Warriors at Grizzlies
The Golden State Warriors hope to have dodged a bullet with an injury to superstar guard Stephen Curry and figure to showcase a limited lineup in the regular-season finale Wednesday against the host Memphis Grizzlies. Curry departed Tuesday's 112-103 win at New Orleans with a mild foot sprain, although the team said that he left for precautionary reasons and reports indicate that the two-time Most Valuable Player will be ready for the first game of the playoffs.
"We think he'll be fine," coach Steve Kerr told reporters of Curry after his team won its sixth straight. It remains to be seen who the first-place Warriors will play in the opening round as three potential opponents are fighting it out into the final day of the regular season for the six through eight seeds in the West. The Grizzlies haven't been in that mix for months but they've shown a little bit of fight while playing out the string and nearly knocked off a desperate Detroit Pistons team on the road Tuesday night. Point guard Mike Conley missed his fifth straight game for Memphis with an ankle injury.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBCS Bay Area (Golden State), FS Southeast (Memphis)
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (57-24): Kerr was not planning on playing Curry in the finale anyway and fellow stars Kevin Durant (flu) and Klay Thompson (knee) also missed the game in New Orleans. Center DeMarcus Cousins, who is also expected to sit Wednesday, enjoyed one final tune-up before his first postseason by producing 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists against the Pelicans. Golden State will face either Oklahoma City, San Antonio or the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round beginning this weekend.
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (32-49): Guard Delon Wright and forward Bruno Caboclo scored 15 points apiece to pace the Memphis attack in the 100-93 loss Tuesday night. Tyler Zeller is getting a chance to make a statement after being signed last week in the wake of injuries to fellow centers Jonas Valanciunas and Joakim Noah. The 29-year-old Zeller needed only 19 minutes to produce 13 points and six rebounds against the Pistons and he's averaging 12.7 points in three games with the Grizzlies.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Wright is averaging 20.3 points, 10.7 rebounds and 9.3 assists over his last three games.
2. Warriors G Damion Lee took advantage of Curry's early exit to score a career high-tying 20 points at New Orleans.
3. Golden State took each of the last five meetings.