The Golden State Warriors’ championship bid is in peril after Stephen Curry suffered a left hamstring strain in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
Concerns mount for Curry as he faces a grim scenario of potentially missing more time.
“He’s older, maybe he’s starting to break down, he moves a lot for a 36-37-year-old,” Shaquille O’Neal said on TNT at halftime. “This could be crucial. If I’m Golden State, I definitely want to get this game for him, rest him Game 2, give him a couple more days [before] Game 3.”
Curry scored 13 points in 13 minutes to lead the Warriors’ strong start as they sat down on a 44-31 halftime cushion.
“It’s time for Jimmy [Butler] to step up,” Shaq added. “Buddy Hield has to be the Buddy Hield he was in that Game 7 in Houston [when he went for 33 points]. You miss Steph, you miss a lot. You miss a guy that controls the floor, you miss a guy that hits a lot of wild, timely shots…so everybody’s going to have to play superb basketball to win.”
“I only got two things to say. Icy Hot. Man up. You’ll be alright for Game 2, 3, 4 and 5.”
Shaq, always the pitchman, discusses Steph Curry’s injury against the Timberwolves. pic.twitter.com/h2q64DTBxt
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 7, 2025
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The Warriors survived without Curry in the second half to pull off a 99-88 win over a well-rested Timberwolves team.
Hield and Butler scored 24 and 20 points, respectively, to lead the Warriors to the much-needed win for Curry. Draymond Green added 18 points.
Game 2 is on Thursday in Minnesota.
Hamstring Injury Recovery Timeline
Dr. Nirav Pandya, a professor at the Orthopedic Surgery department of the University of California, San Francisco and director of sports medicine at Benioff Children’s Hospital, said the minimum missed time for hamstring injuries in the NBA is six games based on a medical study he was part of.
“It doesn’t necessarily mean that Stephen Curry will be gone for six games,” Dr. Pandya said.
Dr. Evan Jeffries, an NBA and NFL injury expert and owner of the San Diego-based Evolving Motion Physical Therapy, also outlined a typical recovery timeline for hamstring strain.
“This is the worst case scenario in a playoff series,” Dr. Jeffries wrote on X about Curry’s hamstring strain. “Typical timeline of healing is Grade I: 7-10 days and Grade II: 3-6 weeks.”
Warriors Warned Not to Rush Steph Curry’s Return
Curry’s return to play will be determined by the grade of his hamstring strain, location of the strain, the number of hamstring muscles involved, cross cross-sectional area involved and the degree of swelling, according to Dr. Pandya.
Curry will have an MRI to determine the severity of his hamstring strain.
A grade 1 strain is a micro tear, grade 2 is a partial tear and grade 3 is a complete tear.
Dr. Pandya warned that rushing Curry to return might lead to other injuries.
“They need to make sure that [Curry] has full mobility and strength when they’re on the court, which is particularly important for a player like Stephen Curry,” Dr. Pandya explained. “Now, the reason why you don’t want to rush back hamstring strain is that there’s a high rate of re-injury if you come back too early. In addition, there’s a high rate of additional injuries to the other parts of the body if your hamstring is not very secure or strong enough to come back on the court.”
Quick halftime video for #DubNation on the left hamstring strain that was reported by the team that Stephen Curry suffered. There are multiple factors that determine the return to play timeline that the medical staff will determine based on exam, imaging, and risk of re-injury. pic.twitter.com/6CxpaOcamu
— Dr. Nirav Pandya, M.D. (@DrNiravPandya) May 7, 2025
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