Warriors Notes: Curry, Kerr, Draymond, Porzingis
The Warriors have no plans to shut down Stephen Curry for the remainder of the season, head coach Steve Kerr said Friday on 95.7 The Game’s Willard and Dibs show (YouTube link). The superstar guard continues to deal with patellofemoral pain syndrome (runner’s knee) in his right knee and is out at least one more week.
“We’re not going to do anything silly, obviously,” Kerr said (story via Tristi Rodriguez of NBC Sports Bay Area). “We are protecting him. But as soon as he’s healthy, he’s going to play. That’s what this is about. We have lots to play for. We’re right in the mix in the playoffs.
“This is an injury that’s been nagging. It’s not like this is something that’s going to hurt him next year if we put him out there now. It’s just injury management. As soon as he’s healthy and ready to go, he’ll be out there.”
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Curry told Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area that while he’s frustrated with his knee issue, he’s focused on returning “as fast as possible.” “The goal is to be healthy come playoff time and be available when it matters most,” Curry said (Twitter video link). “Obviously, I’d love to be playing right now. If you’re healthy, you’re able to play. I’m headed in the right direction and hopefully it won’t be too much longer.”
- Draymond Green struggled mightily in Thursday’s loss to Boston, missing all seven of his field goal attempts and finishing with zero points, three assists and two rebounds. The nine-time All-Defensive member was minus-28 in 18 minutes. Kerr said the onus is on him and his coaching staff to figure out ways to help Green with Curry out, according to Nick Friedell of The Athletic. “I’ve got to do a better job of helping Draymond,” Kerr said after Friday’s practice. “The game is so different without Steph. Those two guys have built such a rapport for 14 years now. They’ve been playing together, and for sure, in my 12 (years), the two-man game with those two guys has been our bread and butter. When Steph goes out, it really changes everything in terms of how defenses guard us, and it impacts Draymond probably more than anybody.”
- Trade deadline acquisition Kristaps Porzingis was a little rusty in his Warriors debut on Thursday, writes Anthony Slater of ESPN, but his overall performance was encouraging and he’s eager to play more minutes after logging 17 in the defeat. “Even tonight, I would’ve liked to go longer,” Porzingis said. “Even if I’m exhausted out there, I still want to push myself. But I know I have to take it step by step. Add a couple minutes next game hopefully.” The Latvian big man will get his wish, Friedell tweets — Kerr said Porzingis will play “a few more minutes” in Sunday’s contest vs. Denver.
Warriors Owner Lacob Discusses Kuminga, Porzingis, Kerr, More
In an interesting interview with Tim Kawakami of The San Francisco Standard, Warriors owner Joe Lacob discussed a number of topics, including Jonathan Kuminga, Kristaps Porzingis, his expectations for the rest of the season, the future of head coach Steve Kerr, Draymond Green, tanking, and more.
As Kawakami writes, Lacob was one of Kuminga’s biggest supporters in Golden State, but he said the decision to trade the former lottery pick (and Buddy Hield) to Atlanta for Porzingis wasn’t a difficult one.
“Not hard; everyone assumes a lot about that,” Lacob said. “Look, I liked him as a player, I like him as a person. … And at times, he showed a lot of potential for us. Just never quite really worked entirely. And he got injured at inopportune times.
“I think we all knew we had to do something. But we weren’t going to give him away, either. Because he is a talent, and a lot of people think that, too. It just worked out — we got something that we thought was worth doing. Otherwise, we would’ve kept him.”
Of course, Kuminga demanded a trade on January 15 following a prolonged contract standoff with the team in the offseason, so the two sides weren’t exactly on great terms prior to parting ways. Lacob expressed skepticism that the Warriors could have received more value in return for the 23-year-old forward if they had moved him a year or two ago.
“I don’t think so,” Lacob said. “People say I loved him as a player, I was protecting him, I was whatever. That’s just not true. I did like him. I like all our players. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be acquiring them if we didn’t all like them. But you know, it just didn’t work. It looked like it was going to work. It was off and on a lot.”
Here are a few more highlights from Kawakami’s conversation with Lacob, which is worth checking out in full for Warriors fans.
