Steph Curry will have five games to prepare for the postseason, with the Warriors almost certainly facing the longest road of any Western Conference qualifier.
Golden State announced Saturday that he is expected to play in Sunday’s home game against the Houston Rockets (7 p.m., NBC) after missing the last 27 games with a nagging knee injury.
“The plan is for him to play,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
After practice on Saturday, Kerr was beaming as he announced that Curry was now questionable to return, noting that “the sun is shining a little brighter, food tastes a little better.”
“The question earlier is why is Steph coming back,” Kerr said. “It cuts to the core of what our business is about. We want our fans to be really excited to come watch beautiful basketball, and nobody represents that more than Steph.”
Curry, who turned 38 last month, has been sidelined since Jan. 30 with runner’s knee, which is characterized as pain around the kneecap. Golden State is 9-18 since he went out of the lineup.
The Warriors took a step Thursday toward having as healthy a roster as they can for their playoff push. Kristaps Porzingis, De’Anthony Melton, Gui Santos and Gary Payton II returned in Thursday’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers after missing Wednesday’s defeat to the San Antonio Spurs.
Quinten Post remained out with a foot injury, as did Seth Curry with a thigh issue. Al Horford is awaiting re-evaluation of a calf strain that has kept him out since March 13, while Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody are out for the year with knee injuries.
Curry, the two-time MVP, scrimmaged on Tuesday and Thursday this week and was cleared Saturday to return to game action. He has been around the team, going through pregame warmups in recent weeks, as he prepares to return from an injury that he and the Warriors initially hoped would only keep him out through the All-Star break in mid-February. Swelling and discomfort after workouts pushed that timeline back significantly, but he’s now returning at an important time for the team.
The Warriors play five games over eight days — all in California — to close the regular season, then will almost certainly be on the road for a play-in tournament game.
If the current standings hold, the Warriors would face the Clippers in Los Angeles for the season finale, then play them again at the Intuit Dome for the No. 9-versus-No. 10 play-in game.
As of Saturday afternoon, the 10th-place Warriors are three games behind the LA Clippers for the No. 9 seed and 3.5 games behind the Portland Trail Blazers for No. 8. The ninth seed will host the 10th seed, with the winner moving on to play the loser of a game between the seventh and eighth seeds, with the final playoff spot on the line.
The road to a first-round playoff series is an arduous one, but it has just become much, much easier with No. 30 back on the court.
“Superman’s back,” Gary Payton II said.