Warriors Sign Omer Yurtseven To 10-Day Deal
March 15: The Warriors’ 10-day deal with Yurtseven is now official, according to the team (Twitter link). It will run through March 24, covering Golden State’s next six games.
March 14: The Warriors plan to sign free agent center Omer Yurtseven to a 10-day contract, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link).
Agents Keith Glass and Luke Glass confirmed the news to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Yurtseven, who averaged 5.0 points and 4.6 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per game in 113 NBA regular season appearances with the Heat and Jazz from 2021-24, signed a G League deal 10 days ago and had been playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets’ affiliate.
In three games with the Vipers this month, Yurtseven averaged 23.0 points, 13.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 29.7 minutes per contest. The 27-year-old converted 56.9% of his field goals and 87.5% of his free throws in a small sample size.
The Turkish big man has spent most of the past two years overseas playing for Panathinaikos, but recently parted ways with the Greek EuroLeague team.
Yurtseven will provide a strong rebounding presence for Golden State, which has been hit hard by a spate of recent injuries.
In addition to Jimmy Butler (torn right ACL) and Stephen Curry (runner’s knee), who have been out since January, Moses Moody has missed the past six games due to a right wrist sprain and four other players (Draymond Green, Al Horford, Seth Curry and Quinten Post) were hurt either before or during Friday’s loss to Minnesota.
Veteran big man Horford is expected to miss multiple games due to a right calf injury. The 39-year-old has formally been diagnosed with a soleus (calf) strain, per Anthony Slater of ESPN (Twitter link), while Seth Curry has a left adductor strain. All of the aforementioned players (aside from Post, who’s questionable) are out for Sunday’s game in New York. De’Anthony Melton (left knee injury management) and Kristaps Porzingis (general illness management) are out as well on the first of a back-to-back.
As a three-year veteran, Yurtseven will make $136,717 over the course of his 10 days with Golden State, while the Warriors will carry a $131,970 cap hit. The team had one roster opening and won’t need to waive anyone to add Yurtseven.
Al Horford Exits Friday’s Game With Right Calf Tightness
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.
Warriors’ Stephen Curry (Knee) Out At Least 10 More Days
Warriors superstar Stephen Curry will miss at least 10 more days due to his right knee injury, according to Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of ESPN.
Curry has missed 15 consecutive games due to patellofemoral pain syndrome, colloquially known as runner’s knee. Today’s update suggests he’ll miss at least five more contests.
Curry, who turns 38 years old on Saturday, has begun on-court work and is hoping to “intensify his workouts” in the coming days, sources tell Charania and Slater.
The Warriors put out a press release (Twitter link) confirming ESPN’s report.
As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the Warriors are 23-16 when Curry plays this season but have gone just 9-17 without their leading scorer. Golden State is currently 32-33, the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference.
The Warriors dropped back-to-back games (at Utah and vs. Chicago) over the past two days. While the players were “relatively upbeat” after Monday’s loss, they were “quiet” and “frustrated” in the locker room after blowing a late lead on Tuesday, according to Nick Friedell of The Athletic.
“Both very winnable games,” head coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday after a 130-124 overtime loss to the Bulls at Chase Center. “Had the lead late tonight — obviously, one we should have had — but this is how the NBA is, especially when you’re beaten up. You’re not going to blow anybody out; games are gonna be tight; you got to finish, and we didn’t finish either of the last two nights.”
Several players were sidelined on Tuesday, Friedell writes, including De’Anthony Melton. Golden State limited Melton’s minutes on Monday because the team planned to play him on both ends of the back-to-back for the first time in 2025/26, but that didn’t come to fruition after he tweaked his adductor.
Center Kristaps Porzingis made his third appearance as a Warrior on Tuesday, finishing with 17 points (on 5-of-13 shooting), four rebounds and four blocks in 20 minutes. He acknowledged he’s not in peak shape right now but is optimistic his conditioning will improve if he can stay on the court consistently, Fridell writes.
Porzingis also discussed Curry’s ongoing absence after Tuesday’s game, Friedell adds.
“I want to play with Steph,” Porzingis said. “Who doesn’t? I know he’s doing everything he can to be back with us as soon as possible. And obviously, it’s a completely different team with him here. Hopefully, I get that chance soon.”