On being encouraged by Porzingis’ Warriors debut on Thursday:
“He showed you a little bit about what he can do and why we got him. He’s always been one of my favorite players, to be honest, just in terms of his skill set, his size. You know, [general manger] Mike Dunleavy [Jr.] and the guys always laugh because I’m always yelling for more size. And we finally got it. He’s 7-foot-3, so I’m happy with that. We’ve got two real seven-footers on the team now [along with Quinten Post]. I like what I saw. Let’s get him ready, get him back to playing, get his timing back, and get used to our players. I think it’s encouraging.”
On whether there’s any clarity about Kerr’s future (his contract expires this offseason):
“I think Steve has answered that question; there’s nothing more I can say. He has said we’re going to wait until after the season. That’s 100% accurate. We’ve discussed it. No point in talking about it now. He’s got a job to do. Let’s just let people focus — I mean, why would you do that now? Let’s just focus on the season. Really, it’s up to him. What does he want to do? And he doesn’t know, I don’t think. So we’ll have that discussion later.”
On what Lacob thinks of Kerr’s job performance in 2025/26:
“I don’t look at it in one season. I look at it — he’s been our coach for 12 years. I think you can make the assumption that I think a lot of Steve Kerr. He’s a great coach. He’s been very successful. He’s won us four championships. Been to six Finals. He is a great human being, I really really, really respect him, admire him. But it depends what he wants to do and how he feels at the end of the season, and where we’re at. We’ll take all of it, put it into a bowl and figure it out. And I’m not really very worried about it, and I don’t think he’s very worried about it, either.“
Projected NBA Taxpayers For 2025/26
While seven NBA teams are still operating in luxury tax territory following the All-Star break, that total has been cut in half since the start of the month.
Prior to an eventful trade deadline week, a total of 14 teams projected to be taxpayers, per Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link), with the 16 non-taxpayers on track to receive about $13.8MM apiece in tax distribution money at that point.
However, the Celtics, Nuggets, Suns, Mavericks, Sixers, Magic, and Raptors all ducked below the tax line with their pre-deadline transactions, while a few other teams remained in the tax but took steps to significantly reduce their end-of-season bills.
Cleveland, for instance, had been projected to pay nearly $164MM in tax penalties, according to Marks. The Cavaliers will likely still have the NBA’s highest tax bill, but their deadline deals reduced their projected payment by more than $95MM, according to Eric Pincus of Sports Business Classroom.
Here are the current projected tax penalties, per Pincus’ data:
- Cleveland Cavaliers: $68.67MM
- Golden State Warriors: $65.67MM *
- New York Knicks: $44.44MM
- Los Angeles Lakers: $22.65MM *
- Houston Rockets: $7.07MM
- Los Angeles Clippers: $6.67MM *
- Minnesota Timberwolves: $5.48MM
Total: $220.65MM
Note: Teams marked with an asterisk are paying repeater tax rates.
These numbers may fluctuate a little before the end of the season. For instance, the Clippers recently increased their projected bill when they promoted Jordan Miller to their standard roster, while the Knicks did the same when they signed Jeremy Sochan. The Warriors, Rockets, and Timberwolves all have open roster spots that they could fill before the end of the season, which would increase their respective tax bills. Various contract incentives that go earned or unearned could also impact the end-of-season tax totals.
Based on the current figures from Pincus, each non-taxpayer is projected to receive a payout of about $4.8MM. That figure is determined by cutting the total league-wide tax penalties in half, then dividing them evenly among the non-taxpaying teams (in this case, 23 clubs).
While it’s no real surprise that that figure is far below the $13.8MM projection from a few weeks ago, it’s worth noting that it’s significantly less than what non-taxpayers received last year. In 2024/25, 10 taxpayers paid a total of $461.21MM in penalties and the 20 non-taxpayers received $11.53MM apiece, according to Pincus.
Assuming these are the seven teams that finish the season in tax territory, the Warriors, Lakers, and Clippers would all be subject to repeater penalties in 2026/27 if they’re taxpayers again next season. Additionally, the Bucks, Celtics, Suns, and Nuggets would pay repeater rates if they’re in the tax in ’26/27, since all four clubs were in the tax for three straight years from 2023-25. They’ll each need to spend one more season as a non-taxpayer in order to reset the repeater clock.
