Many Warriors fans will be happy to hear Steph Curry is returning to his old minutes plan in coach Steve Kerr’s rotation.
For many seasons during the height of the Warriors’ dynasty, Curry would consistently play the entire first and third quarters and finish off the last six minutes of the second and fourth frames on the floor. In an attempt to preserve their superstar, Kerr and the Warriors unveiled a different rotation strategy for Curry earlier this season in which he has planned rests.
Kerr's updated plan might not look exactly like 12 minutes on, six minutes off rotation of old, but it’ll look familiar.
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“It’s going to be basically one rest [per half] instead of two,” Kerr told reporters Sunday.
“We’ll probably bridge the first and second [quarters], third and fourth,” he continued. “It kind of depends on how he’s going in the first and third quarters. Now that we have Klay back, and now that we are in a situation where we’re heading for the stretch run, it feels important to get Steph into that rotation pattern.”
The Warriors have won just two of their last 10 games. In that span, Curry is averaging 26.3 points and 6.6 assists per game while shooting 48.1 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from 3-point range.
Curry has played more than 39 minutes six times this season. Three of those six games have occurred during Golden State’s 2-8 slump.
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“I also think it’s easier for us to keep his minutes around 36,” Kerr said. “What’s happened of late is we’ve been in desperation mode and played him the entire fourth quarter several times because when his normal rest time would come, we’d be down six, struggling to score and we had to keep him in.
“I think this is a good time to make that change.”
Curry’s new-yet-familiar minutes plan won’t be unveiled Monday night against the Denver Nuggets, as he stayed home along with Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins to rest for Tuesday’s showdown against the Los Angeles Clippers.