Pacific Notes: James, Kennard, Melton, Warriors Youth
LeBron James is missing his third straight game for the Lakers on Tuesday as he works his way back from arthritis in his left foot, as well as a left elbow contusion. James went through his pregame shooting routine prior to the Lakers’ matchup against the Wolves, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin (via Twitter), but ultimately decided that he needed more time before he’ll be ready to return to action.
According to coach JJ Redick, James was a participant in the team’s film session on Monday, but he did not take part in the on-court practice (Twitter link via McMenamin).
After the 22-time All-Star missed the first 14 games of the season due to a sciatic nerve issue, James has been quite durable. Prior to his recent absences, he had only sat out four of the team’s previous 48 games.
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- Luke Kennard‘s elite three-point shooting is transforming the Lakers‘ attack, writes Thuc Nhi Nguyen of the Los Angeles Times. Kennard is making 56.1% of his outside shots over the last six games coming into Tuesday’s contest, with the Lakers going 5-1 in that span. Nguyen notes that the Lakers were shooting 34.9% from three prior to trading for Kennard and have bumped that figure to 39.2% since bringing in the sweet-shooting guard. Kennard, for his part, is grateful to be able to play with play-makers like James and Luka Doncic. “It’s definitely something you think about like, ‘Man, I wish that was me there getting those open looks,'” Kennard said. “But now it’s a reality.”
- De’Anthony Melton is set to play in his first back-to-back set of the season on Tuesday as the Warriors take on the Bulls, writes Nick Friedell of The Athletic (Twitter link). Melton played just 20 minutes in Monday’s loss to the Jazz in order to ensure he’d be ready for tonight’s game, according to coach Steve Kerr. Melton, who is officially listed as questionable, has scored at least 20 points in four of his last six games.
- The Warriors have one of the NBA’s oldest and most expensive rosters, which is why team-friendly deals for players like Moses Moody and Gui Santos are particularly valuable to the club, Dalton Johnson writes for NBC Sports Bay Area. In a conversation with Spotrac’s Keith Smith, Johnson outlines how these deals that young players can outplay can be crucial for building sustainable teams around superstars, with Smith pointing to Miles McBride‘s three-year, $13MM extension with the Knicks as another example.
Pacific Notes: Murray, Melton, Leons, Garland
It has been a season to forget for Kings forward Keegan Murray. In addition to the fact that Sacramento holds the NBA’s worst record (13-47), Murray has spent the year battling various injuries. His season debut was delayed until November 20 after he underwent surgery on his left thumb. He later missed a pair of games in December due to a mild calf strain, then sat out for a month-and-a-half in January and February while recovering from a left ankle sprain.
Murray suffered another setback on Wednesday in Houston. In just his 23rd game of the season, Murray re-injured that same left ankle, rolling it in the first quarter and sitting out for the rest of the night, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee.
It remains to be seen whether Murray will face another multi-game absence as a result of his latest ailment, but the Kings have no reason to push him. The lottery-bound team views the fourth-year forward as one of its long-term cornerstones, having signed him last fall to a five-year, $140MM rookie scale extension that will go into effect this July.
We have more from out of the Pacific:
- Warriors guard De’Anthony Melton holds a $3.45MM player option for next season, but he seems less likely to exercise it with each passing day, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. Melton, who had a season-high 28 points on Tuesday vs. New Orleans to increase his career-best scoring average to 12.7 PPG, has an incredible +15.7 net rating in his 688 minutes on the floor this season. Poole speculates that the versatile guard’s next contract could be in the range of $15-20MM annually. “It’s really fun to see him performing at this level after being out for a couple years,” head coach Steve Kerr said earlier this week. “He’s such a great guy, such a fantastic teammate. Hell of a player, and I’m really happy for him that he’s healthy and playing at a high level.”
- Forward Malevy Leons hasn’t played much for the Warriors since signing a two-way contract in December, but he proved in Wednesday’s win over Memphis that he’s capable of contributing when called upon. Leons registered nine points and eight rebounds in 18 minutes — all three marks were season highs. “I thought Malevy was awesome,” Kerr said, per Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area. “Just the energy, defending without fouling, creating some problems for them at the defensive end of the floor and then making some nice plays on offense too. Was fun to watch him play.”
