The Golden State Warriors may just have watched their NBA season pass by them as the reigning champions are now in danger of losing their trophy soon. The fall of Stephen Curry, the golden boy of the team, led fans and sports analysts to believe that the end is near for the group that surpassed the 72-win record of the Chicago Bulls under the Michael Jordan era. However, will this record-breaking achievement be the only takeaway of the Golden State Warriors this NBA season?
Speculations are rife that the absence of Curry from the roster will make the Golden State Warriors a sitting duck when the time comes for them to defend their title against the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference. In fact, even the Oklahoma City Thunder of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook appear to be serious threats to a Curry-less team. With these in mind, fans of the Golden State Warriors refuse to entertain the idea of them facing off against the Cleveland Cavaliers with the healthy LeBron James as well as the surging Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving.
"MCL injuries are typically treated non-surgically in a hinged knee brace and usually take 2 to 6 weeks to heal," explained Thomas P. McWeeney, MD of the injury of Curry. The sports medicine expert added, "Mr. Curry will work with the physical therapist and athletic trainer to recover full knee range of motion and reduce swelling. Therapy will likely also include ice baths, stationary bike and electrical muscle stimulation to maintain leg strength, in which he will progress from walking to jogging to sprinting to agility drills."
Despite the promising therapies awaiting Curry, the Golden State Warriors will still be without their lead star for the following games in the NBA playoffs 2016. Although they beat the Houston Rockets, James Harden and Dwight Howard are not exactly at the same level as Kawhi Leonard, LaMarcus Aldridge and Danny Green. In fact, even an aging Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker pose threats to the Golden State Warriors.
Amid the growing fear over their imminent losses to either the San Antonio Spurs or the Cleveland Cavaliers, some sports analysts still feel that the Golden State Warriors have a shot at keeping their title. Tim Legler of ESPN shared that while the loss of Curry is definitely a "blow," his absence in the NBA playoffs 2016 will not "significantly throw them off course." That is, Legler believes that the Golden State Warriors will remain strong contenders for the crown.
"That's how good their team is," shared Legler of the Golden State Warriors. He added, "That's how hard they are to defend. I don't think the Clippers are a team that's a real juggernaut that can shut them down. They have issues defensively. I don't think they're a very tough team physically defensively."
