Curry says still no target date for him to return

SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry said Monday that there is no target date for him to return from his left lower leg injury that has held him out since Feb. 4.

The team plans to reevaluate Curry after the All-Star break, but Curry said he will miss the Warriors’ first game out of the break against the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 23, and likely a few more after that.

Curry suffered partial tears to his superior tibiofibular ligaments and interosseous membrane as well as a contusion to his left lower leg when his knee collided with Dallas Mavericks point guard McKinley Wright IV‘s earlier this month.

Unlike when Curry suffered a left shoulder subluxation in December, which just had to get to a point where Curry wouldn’t reinjure it or put himself in jeopardy, this injury has to heal fully before he can return to play.

“Ligaments can heal in all different types of timelines,” Curry said. “So there’s a window for each checkpoint. After the All-Star break, I will hopefully get back on the court, and then depending on how things go from there, we can key in on a specific date to get back.”

Right now, Curry said, he can do almost any activity that is not an on-court, basketball-related activity, such as biking and lifting weights.

“It’s a slow process early, letting everything settle, let the healing process start,” he said. “The goal right now is just trying to let it heal while you maintain as much of your strength and conditioning. Keeping everything as active as possible around the injury.”

When Curry suffered the injury — late in the third quarter against the Mavericks — he initially thought it was a normal contusion. He immediately went to the bench to get checked by trainers, but when he stood up, something felt off.

When he couldn’t put any weight on his left leg, he knew it was more serious.

The Warriors are 1-2 without Curry this stretch. They went 5-6 through the 11 games he missed because of his shoulder injury. Staying afloat and remaining a .500 team overall without Curry the first time around was an impressive accomplishment, as Golden State was just trying to find some consistency.

Now, two months later, the Warriors find themselves in the same spot, with the same winning percentage.

So, once again, staying afloat is their goal.

“It’s just about trying to figure out how to win the next game,” Curry said. “It sounds boring, but it’s all we can really focus on … guys battling every single night trying to build momentum, find a little separation in the standings, find more of an identity of who we are as a team this year, all of those things are floating around.

“[I’m] very optimistic that we can finish these last two games strong and get the All-Star break. Get refreshed mentally and physically.”