Steph Curry Finally Gets the Green Light: Five-on-Five Scrimmage Is Here

After nearly two months on the sidelines, Stephen Curry is one step closer to suiting up for real. The Golden State Warriors star got cleared Tuesday to participate in a five-on-five scrimmage, marking his biggest opportunity yet to test that nagging right knee injury that's kept him sidelined since late January. This is huge for Golden State's playoff hopes.

The Long Road Back

Curry first tweaked his right knee after a workout in Minneapolis on January 24, and things got worse from there. He tried to gut it out for a few games, but when he took the court against the Detroit Pistons on January 30, he couldn't make it through the third quarter. That was it. He's missed 26 straight games since, and the Warriors have gone 16-25 without him. Yeah, the team is struggling hard.

There was real optimism after the All-Star break that he'd come roaring back, but his knee didn't respond well to on-court work during All-Star weekend in Los Angeles. Curry told the medical staff he wasn't ready for live action when the team returned to practice. Rick Celebrini, the Warriors' lead medical decision maker, has been cautious, keeping Curry in the weight room and individual training sessions instead of letting him do contact work with the team. Last week Curry was pushing for scrimmage clearance, but Celebrini held firm until Tuesday morning when he finally gave the thumbs up.

One Scrimmage, Then We'll See

Coach Steve Kerr is taking it one step at a time. Curry will definitely miss Wednesday's game against the San Antonio Spurs and is listed as "doubtful" for Thursday's home matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers. "Gotta see how he responds to the scrimmage and we'll take it from there," Kerr said. Third-year forward Gui Santos watched practice and said Curry looked sharp. Kerr noted the gym felt "bouncier" and everybody's "spirits were lifted" just having Curry back on the floor.

The Stakes Are Real

The Warriors are sitting at 36-39 right now and holding down the 10th seed in the Western Conference. They're stuck in the bottom of the play-in bracket, and they need Curry back badly if they want to make a real run. The internal hope is to get him healthy enough to play some games before play-in week so he's got a runway heading into those two elimination games needed to push into the playoffs as the eighth seed.

After this back-to-back with the Spurs and Cavaliers, Golden State gets two days off before hosting the Houston Rockets on Sunday night. That's when we'll really see where things stand.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.