It's Time for Warriors to Unleash Stephen Curry in Kevin Durant's Absence

Here's the conventional wisdom regarding Kevin Durant's injury: The Golden State Warriors wanted to sign a player of his ability so they could potentially withstand losing one of their core stars for an extended period.

Indeed, the Warriors do have other All-Stars and Olympic gold medalists such as Klay Thompson and Draymond Green to lean on. They have reliable bench options such as Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, David West and a rejuvenated JaVale McGee. They have rookies such as Patrick McCaw, who could be in line for extended minutes down the homestretch.

But Stephen Curry, the reigning two-time MVP, figures to be the lynchpin that holds this roster in place until Durant can return—perhaps all the way until the first round of the playoffs.

To that end, Curry may be unleashed once again, like a superhero's alter ego that only leaps forth when the circumstances are just right. It's Curry who most often surfaces in the final throes of the season, as the standings start to shake out and every win and loss can have long-ranging playoff implications.

"The focus starts to get a little sharper as you're getting toward the end because it's winning time," says Brandon Payne, Curry's personal shot coach ever since the two informally met during the 2011 lockout.

Speaking this week from his offices at Accelerate Basketball outside Charlotte, Payne explained to Bleacher Report what makes one of the most lethal shooters in NBA history even more deadly as seasons wind down.

"He has a really good understanding of pacing himself, not that he's not playing hard through the year," Payne says. "Now is just the time to turn it on. Now is the time to get ready. And I think that he does a really good job of timing that to make sure that he's exactly where he wants to be at the start of the playoffs."

Ned Dishman/Getty Images

Curry is known for his explosive play after the All-Star break—he's better than 46 percent on threes over his career—and Payne says that's driven by the motivation and intensity that comes with the playoffs ahead: "He's in rhythm, he's fresh, he's healthy. Those are all things you want to be when the playoffs start, and now is the time to really get yourself in the position."

That's the Curry the Warriors will need over these next four to six weeks. Until Durant's left knee is fully healthy—and you can bet your wallet the Warriors will be ultra-cautious with their all-world small forward—head coach Steve Kerr will let Curry carry the extra load as much as he can and for as long as needed.

Durant's departure from Oklahoma City allowed Russell Westbrook to shoulder an unprecedented burden of the offense. (If the season ended today, Westbrook's usage rate would be an all-time record.)

Now, KD's temporary leave from the Warriors lineup means Curry must do the same. Even as his aforementioned supporting cast is stronger than Westbrook's, the championship-level stakes are even higher.

Payne, who becomes more of a self-described "observer" once the season starts, worked hard with Curry last summer after the NBA Finals to not only get the MVP healthy again—they started their usual summer workouts about 10 days later than usual, to allow for extra rest—but also maintain the confidence that carried him through one of the greatest offensive seasons any player has achieved.

It's the preseason work that lays the foundation for those memorable in-season moments.

"He's so focused on improvement that not a day goes by where he doesn't do something to get better," Payne says. "I think that when you continually do that, day after day, you have this feeling of being supremely prepared. When you have that feeling of being prepared in that way, I think it goes right into confidence, which he takes right out on the floor with him."

That confidence hasn't wavered this season, even if Curry's performance has undulated to some degree:

	FG%	3P%	TS%	USG%	MIN/G	PTS/G
October	48.1	42.9	63.5	28.9	34.1	25.7
November	49.6	42.0	66.6	29.9	33.4	26.8
December	42.7	37.5	59.6	26.3	32.8	20.9
January	47.9	43.1	62.5	32.4	34.2	27.8
February	45.4	37.8	60.2	29.6	33.3	24.2

As Kerr has worked to have Curry and Durant assimilate their respective skills to maximize the system's potential—predicated largely on fluidity and off-ball movement—Curry's stats have become far more volatile. He came out hot to start the season (November), and when defenses started to adjust (December), Kerr moved toward emphasizing the Curry/Durant pick-and-roll (January).

But as the Warriors moved away from that scheming (February), Curry's stat lines took a relative dip. As a whole, his efficiency as the pick-and-roll ball-handler is down considerably this season: from 1.11 points per possession to just 0.90. That said, Curry still moved past Kobe Bryant for 11th-most 3-pointers in NBA history during Golden State's 94-87 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.

Even if Curry's efficiency has taken a hit in this respect, he still excels at the kind of off-ball movement that has made the Warriors a scoring dynamo. Kerr's offense abhors stagnation, and movement without the ball is critical to making things flow. At their most effective, these actions both keep Curry in rhythm and help him get clean looks.

"So much of what he does as a shooter and a scorer, we call it 'scoring without the ball,'" Payne says, "meaning we want you to put yourself in a position before you ever see the ball to get a clean look. Things that he does two or three steps before he ever sees the basketball are what result in open looks for him. That's just coming from the experience he's had and different ways that different teams defend him."

Payne also cites Kerr's analogy from early January, when the Warriors coach compared Curry to legendary Boston Red Sox slugger Ted Williams. Maybe Curry isn't exactly playing to the level of last season's basketball equivalent of hitting .400, but his play has still been excellent.

"It would take a whole lot for me to be concerned about his shot," Payne says. "From a mechanics standpoint, he's as mechanically sound as they come. He has very predictable and repeatable mechanics. Some balls just don't go in the basket.

"Now, is there a slight adjustment or something you need to remind him of here and there? Yeah, there's stuff like that, but it only takes one. Sometimes it just takes seeing the ball go through the basket one time and a whole lot more will follow. Are you gonna have a bad night or two, like he's had the past few games? Sure, but he's just as likely to go off and hit the next 10 as he is to miss the next 10. It's just kind of the way it works."

Rocky Widner/Getty Images

That Curry is so attuned to what's happening with his body is one way Payne's concerns are easily assuaged. Payne says Curry is the only person he's ever known who could, at any moment and without stepping on a scale, guess his own body weight to within a pound: "It's the craziest thing I've ever seen."

And it's the obsessive-to-detail Curry who Payne thinks will thrive over these next few weeks. With 21 games left, Payne preaches consistency and routine, making sure Curry isn't overextending himself and ensuring that he hits the playoffs in peak condition.

"Get in rhythm, stay in rhythm and listen to your body," Payne says. "He is extremely good with listening to his body and making sure he's getting the recovery work that he needs. Those are the biggest things for him down the stretch.

"If he does those things, he'll be in a really good spot at the start of the playoffs."

Erik Malinowski is the Golden State Warriors lead writer for B/R. Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. You can follow him on Twitter: @erikmal. All stats via NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com.