- Darius Garland‘s Clippers debut doesn’t appear to be far off, and his teammates and coaches are looking forward to it. Head coach Tyronn Lue said Garland has “looked great” in practices, while guard Kris Dunn added that the newcomer has already been a great fit off the court, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. “We can’t wait. We’re doing good, we’ve shown some good stuff over the last two (games), but it’s also been tough for us,” forward Nicolas Batum said, referring to losses to the Lakers and Magic. “But that kinda showed us we need him. We can’t wait to have him back on the court with us.”
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.”
Warriors Reportedly Assured Jimmy Butler They Won’t Trade Him
The Warriors recently informed Jimmy Butler they don’t plan to trade him as he rehabilitates from a torn ACL in his right knee, a league source tells Nick Friedell of The Athletic.
Jake Fischer and Marc Stein of The Stein Line reported on Saturday that they have received “strong indications” that Golden State’s offer for Giannis Antetokounmpo is unlikely to include Butler. Both players make $54.1MM this season.
General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. said he didn’t expect to trade Butler in the wake of the six-time All-Star’s season-ending injury. However, that was before the Bucks became more receptive to offers for the two-time MVP.
Multiple reports have indicated Stephen Curry is the only untouchable Warrior in talks for Antetokounmpo. Golden State’s actions will speak louder than words when it comes to Butler, Friedell notes.
If Butler is not part of the Warriors’ offer, four-time champion Draymond Green will likely have to be part of the outgoing package for salary-matching purposes. He addressed that possibility on Friday.
“I’ve been here for 14 years,” Green said. “I have no reason to sit and worry about leaving. But if I’m traded, that’s part of the business. I ain’t losing no sleep, though. I slept great last night.”
Other members of Golden State’s roster admit the lead-up to the trade deadline is a stressful experience.
“It’s hard on all of us,” veteran big man Al Horford told Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, “but especially for younger players that are trying to find their way and establish themselves. This time of year, I find that it doesn’t matter what team you’re on, it’s always going to be stressful.
“It’s tough. We kind of have to have some sort of empathy for everybody, because we’re all just kind of going through it. And there’s a lot of ‘what ifs’ and things like that. From my experience, once the deadline passes, everybody kind of takes a deep breath. It slows down, and you’ll see a better team.”
Backup guard De’Anthony Melton is trying to tune out the outside noise, according to Poole.
“Honestly, you just got to put your head down and work,” Melton said. “Some stuff is out of your control. Early in my career, one of the vets told that when a superstar or whatever wants to get moved, everybody’s on the (trading) block. Nobody’s above the program.”
Jonathan Kuminga Diagnosed With Bone Bruise In Left Knee
3:45 pm: Curry will be active today, tweets Nick Friedell of The Athletic.
3:21 pm: Fifth-year forward Jonathan Kuminga underwent an MRI on Friday which revealed he has a bone bruise in his left knee, the Warriors announced in a press release (Twitter link). Kuminga hyperextended his left knee in the second quarter of Thursday’s loss at Dallas and did not return.
Kuminga has been ruled out for Sunday’s game at Minnesota. The team will monitor his progress and will determine a reevaluation date “in the coming days,” per the release.
The seventh overall pick of the 2021 draft, Kuminga demanded a trade out of Golden State on Jan. 15. The 23-year-old had been out of the rotation for over a month, but was recently reinserted into the lineup in the wake of Jimmy Butler‘s season-ending torn right ACL.
Kuminga played very well in his two appearances last week prior to the injury, recording 30 points (on 10-of-13 shooting), six rebounds, four assists and three steals in 30 total minutes. Overall, he’s averaging 12.1 PPG, 5.9 RPG and 2.5 APG on .454/.321/.742 shooting in 20 games (23.8 MPG).
In other Warriors injury news, Stephen Curry experienced right knee soreness on Saturday and is questionable for Sunday’s game, head coach Steve Kerr told reporters, including Anthony Slater of ESPN (Twitter video link). The star guard will warm up before determining whether he can play tonight.
De’Anthony Melton and Al Horford will suit up on Sunday, but neither will play in Monday’s rematch with the Wolves, Kerr added.
Pacific Notes: LeBron, Ayton, Melton, Green, Kings
For the first time in 22 seasons, Lakers superstar LeBron James was not named an All-Star starter, observes Tim Bontemps of ESPN.
