Stephen Curry Injury Update: Golden State Warriors Star Hopes For Sooner-Than-Expected Return From MCL Sprain

Stephen Curry had an encouraging update for his knee injury, with the Golden State Warriors star saying on Friday that his MCL sprain is feeling better and could lead to a sooner-than-expected return.

Curry has a two-week timetable to return from the injury, which he suffered in Sunday’s Game 4 win over the Houston Rockets.

Curry believes it won’t take that long.

“Feeling better but just got a ways to go,” Curry told ESPN. “I always have an optimistic view, no matter what it is. I hope to get back sooner. I haven’t talked to the doctors, athletic training staff, all the experts. That two-week timeline was, as Bob says, an educated guess.”

Curry said he is undergoing treatment and working on getting his complete range of motion back while also keeping active with cardio and strength training.

After staying largely healthy for the past two seasons — avoiding the lingering injury issues that made for a slower start to his career — Stephen Curry has caught the injury bug at the worst possible time for the Warriors. He will likely miss the significant portion of the team’s second round series, if not all of it.

But the Warriors could be catching a break in this area. The Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Clippers are headed to a sixth game, and should the Clippers overcome the 3-2 deficit and advance, the Warriors would be facing a team equally hobbled. The Clippers have lost forward Blake Griffin for the entire offseason and Chris Paul is out for an extended period as well.

Stephen Curry: 'When the body says it's time, then we'll push that button' on return https://t.co/TQvQdwWgK5 @JanieMcCAP

— AP Sports (@AP_Sports) April 29, 2016

Stephen Curry is optimistic he'll return earlier than expected: https://t.co/UCmdLhXOgn pic.twitter.com/F17YJxYCjY

— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) April 29, 2016

Curry was diagnosed on Monday with a sprained MCL after he slipped on a wet spot on the court and banged his knee on the ground. As ESPN reported, it is a Grade 1 sprain, the lowest level.

Though the injury could keep Stephen Curry out as long as a month judging by past instances of Grade 1 MCL sprains, it almost didn’t keep him out of the second half of Game 4. Coach Steve Kerr said that Curry wanted to go back in, and after halftime Curry walked onto the court to test out the knee, ultimately shaking his head and going back to the locker room.

Afterward, Curry’s teammates said they encouraged him to stay out and get better.

“He was standing there crying, you know, and like, ‘Dog, just get out of here. We’ll hold you down,'” Warriors forward Draymond Green told ESPN Radio’s Kevin Calabro and Jon Barry after the game. “We gotta support him, you know, and be there for him. I mean, he came out and obviously gave it a go, wasn’t 100 percent, and he gave it a go, and it’s unfortunate that that happened.”

Curry also noted that he could have been a lot worse.

“That could have been 10 times worse,” Curry told reporters. “It was just simply a wet spot that put me in a very vulnerable position.”

Even though the Golden State Warriors steamrolled the rest of the NBA to the tune of 73 regular-season wins, there is some thought that the injury to Stephen Curry could have them primed for an upset. Washington Post writer Tim Bontemps noted said that the Warriors would be vulnerable in the second round without their league MVP.

“The truth is that, without Curry, Golden State would be an underdog against any of those four teams — beginning with a matchup against the Clippers in the second round, presuming Los Angeles manages to finish off the Portland Trail Blazers in their first round series.”

The Golden State Warriors said they will evaluate Stephen Curry’s injury again in a little over a week.

[Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images]