Warriors, minus Curry, Thompson, Durant, face Jazz (Mar 24, 2018)
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Having suffered their worst loss of the season with a healthy Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant the last time Golden State saw the Utah Jazz, the Warriors will face the Western Conference playoff contender without any of them in a rematch Sunday night.
The Warriors learned Saturday that they will be without Curry for the rest of the regular season when an MRI determined he suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain in Friday's 106-94 home victory over Atlanta.
Golden State management announced that Curry will be re-examined in three weeks, which coincides with opening day of the NBA playoffs April 14.
It's possible the Warriors will be playing the Jazz that day in Game 1 of an opening-round series.
The Warriors (54-18) began the weekend with the second-best record in the West. The Jazz (41-32) had the eighth best, but only a half-game out of the seventh spot that would match up with No. 2 seed in the first round.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who also has seen Thompson (broken thumb), Durant (fractured rib cartilage) and Draymond Green (pelvic contusion) get injured in recent weeks, tried to put a positive spin on the latest mishap.
"You have to keep it in perspective," he said. "It could be a lot worse."
Seeing a hot Jazz team in the first round of the playoffs would not seem ideal for the defending champs, either.
Curry was missing because of an ankle injury when the Warriors thumped the Jazz 126-101 in Oakland in December, before Utah sent a message with a 129-99 rout in the rematch a little more than a month later in Salt Lake City, with all four Warriors All-Stars in action.
The Jazz were struggling at 21-28 before the Warriors' visit in January. They are now not only a solid bet to make the Western Conference playoffs but also not the type of hot team a higher seed would like to see in the first round.
Utah is coming off a 124-120 overtime loss at San Antonio on Friday, a game in which rookie sensation Donovan Mitchell poured in 35 points.
It was Mitchell's seventh game this season with 30 or more points; all other rookies in the league have had a total of eight.
"I'm upset after a game like this," he said after almost single-handedly forcing the overtime with 14 fourth-quarter points in a Utah rally. "Even though we were down and didn't play our best, we were right there to win."
Hounded by Warriors defensive ace Thompson, Mitchell hasn't been at his best against Golden State, averaging 18.5 points on 14-of-34 shooting.
But Thompson won't be available this time around, matching up Mitchell -- at least for starters -- with Golden State's offensive-minded Nick Young.
The first-year Warriors player has proved to be a capable replacement for Thompson offensively, averaging 17.6 points in five starts since his teammate suffered his broken thumb.
Young played an especially important role in Friday's win over the Hawks, taking up the slack after Curry was injured to finish with a season-best 24 points, hitting six 3-pointers.
The Warriors have played three full games this month without Curry, Thompson and Durant, going 1-2.
They expect to get Green back against the Jazz after a one-game absence.
