The Golden State Warriors got some bad news on Wednesday when Stephen Curry was diagnosed with a Grade 1 hamstring strain that will keep him out for at least a week during the team's Western Conference semifinal series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. If the team is looking for a bright side, they're actually 9-3 in the playoffs when Stephen Curry is not playing.
The bad news is that all those games took place many years ago during the 2016 and 2018 postseason. The Warriors won all four series that Curry missed time during and went to the Finals both years.
Stephen Curry's Postseason Injury History
2016 NBA Playoffs: Stephen Curry missed six games
Warriors Record without Stephen Curry: 4-2
In 2016 the Warriors entered the postseason as the greatest regular season team ever having won 73 games. Curry injured his ankle in the first round against hte Houston Rockets and missed Game 2 and Game 3. He returned in Game 4, but was held to six points and five turnovers in 18 minutes before he injured his knee. Despite Curry being limited or out of four games, the Warriors won the series in five.
In the second round Curry missed the first three games of the series, but Golden State took a 2-1 lead thanks to the performances of Draymond Green and Klay Thompson. When Curry returned in Game 4 he came off the bench and scored 40 points, including 17 in a single overtime period. After one of his six three-pointers in overtime, the Blazers called timeout giving Curry the perfect opportunity to proclaim he was back.
Curry did not miss another game during this postseason, but the Warirors still blew a 3-1 lead to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals.
2018 Playoffs: Stephen Curry missed six games
Warriors record without Stephen Curry: 5-1
The Warriors entered the 2018 playoffs as the defending NBA champions, having won two of the last three titles. Golden State, with Kevin Durant, finished the regular season with 58 wins and the third best record in the NBA behind the Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors.
Curry had suffered an MCL sprain in March and missed six weeks, including the team's first round series against the San Antonio Spurs. The Warriors won that series 4-1 and then won Game 1 against the New Orleans Pelicans with Nick Young starting in his place. Young also started the second game of the series as Curry came off the bench.
Curry and the Warriors beat the Pelicans in five games and then needed seven games to get past the Rockets. In the 2018 NBA Finals they swept the Cleveland Cavaliers in a series that began with the J.R. Smith game.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as What is the Warriors Postseason Record Without Stephen Curry?.