After a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical came out early Wednesday morning suggesting that Stephen Curry was playing at "70 percent, at best," Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr cleared the air regarding his superstar's health status at his team's practice on Wednesday:
"Is that, 'Sources with knowledge of the team's thinking'? That's my favorite expression these days. 'Sources with knowledge of the team's intimate thinking.' Well who would that be? I don't know. Nobody has said anything about Steph being 70 percent to me -- our training staff, relatives, friends, sources with knowledge of our team's thinking. Nobody has told me he's 70 percent. Apparently they told the media, but they didn't tell me."
Kerr's response shouldn't come as a surprise -- there's no upside for the Warriors to admit Curry is injured, or playing far below full strength.
Such an admission wouldn't garner much sympathy -- it would merely sound like an excuse, which no one wants to hear this late in the season, especially after Curry dropped 40 points on the Portland Trail Blazers just over two weeks ago.
In addition, if the Warriors admitted Curry was playing through severe pain or discomfort, that would only incentivize the Thunder to attack him offensively and defensively. It'd be a significant advantage for OKC, and Golden State -- who currently trails the Thunder 3-1 in the Western Conference Finals -- should be doing everything they can to prevent any more of those.
With all of that mind, it makes sense why Kerr -- and Curry and anyone else associated with him or the Warriors -- would publicly deny Curry being at 70 percent or worse. But, of course, that doesn't mean it's true.
While it's obvious that Curry isn't 100 percent, it seems as if we're never going to get a clear-cut answer one way or another.
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