Stephen Curry Out At Least Five More Games Due To Knee Injury
Superstar guard Stephen Curry underwent an MRI on Wednesday night, which confirmed he has patellofemoral pain syndrome in his right knee and revealed no structural damage, according to the Warriors (Twitter link).
Curry will miss at least five more games, as he will be reevaluated in 10 days, per the team.
The injury update on Curry, who has been sidelined for Golden State’s last five games due to the right knee issue, was first reported by Anthony Slater and Shams Charania of ESPN.
Head coach Steve Kerr said yesterday that Curry was unable to scrimmage on Wednesday as he continues to deal with pain in his right knee. According to Slater and Charania, Curry’s knee has been bothering him after individual workouts.
“It’s just lingering soreness.” Kerr said before Thursday’s game against the Boston Celtics. “We were hoping he’d be ready for tonight, but it wasn’t the case. He just needs more time.”
As Law Murray of The Athletic tweets, the two-time MVP will be ineligible for major postseason awards due to the nagging injury, which is also known as runner’s knee. Curry has already missed 15 games this season and his continued absence will put him up to at least 20 — players can only miss 17 games to remain eligible for All-NBA and other honors.
Curry, who made 11 All-NBA teams in the 12 years leading up to this season, would have been a strong contender for that distinction again. The four-time champion remains highly productive at age 37 (he turns 38 next month), averaging 27.2 PPG, 4.8 APG, 3.5 RPG and 1.1 SPG on .468/.391/.931 shooting in 39 games (31.3 MPG).
In other Warriors news, trade acquisition Kristaps Porzingis is expected to make his debut for Golden State on Thursday, Slater tweets. The 30-year-old big man will be on a restriction of approximately 15-to-20 minutes and will come off the bench.
Porzingis went through Wednesday’s practice and impressed his former Celtics teammate.
“Looked great,” Al Horford said (Twitter video link via Slater). “Thought his timing was good, overall energy.”
Contract Details: Gardner, Highsmith, Houstan, Jones, Two-Ways
Heat swingman Myron Gardner will receive a minimum salary ($395,029) for the rest of the 2025/26 season after being promoted from his two-way contract. However, Miami had to use a portion of its non-taxpayer mid-level exception in order to complete his deal, since it includes two additional years beyond this season.
Gardner’s second year features a partial guarantee of $500K, and he’ll receive his full minimum salary of $2,150,917 for 2026/27 if he remains under contract through January 7 next year, Hoops Rumors has learned. The third year of the deal is fully non-guaranteed, but the Miami wing would receive his full $2,525,901 salary if he isn’t waived on or before July 15, 2027.
Here are a few more details on the contracts recently completed around the NBA:
- Haywood Highsmith‘s two-year, minimum-salary contract with the Suns includes a $1MM partial guarantee for 2026/27, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). It also features language protecting the team in the event that the veteran wing re-injures his surgically repaired right knee, Hoops Rumors has learned.
- As expected, both Caleb Houstan of the Hawks and Spencer Jones of the Nuggets were unilaterally converted from their two-way contracts to rest-of-season, minimum-salary contracts rather than negotiating new deals. Houstan will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, while Jones will be eligible for restricted free agency.
- The two-way contracts recently signed by Tyrese Martin (Sixers), Trevor Keels (Heat), and Jeenathan Williams (Warriors) are each for one year, while Riley Minix‘s new two-way deal with the Cavaliers will cover two seasons, Hoops Rumors has learned.
Warriors Notes: Stephen Curry, Porzingis, Seth Curry, Schedule
Stephen Curry won’t be available when the Warriors resume their season Thursday against Boston, according to Nick Friedell of The Athletic (Twitter link). Head coach Steve Kerr told reporters that Curry wasn’t able to participate in Wednesday’s practice and would be reevaluated by the training staff later in the day.
Curry has been sidelined since January 30 with patellofemoral pain syndrome, which is also known as runner’s knee. He was forced to withdraw from the All-Star Game, but there was hope that the week off might provide enough healing to get him back on the court.
Kerr said Curry may have to undergo another MRI to determine what’s causing the lingering pain in his knee, Friedell adds (Twitter link). Curry told Kerr that something in the knee still doesn’t feel right and he wasn’t ready to try a full workout.
