Stephen Curry Heads for MRI After Abdomen Injury Vs. Rockets

Stephen Curry left Toyota Center for an MRI on his right abdomen and oblique after exiting the Golden State Warriors' 115-108 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night, and coach Steve Kerr said the team's anxiety level is elevated while it waits for results, according to ESPN.

"Concern is high," Kerr said after the game, per ESPN. "But I have no idea the extent."

What happened to Curry during the game

Curry began grabbing at his right side only a few minutes into the first quarter but kept playing, periodically glancing toward the Golden State bench, ESPN reported. With 7:22 left in the opening period, he came off a Draymond Green screen and made a 28-foot 3-pointer, then yelled in pain immediately after the release and signaled to the bench.

The Warriors called a timeout a couple of possessions later. Curry had a brief conversation with Kerr before walking to the locker room in what ESPN described as obvious discomfort, followed by Drew Yoder, a member of the team's medical staff. He stayed in the locker room for evaluation through the end of the first quarter and was ruled out early in the second with what the team labeled right abdominal soreness, per ESPN.

How did Kerr describe the team's concern

Kerr told reporters after the game that Curry described the injury as something new. "He told me it was a tweak of his side, an injury he hadn't felt before," Kerr said, according to ESPN's report. That detail is part of why Kerr framed the team's concern as high rather than routine, even though he said he did not yet know how serious the injury was.

Curry has been in the midst of one of his strongest stretches of the season. He entered Wednesday's game averaging 30.6 points in 28.6 minutes per game, ESPN reported, numbers that had helped carry Golden State to an eight-game winning streak heading into Houston.

What is the status of the injury diagnosis

As of ESPN's report, Curry had left the arena for an MRI, and no diagnosis had been announced. Kerr's postgame comments made clear the Warriors did not have test results in hand when he spoke to reporters, leaving the extent of the abdominal and oblique injury unknown. Abdominal and oblique strains are common soft-tissue injuries in basketball that can range from short absences to multi-week recoveries, though ESPN's report did not include any specific prognosis or timeline for Curry, and none is offered here because none has been reported.

How did the game end for Golden State

Golden State trailed 19-10 when Curry exited early in the second quarter. The Warriors clawed back into the game without him but ultimately lost 115-108, ESPN reported, a result that snapped the eight-game winning streak that Curry's scoring had helped fuel. The loss came on the road against a Houston team that also saw guard Marcus Smart ejected during the contest for throwing a punch at Golden State's Dennis Schroder — wait, the report from the same night described Smart being ejected for throwing a punch at Warriors big man Gui Santos — details ESPN carried alongside the Curry injury news but did not connect to Curry's exit.

What did Curry tell his teammates at halftime

Before leaving for the MRI, Curry spoke to his teammates at halftime, according to ESPN, and told them to focus on the game in front of them rather than his status. ESPN's report did not include the full text of those remarks beyond that instruction, and the Warriors had not issued a further statement on Curry's condition at the time of the report.

The injury adds uncertainty to a Golden State roster that has leaned heavily on Curry's scoring and shot creation through the season's first stretch. Any update on the MRI results or a return timeline would come from the Warriors or from Kerr in a subsequent media availability, neither of which had occurred as of ESPN's story.

For readers following other NBA storylines this week, the Knicks have released single-game tickets after ending their title drought, a separate development in a league that has produced an unusually active opening stretch to the season.