Preview: Curry, and the art of possible
Warriors take on Kings with nothing to lose
The magic of Stephen Curry doesn’t guarantee a win, but it does fundamentally shift the teeter totter towards Golden State’s favor. The Warriors now have four games, and just under a week to continue their tune-up - and then it’s a couple of do-or-die games with the season on the line.
In his career, Curry has delivered miracle after magical miracle, and now the Warriors are setting themselves up for another shot at the stars. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn’t, but regardless, the ride is suddenly way more fun. This is professional basketball of course, so vibes alone won’t scratch the itch for success any more. The results will indeed speak for themselves, but you can rest assured that Curry and the Warriors are poised to scream at the top of their lungs and make as much noise as possible.
Tonight, their opponents, the Sacramento Kings, are what many see the Warriors as these days: scrappy, likely a bit short of talent, and dangerous to any team that gives them enough wriggle room. But there’s degrees to this. The Kings are a rebuilding team, but one that Golden State has to pay attention to - both for the win, as well as to establish a pattern of winning. A textile that has been lost in the fabric of what this team has had to be this season, but is deeply engrained into what Curry and the Warriors are still trying to do here.
Sure, the Warriors could tell themselves that these final games don’t matter, as the team is officially locked into the 10th seed no matter what, and with a path that requires two straight wins against teams with a better record than the Warriors - only to win a chance to play the OKC Thunder in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
But these last handful of games have Curry again, which means that anything is possible.
GAME DETAILS
WHO: Golden State Warriors (36-42) vs. Sacramento Kings (21-58)
WHEN: Tuesday, April 7th, 2026; 7pm PST
WATCH: NBCSBA
29 points in 26 minutes
Curry won’t come off the bench for much longer, but his electric performance in limited minutes is likely to remain a theme. They know that he’s the extra gear, and beyond the more tactical basketball reasons, will also strategically want to ease Curry back into action, but under steadily increasing minutes in order to prep for the playoffs.
But it’s clear immediately that Curry’s return opens up a lot of options for this team.
"You can just feel it," Kerr said. "We're back in the mix. We're back in the fight with Steph. ... It doesn't take much for him to find his rhythm. His rhythm is also our rhythm. ... He changes everything.
In their last game, the Warriors pushed a Houston Rockets team that is much better (on paper) to the final possession.
It was one of those NBA “oopsie” games, as well, as the league came out after the fact to admit that yes, that should have been a shooting foul for Curry. But that’s how narrow the margins can be expected to be. Even with Curry, this is a team on the brink, for better and worse.
Here comes a new-look that will feel familiar. Curry had a solid look at the game winner. This game could’ve broken the other way. Even with Curry playing limited minutes, and his first time really out in the mix with the newly defined Warriors’ rotation.
No time out called? Bang BANG style? Well, sir, you have our attention. Even Durant - a guy who knows Curry as well as anyone was in awe of his impact.
“We had the game in control,” Kevin Durant said in a postgame interview with NBC. “Then they put No. 30 in the game, and he got him back into it so easily. … He looked incredible after a couple of months off.”
On the final possession, the Rockets doubled Curry like they remembered the damage he caused them in the playoffs last year. Houston coaxed a contested 3 out of Curry — which clanked, securing the Warriors’ 117-116 defeat at Chase Center, and a losing season for just the second time in Steve Kerr’s 12 years as the team’s coach.
Oh, well. Bummer about Kerr’s losing record. Not coincidentally, both were primarily impacted negatively by injuries to the very same players that have carried this team to so much success over the years. So it works out in the wash, but is indicative of how dependant the entire franchise is on Curry’s health.
The Warriors have him back now, and though there are still plenty of storms headed this way, it somehow all feels a bit better in Dub Nation.
This squad isn’t in the business of likely outcomes any more.
Prediction
Wait, if the likely outcome is that they win this game…then? Ah, never mind. It’s Curry and the rejuvenated Warriors at home against the Kings. Give us a little scare, and then please outplay them back to Sacramento. Warriors win by single digits.