Stephen Curry Comments on Withdrawing from 2016 Rio Olympics

Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry didn't take the decision to withdraw his name from 2016 Summer Olympics consideration lightly.

On Thursday, Curry spoke about why he opted not to make the trip to Rio de Janeiro early in the process in a Facebook Live press conference from the American Century Championship, a celebrity golf event, per Daniel Mano of the Mercury News:

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I wasn't too happy with the situation of having to pull out of the Games. I wish I would be able to play in those. I was looking forward to it.

When I got hurt in the playoffs and knew that the recovery time over the course of summer was going to be important for me to get ready for next year, I tried to give Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski) and Mr. Colangelo (Jerry Colangelo) and the whole USA staff more time to figure out what they need to figure out for the roster. With the situation as it is now, to rest and get ready for next season, to what I need to prepare my body ... It's a nice mental break as well to be able to play some golf and get out here and enjoy this experience.

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Curry can take some solace in knowing he opted out to recover from injuries and wasn't the only big name to opt out of the Rio Games.

Although Curry's NBA teammates Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant are on Team USA, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and James Harden are among those who chose not to participate.

The Americans are going for their third straight basketball gold medal at the Summer Olympics, and even without some of their best players, they're still heavy favorites to ascend to the top of the podium.

Golden State is coming off a record-setting 73-win season, which came on the heels of their 2014-15 NBA championship. Curry also backed up his prior MVP campaign by earning the honor again with his best year to date in 2015-16, averaging 30.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 2.1 steals per game.

Curry suffered a sprained ankle and MCL during the playoffs and wasn't as consistent as he was in the regular season thereafter. The Warriors ultimately blew a 3-1 lead to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, and Curry shot only 40.3 percent from the field in the series, compared to his 50.4 shooting percentage in the regular season.

It's for the best for Curry and Golden State that he takes the time to recover before the Warriors embark on a bid for their third straight trip to the Finals. They also acquired Durant in free agency, intensifying the focus on the squad and creating even greater expectations.

The level of scrutiny the 2016-17 Warriors figure to face means Curry will have to be as close to 100 percent as possible.