There’s more on the Warriors:
- Kristaps Porzingis was able to participate in a scrimmage on Wednesday, which means his Golden State debut could come against the Celtics, notes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). Porzingis played an important role on Boston’s 2024 championship team, but he was traded to Atlanta last summer in a cost-cutting move. “It’s gonna be weird, especially first game back against Boston,” he said. “It’s gonna be cool, seeing all the guys again.”
- The final two months of the season will help shape the Warriors’ roster for the future, Friedell observes in a full story. Porzingis will be a free agent this summer, but the team might be interested in a long-term deal if he proves to be a good fit. De’Anthony Melton is expected to decline his $3.5MM player option for next season and test the open market, according to Friedell, and Al Horford faces a decision on a nearly $6MM player option. Brandin Podziemski will be eligible for a rookie scale extension during the offseason, while Gui Santos and Pat Spencer are headed for restricted free agency.
- Seth Curry will be reevaluated in two weeks for a sciatic nerve-related injury, the Warriors announced (via Twitter). The team stated that he “continues to make good progress” and was able to intensify his on-court workouts over the past week, including live play. Curry, 35, has only been available for two games since joining the team on December 1.
- The Warriors have the seventh-easiest remaining schedule in the West and may be able to take advantage of some tanking teams over the rest of the season, observes Sam Gordon of The San Francisco Chronicle (subscription required). He notes that 10 of their 27 games after the All-Star break are against teams that are “incentivized to lose.”
Southwest Notes: Durant, Plumlee, Sochan, Jackson
In his first media session since the All-Star game, Rockets star Kevin Durant immediately faced questions about rumors that went viral on social media over the weekend. Durant, who was accused of using a burner Twitter account to disparage current and former teammates in group chats, dismissed the speculation without explicitly denying that the account belonged to him, per Sam Amick and William Guillory of The Athletic and Varun Shankar of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required).
“I know you gotta ask these questions, but I’m not here to get into Twitter nonsense,” Durant said. “I’m just here to focus on the season, keep it pushing. But I get you all have to (ask).”
The account speculated to be Durant’s, which used the handle @GetHigher77, took shots at Suns guard Devin Booker, former Suns head coach Frank Vogel, Stephen Curry and Steve Kerr of the Warriors, and Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr. of the Rockets, among others.
Asked if he’d spoken to his teammates about the rumors, Durant replied, “My teammates know what it is. We’ve been locked in the whole season. Enjoyed our break. Had a great practice today, looking forward to the road trip.”
We have more from around the Southwest:
- Although he officially signed a 10-day contract with the Spurs on Tuesday, it’s unclear when Mason Plumlee will be able to suit up for his new team. According to Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link), head coach Mitch Johnson said that Plumlee – who underwent groin surgery at the end of December – won’t be active for the team’s games in Austin on Thursday or Saturday.
- Asked on Wednesday at his introductory press conference as a Knick what went wrong for him in San Antonio, former No. 9 overall pick Jeremy Sochan suggested he got “no real opportunity” with the Spurs under Johnson, per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). “It is what it is. It’s a deep team,” he said. “Maybe I didn’t see eye-to-eye with Coach. I’m just blessed to be somewhere to grow.”
- Chiding from teammate Scotty Pippen Jr. prompted Grizzlies forward GG Jackson II to adopt a more aggressive attitude on the court, Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal writes in a subscriber-only story. In his third NBA season, Jackson has become a more efficient scorer and a reliable presence on defense, but it took a push from Pippen and other veterans to get him there. “I would see him in practice and he would be one of the most athletic guys in the gym, then he would get in the game and wouldn’t even dunk or he would only dunk on fast breaks,” Pippen said. “I’m excited every time I see him dunk and play physical because now guys are starting to get out of the way, or he’s dunking on them.”
Arthur Hill contributed to this post.
Injury Notes: Giddey, Zubac, Toppin, Porzingis, Young
Bulls point guard Josh Giddey has been out since January 28 with a left hamstring strain, but he went through a full practice on Wednesday and expects to make his return on Thursday vs. Toronto, tweets K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network.
It will be Giddey’s first game since Chicago overhauled its backcourt by trading Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, and Dalen Terry and waiving Jevon Carter while bringing in Anfernee Simons, Collin Sexton, Jaden Ivey, and Rob Dillingham.
