Steve Kerr looked at Stephen Curry during a third-quarter timeout to see the two-time MVP vehemently shaking his head. Curry would not come out of the game. After a talk with the training staff, Kerr relented.
“Third quarter, it was a quick loook to him and I literally said ‘no way, no way,” Curry said. “…it felt like the first day of school again, for real.”
Up until that point, Curry had been nursing an ankle injury for three weeks, and seemed ready to play since the Christmas Day matchup versus the Cavaliers. However, Curry knew he had to look at the bigger picture and waited to come back onto the court. However, once he was on the hardwood, it was like he never left.
Curry made a huge splash in his return from injury, dropping 38 Points including a season-high 10 three-pointers, leading the Warriors past the Grizzlies 141-128.
Curry shot 13 for 17 from the field and 10 for 13 from three-point land in only 26 minutes of action. The buzz around ORACLE Arena could be felt right from warm-ups, as Curry’s mere presence brought an energy into the building. Throughout the game, Curry was gesturing to his teammates and looked like he was genuinely having fun. The crowd fed off his energy and provided that ROARACLE spark.
Klay Thompson added 21 Points and Kevin Durant tallied 20 Points, 9 Assists, and 5 Rebounds, as the Warriors finished off a three-week long home stand, and 2017, with a win. Warriors C Zaza Pachulia also had a breakout game, finishing with 17 Points, 8 Rebounds, and 6 Assists.
For Memphis, Marc Gasol finished with 27 Points and 6 Rebounds, while Tyreke Evans put up 22 Points and 9 Assists. The Grizzlies could do nothing to stop Curry and the Warriors.
“It wasn’t just him. You look up and they’ve got guys that can make shots all over the floor. They were making shots that were contested.” Grizzlies interim head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of Curry and the Warriors.
This game, however, was about Curry. As soon as his name was mentioned in the starting lineup, the crowd roared with delight, and even his teammates couldn’t help but show their joy with their MVP coming back.
Curry was inserted back into the game with less than three minutes left in the game, and immediately crossed Marc Gasol up and knocked down his tenth three of the game.
“I was feeling pretty good. I think me and him had an understanding where the minutes would kind of fall as the game would go on and I would give him feedback how my body was feeling, and I felt amazing and it was me just saying that, I really did,” Curry said of convincing Kerr he could stay in. “He gave me that extra minute and a half and I made a shot, so it paid off.”
The only person who couldn’t enjoy Curry’s return was Draymond Green, who was ejected in the second quarter after picking up two technical fouls in a 43-second span.
The Warriors finish off 2017 with the best record in the NBA at 29-8. They kick off 2018 on the road on January 3rd, with a matchup against the Mavericks.
