Stephen Curry Won't Return from Knee Injury in Game 1 vs. Pelicans

The Golden State Warriors will continue their quest to repeat as NBA champions Saturday night without Stephen Curry after he was ruled out for Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the New Orleans Pelicans. 

Chris Haynes of ESPN reported Curry's knee isn't healed enough to get him back on the court and noted the Dubs are hopeful he'll return for Game 2 on Tuesday night.

"We have to protect him from himself," head coach Steve Kerr said, per Mark Medina of the Mercury News.

Curry has been out of action since March 23 when he suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee against the Atlanta Hawks. 

Kerr announced after Curry's diagnosis that his star guard would be unavailable for the first round of the playoffs. 

"There's no way he's playing in the first round," Kerr told reporters on March 25. "There's no way. He's being re-evaluated in three weeks, so we gotta be ready to play without him and see how he's coming along."

Despite Curry's absence, the Warriors had no problems winning in the first round of the playoffs. The defending NBA champions needed five games to knock off the San Antonio Spurs. 

Things appeared bleak for Curry to make his return in the second round after The Athletic's Marcus Thompson II reported on April 20 the five-time All-Star was "still not close to playing" and could require the full six-week recovery time before playing in games. 

Using that timetable, Curry could be looking at a return date around May 4. That could allow him to come back in the middle of Golden State's second-round series. 

The Warriors have learned to play without Curry for long stretches this season. He only appeared in 51 games during the regular season due to knee and ankle injuries. 

Golden State remains a formidable group with Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green leading the way. That trio will have to continue its strong play if the Warriors hope to get past the Pelicans in the second round.