The news isn’t surprising, given James missed the first 14 games of 2025/26 due to sciatica and understandably had to work his way into shape and form when he did return, having missed training camp and the preseason with the injury. But it’s still noteworthy, given that the 41-year-old has made the All-Star game a record 21 times — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is second with 19 appearances.
As Bontemps writes, the league’s coaches will have to select James as a reserve in order for him to extend the record streak, which dates back to 2005. To this point in his career, the only season when James didn’t make the All-Star game (or an All-NBA team, for that matter) was in 2003/04, when he won Rookie of the Year.
While James has played much better lately and has put up impressive statistics (22.6 points, 6.9 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals on .509/.328/.757 shooting), especially considering he’s the NBA’s oldest player, it seems fairly unlikely that the 6’9″ forward will be selected. He has missed 17 of Los Angeles’ 41 games, and there are lots of other worthy candidates in a stacked Western Conference.
Here’s more from the Pacific:
- Lakers center Deandre Ayton missed Saturday’s loss to Portland due to left knee soreness but he returned to action on Sunday and had a huge night in the victory over Toronto, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. The former No. 1 overall pick recorded 25 points (on 10-of-10 shooting) 13 rebounds and no turnovers, becoming the first player in team history (since individual turnovers became an official statistic in 1977/78) to score 25-plus points on 100% shooting with zero turnovers, per ESPN Research. Ayton also became the third Laker to make 10-plus field goal attempts without missing a shot while grabbing at least 10 rebounds, joining Wilt Chamberlain and Mitch Kupchak, McMenamin adds.
- Warriors guard De’Anthony Melton will miss Monday’s game against Miami, which is the front end of a back-to-back, tweets ESPN’s Anthony Slater. While it’s a small sample size (373 minutes), Golden State has outscored its opponents by a staggering +19.6 points per 100 possessions when Melton is playing, compared to a -0.7 net rating in the 1701 minutes the 27-year-old has been off the court. Melton missed most of last season as well as the start of ’25/26 due to a torn ACL in his left knee. Forward/center Draymond Green will also miss Monday’s game after being downgraded to questionable and then out because of a right ankle sprain, notes Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints (Twitter link).
- Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee lists some surprising statistics from the Kings‘ four-game winning streak, which was snapped with Sunday’s loss to Portland.
Warriors Notes: Hield, Butler, Richard, Kerr, More
Veteran guard/forward Buddy Hield capitalized in his unexpected return to the Warriors‘ rotation during Saturday’s win vs. Charlotte, writes Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area. Hield, one of the most prolific three-point shooters in NBA history, has struggled from long distance in a limited role this season, converting just 32.7% of his outside attempts.
Hield got an opportunity to play Saturday because Jimmy Butler was a (very) late scratch because of personal reasons. The 33-year-old finished with 14 points (on 5-of-8 shooting), three rebounds, three blocks and two steals in 18 minutes.
“It was great. He’s one of the best teammates I’ve ever seen,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “Just the way he conducts himself. His energy, his joy — whether he’s playing or not — it’s just the light that he brings to the locker room every day is infectious and powerful. He’s just an incredible guy to coach. I was happy for him that he had that night given that he’s been out of the loop for a while.”
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Butler was announced as a starter during pregame player introductions, so the crowd at Chase Center was confused when rookie Will Richard — not Butler — was part of the starting lineup, Johnson notes. General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. told Kerr that everything was OK with Butler, according to Johnson (Twitter link).
- Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area shares his takeaways from Saturday’s victory, which featured solid performances from Richard (11 points, six rebounds, five assists, three steals), De’Anthony Melton (24 points, six rebounds, three assists) and Brandin Podziemski (16 points, seven assists, six rebounds, two steals), among others.
- Kerr said prior to Saturday’s game that he doesn’t think another team will be able to break Golden State’s regular season record of 73 wins, which came back in ’15/16, as Nick Friedell of The Athletic relays. “I remember at the time I thought, ‘No way,’” Kerr said. “And then, about a month ago, I thought it would be broken. And now, I don’t think there’s any way anybody’s gonna break it again. It’s such a difficult thing, but Oklahoma City looked like they were on their way to doing it. But the reason it’s so hard is just you have to have good health — you have to have some luck. And most teams probably aren’t going to push themselves that hard to get there. It’s so difficult. My guess is it won’t be broken.”