Stop caring about these worthless games that don’t matter. Its all about getting GSW acclimated and healthy before April 10.
Warriors need a lot more than Curry to win. He will be double and tripled team. Too many injuries this year.
Nah, Curry is the missing piece, they have a decent roster -as long as Curry is active-
Also: despite having literally no one, GSW came within 10 of the Thunder and Wolves and beat the Rockets, with this massively depleted roster. They really aren’t as terrible as yall commenters on here are making them out to be.
Yall see the losses, but I see a “add Steph to that = W and potential threat to the tittle, add then add Jim even at half pace, will be like Klay in 2022, so that’s a chip”
2022 Klay won a title. Jimmy is better than Klay with only half his injury history.
“KD might want to come back if Ben was here”
High comedy.
The fine art of tanking has lost all it meaning in basketball. In baseball, it meant trading away your valuable vets for younger players with potential. In basketball, every little hangnail is considered tanking. Sometimes an injury is just an injury.
Davey’s definition of tanking is losing games by 50 points consistently. By that definition, no one is tanking in the league.
So funny how badly everyone wants the Warriors to lose. This is the dictionary definition of “rent free”.
All they need is everyone healthy by April 5, and they will hit the postseason in top form!
Its one of those years if the warriors were healthy and injury free. Butler, Curry, and KP all healthy would be a top 5 team in the west. it didn’t happen and will not happen this year. Its a wait until next year season.
Talking about living “rent free”. Kerr has built a whole subdivision of mansions in Davey’s head.
Seth Curry also strained his groin and no one’s even talking about it lol
The trolls arguing Kerr is actually good at his job, as he plays Seth Podz Spencer Melton Post together vs the Wolves and their bigs…just, this is why you get muted.
“Second-year big man Quinten Post is a candidate for more playing time with Horford out.”
Except he sprained his ankle after coming in for Horford and only played 11:29 before going out.