Stephen Curry, the star of the Golden State Warriors, has been sidelined with a lingering knee injury that has cost him 22 games this season. Despite resuming light practice sessions and his plans to return, head coach Steve Kerr clarified that the team is not rushing him back and will not clear him to play until further updates.
Steve Kerr Confirms Stephen Curry Won’t Return Until Fully Healthy
From the day Kerr stepped in as the Warriors’ head coach, he placed his trust in Curry as the team’s offensive engine and empowered him as the leader of the franchise. The duo won four NBA titles in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2022 and led the Warriors to become one of the best offensive teams in the league.
Curry has played in 39 games this season, averaging 27.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.8 assists, and has been a consistent elite scorer. But his impact in the 2025-26 campaign has been limited because of injuries, especially a long stretch due to “runner’s knee.”
Curry encountered the issue in January and was forced to exit a game early. Although he did not suffer any kind of tear, his condition requires careful management, and the team sees no reason to rush him back into action.
“If we don’t feel good about [Steph’s knee], then he’s not going to play. We’re not pushing him into anything if things aren’t really clear,” Kerr said.
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Curry’s return will not be as straightforward as it seems, as he must pass a crucial test to evaluate how his knee responds. He was scheduled to participate in a full-contact scrimmage in Atlanta ahead of the team’s matchup with the Dallas Mavericks, after which he was expected to be added to the roster for the game against the Brooklyn Nets.
The Golden State Warriors will now enter a difficult stretch, and Curry’s absence will weigh heavily on the team.
Although Curry has not been at his best recently, his legacy continues to resonate across the NBA and still garners admiration for his MVP-caliber performances. Robert Parish, a Boston Celtics legend, commended the four-time NBA champion for changing the landscape of the league and paving the way for future generations to play basketball in a less physically demanding manner.
Parish also emphasized that Curry and Klay Thompson established a blueprint for winning championships in the modern NBA, saying:
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“You’ve got to give Stephen Curry credit. I think he changed, or helped change. He and Klay Thompson, how the game is played, how the NBA is played and officiated today. And I’m going to say that Stephen Curry and company revolutionized basketball. It looks the way it looks today in how basketball is played.”
The 38-year-old has led the NBA in three-pointers made, a record eight times, and sits atop the leaderboard with the highest career free-throw percentage in the league.
