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Stephen Curry On Steve Kerr’s Decision To Bench Him In Favor Of Jordan Poole: “It's About Who Is In The Closing Lineup."


 


The Golden State Warriors have been absolutely spectacular in the playoffs so far. The Warriors currently hold a 3-0 lead over the Denver Nuggets right now. Golden State has been able to accomplish this despite Stephen Curry not starting any of the first 3 games so far. This is because of the performances by Jordan Poole, who has only gotten better in the playoffs so far. Poole's performances have warranted a starting spot.


Stephen Curry spoke about the selection dilemma facing Steve Kerr right now, as Kerr is currently bringing Curry off the bench so that he can start Jordan Poole. Curry noted that he is more focused on winning and that the important thing isn't really starting the game, but being in the closing lineup. Curry noted that him starting isn't really a concern right now, and he wants to contribute to winning basketball.


Eventually Steph Curry will be back in the starting lineup. Someone — Poole, Wiggins, Looney — will have to come out. 


Curry: “Hopefully I’ve demonstrated at the end of the day it really doesn’t matter.”


Full Curry quote on the “difficult decision”





“We got options. Hopefully, I’ve demonstrated at the end of the day that it really doesn’t matter. It’s about who is in the closing lineup. He’s ready to go when his number has been called. Jordan’s been unbelievable this last month and a half in the starting lineup. Klay has found his rhythm. Wig has never come off the bench in his life. Obviously, we need Draymond out there… It's a difficult decision… End of the day it's on all of us to make the necessary adjustments and be ready. Whoever starting will play 35 minutes, going to be out there for a big chunk. I don't know what the answer is, everybody has to figure it out. If you’re worried about anything other than winning the game, you’re approaching it wrong. We all have egos, healthy egos… ”


Poole stepped up in a massive way in the regular season and has only gotten better in the playoffs. More importantly, one of the main reasons that Curry isn't starting right now is because he is coming off a pretty significant knee injury that he sustained during the end of the regular season.


There is no doubt that Curry will eventually start games during this playoff run again. But the question that needs to be answered is who will Curry replace in the starting lineup. But that is an answer that Steve Kerr needs to find.



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