After Stephen Curry was subbed out late in the third quarter against Brooklyn on Monday evening, coach Steve Kerr received a lot of criticism for it. His reasoning for it was that the Warriors were holding a nine-point lead, and he’d place the superstar back on the floor at the start of the fourth quarter.
What the tactician wasn’t expecting was that the Nets would produce an incredible 25-11 run and eventually won the game 128 to 120. The Golden State coach later explained that Steph’s playing time will be carefully managed throughout the campaign to ensure his energy.
“We usually pencil him in for 32 [minutes], and we like to keep it around that number,” he told the press postgame at Chase Center. “We were able to give him a good rest in the first half because the second unit was playing really well.”
Warriors’ Draymond Green reacts to Steve Kerr’s handling of Stephen Curry’s minuteshttps://t.co/b30zLJQgWk
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“I don’t love to run him the whole fourth quarter, and I like to have him close with some energy,” the Warriors coach added. “So that means if we can give him that last eight minutes — generally, I feel pretty good about that. But at that point, Brooklyn was rolling, and we couldn’t slow them down.”
This situation isn’t new, as the superstar has been held to minutes restrictions in the last couple of years due to his old age. The 36-year-old has played in 14 games so far this campaign, producing averages of 22.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists over 29.7 minutes per match.
Despite his team’s loss, the player remains optimistic about their chances to remain at the top of the Western Conference standings. “We’ve had some bright spots early in the season,” Curry said, as his team holds a 12-6 record in third place.
“These last two games have definitely left a sour taste, but we’ve given ourselves a little cushion with a renewed mindset on how we’re trying to create offense—no matter who’s on the floor. We’re still playing 12 guys, so we have to adjust, no matter who’s in the rotation,” he concluded.
Curry isn’t the only player being held to a minutes restriction in Golden State, as the team’s veteran core must be protected so that they last the entire season
Another player being held to minutes restriction is Draymond Green, who explained to the public why he considers this an important strategy so that veterans like himself can remain leaders throughout the campaign. After losing twice this week, the four-time champion addressed this issue on his own podcast show.
“Steve has 9 championship rings—5 as a player and 4 as a coach,” he explained. “The reason I’m telling you (this) is because in a regular season game on Monday in November, Steve Kerr is not going to overreact to what the minutes are to what’s already been a tough last 5 days for us.”
On Monday, for example, both him and Curry participated in 29 minutes that night against Brooklyn, with the point guard only logging 15 minutes in the second half. “(Kerr) is not going to overreact to a lead going away and put Steph back in the game or myself back in the game because the team is on a run,” Dray added. “He ain’t doing that.”
The veteran forward trusts his coach’s experience. “It’s a soft Monday in November vs. the Nets. Okay, they beat us, it sucks—we all hate to lose—but you’re not risking injury to Steph Curry,” Green shared. “Everybody’s going crazy, if this was a playoff game, you bet your bottom dollar all of us would’ve been right back in the game.”