We have more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Pacers center Ivica Zubac was a limited participant in Tuesday’s practice and both he and forward Obi Toppin (foot surgery) are making “steady” progress in their injury recoveries, head coach Rick Carlisle said on Tuesday. However, neither player is all that close to seeing the floor. As Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star writes, Carlisle said “it’s gonna be a while” before either Zubac or Toppin returns.
- Kristaps Porzingis practiced with the Warriors on Tuesday and “looked good,” according to head coach Steve Kerr, who said on decision on the big man’s availability for Thursday’s matchup with Boston will be made after Wednesday’s scrimmage (Twitter link via Nick Friedell of The Athletic).
- Point guard Trae Young, who has yet to make his Wizards debut after being traded to Washington over a month ago, didn’t practice on Wednesday and still hasn’t been cleared for contact, per head coach Brian Keefe (Twitter link via Josh Robbins of The Athletic). Young has been listed on the injury report as recovering from a right MCL sprain and a quad contusion.
Warriors Sign Nate Williams To Two-Way Deal
February 17: The Warriors have officially signed Williams to a two-way contract, according to the NBA.com transaction log.
February 16: The Warriors are signing Nate Williams to a two-way contract, Jake Fischer of The Stein Line tweets.
Also known as Jeenathan Williams, the 6’5” shooting guard has been playing for the NBA G League’s Long Island Nets while awaiting another NBA opportunity. He was on a training camp contract with the Lakers last fall but was waived in October.
Williams, who turned 27 last Thursday, spent last season with the Rockets, first on a two-way deal and eventually on a standard contract. He got into 20 games, averaging 3.3 PPG and 0.7 RPG in 7.4 MPG, then was waived by Houston over the summer.
After the Lakers let him go, Williams hooked on with the Nets’ G League affiliate. He has averaged 18.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 steals in 34 minutes per game over 35 appearances. He’s made 47.2% of his field goal attempts, including 36.5% from long range.
Williams also appeared in 22 games with Houston in 2023/24 and five games with Portland the previous season. He went undrafted out of Buffalo in 2022.
Golden State had a two-way opening and won’t need to make a corresponding move. The Warriors created a two-way opening by promoting Pat Spencer right after the trade deadline.
Pacific Notes: Ishbia, Leonard, Booker, Warriors
The Suns entered the break with a 32-23 record, the seventh-best record in the Western Conference. Team owner Mat Ishbia believes his team will remain consistent during the remainder of its schedule, he told Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic.
“Just more of the same,” Ishbia said of his expectations. “We’re going to compete at a high level and have a team the fans can be proud of. I think we’ve done that so far, but we’ve got to consistently do it. Fifty-five games are not enough.”
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard entertained the home fans by pouring in 31 points on 11-of-13 shooting (6-of-7 from three-point range) across a 12-minute span against the World Team during the All-Star contest on Sunday. “When I come in to play basketball, I’ve got one way,” Leonard said, per Benjamin Royer of the Orange County Register. “Obviously nobody is trying to get hurt. I’m going to try to attack, try to get some shots up. I don’t like people just scoring on me.” Leonard, 34, has proven this season that he still has plenty left in the tank. He’s averaging a league-best 30.2 points per game with 6.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists since late December, Janis Carr of the Orange County Register notes. “Kawhi is special man,” the Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns said. “He can step up to levels at any time when he needs to. He’s one of those few players that flips a switch and turns into a different animal, a different beast.”
- Suns guard Devin Booker plans to participate in the three-point shooting contest on All-Star weekend next year when it will be held in Phoenix. However, he doubts he’ll participate in any more after that, Rankin tweets. Booker lost 29-27 to Damian Lillard in this year’s final. “This one hurt a little bit. I wanted this one bad,” he said. “Wish I was defending it in Phoenix but it’ll probably be the last time I do it next year if I get the invite. I’m looking forward to it.”
- The Warriors made a big move prior to the trade deadline, acquiring Kristaps Porzingis from Atlanta. Salary cap expert Yossi Gozlan of ThirdApron.com (subscription required) discusses how Golden State has positioned itself to make another big trade during the offseason.