Warriors Notes: Curry, Slump, Payton, Kerr, Wiggins

The Warriors had a player-controlled meeting ahead of their Christmas Day game with the Lakers, according to Trayce Jackson-Daviswho said that Stephen Curry was particularly vocal during that meeting, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Curry’s message was that the Warriors’ season — which opened with 12 wins in 15 games, then dropped 10 of the next 13 heading into Wednesday — “could go one way or the other,” Jackson-Davis said.

“It’s been hard to find any kind of momentum or consistency,” Curry explained. “You just can’t lose the spirit, the belief that we’re a good enough team to figure it out. Because this league is ruthless … You dig yourself a hole, like it can be hard to pull yourself out of . Right now we’re in that window where we can still get some momentum. The next several weeks before the (All-Star) break are crucial. Or we’re in a situation where we’re chasing down the stretch, and nobody want to be there.”

While Curry backed up his message with a season-high 38 points on 14-of-24 shooting, it wasn’t enough to get Golden State past Los Angeles. The Warriors tied the game in the final seconds on a Curry three-pointer, but surrendered a game-winner Austin Reaves layup on next possession. The club is now 15-14 and only a half game ahead of Spurs no. 11.

“We’re down,” head coach Steve Kerr said of his team’s morale, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “Everybody’s disappointed. We’ve lost some confidence. You can feel it. We had a good vibe early in the season and we’re going for it right now. But I love our guys, high-character guys. They care. They care about each other. I believe in them. I believe we’ll turn this around, so it’s all part of the season, part of life.”

We have more on the Warriors:

• Golden State is back in action on Friday against the Clippers and Saturday against Phoenix. Curry — who has been battling bilateral knee inflammation — could sit out one of the two games in the back-to-back set after playing a “tough” 36 minutes Wednesday, Kerr told reporters after the loss. “When the knee came up, (selective rest) was part of the conversation,” Curry said. “Still dealing with it to some extent.” According to Slaterif Curry misses one of this weekend’s games, it will likely be Friday’s contest in LA
• Warriors guard Gary Payton II left Wednesday’s game in the third quarter with a left calf strain and went to the locker room for the remainder of the contest. The severity of the injury is not yet known, but Payton limped out of the arena late in the night, Slater reports.
• Kerr took his share of the blame for the Warriors’ struggles in recent weeks, noting that his unpredictable lineups and rotations have not made things easier for his players as Slater passes on. “I’ve had a million different starting lineups. Guys are in and out of rotations. I am well aware of that, and it is difficult as a player not to know how many minutes you will get, which minutes you will get,” Kerr said. “The reality is we’re searching. We’ve lost 11 of 14 games. I don’t feel like this is a roster where you say, ‘Here’s our top eight guys, top nine guys.’ Our roster is really deep. We have a lot of guys that can play. That’s the problem.”
• IN a feature story for The AthleticMarcus Thompson II and Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic take an in-depth look at how the Warriors move forward Andrew Wiggins trying to find his joy after dealing with his father’s deteriorating health and eventual passing in recent years.