Warriors' Stephen Curry Relieved to Avoid Surgery on Shoulder Injury

While the Golden State Warriors will be without Stephen Curry for at least two weeks because of an injured left shoulder, the two-time NBA MVP was happy to learn he wouldn't need surgery.

Speaking to reporters Friday, Curry described feeling a sense of relief after an MRI determined surgery wasn't necessary.

"Surgery would've been 4-6 months," he said. "Nobody was trying to deal with that right now."

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, Curry will be reevaluated in two weeks after suffering a labral injury in his left shoulder.

The injury occurred in the third quarter of Golden State's 125-119 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday. Curry attempted to swipe the ball from Jalen Smith with his left hand, but he pulled his arm back and immediately grabbed his left shoulder.

Curry was on pace to have one of his best games of the season before the injury. He finished with 38 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in 30 minutes. The eight-time All-Star is tied for fifth in the NBA in scoring average (30.0 points per game) and is having a 50/40/90 season.

Losing Curry makes Golden State's attempt to climb up the Western Conference standings much more difficult. The defending NBA champions are 14-15 this season.

Jordan Poole, who has started each of the past six games, will likely see his playing time increase. The 23-year-old has been playing well, averaging 24.0 points on 44.3 percent shooting over his previous seven games.

Klay Thompson is also rounding into form after a slow start. He's making 44.2 percent of his three-point attempts in 10 starts since Nov. 20.

The Warriors could help offset the loss of Curry by improving on defense. They rank 15th in defensive rating (113.0) and 26th in points allowed per game (116.8).

Based on the two-week timeline, Curry will miss at least seven games. The earliest he could return is Dec. 30 for a home game against the Portland Trail Blazers.