Steph Curry Could Return from Hand Injury Thursday vs. Raptors, Says Steve Kerr

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday superstar guard Stephen Curry may return Thursday when the Dubs take on the reigning NBA champion Toronto Raptors.

"Thursday's definitely a possibility," Kerr told reporters.

Curry has been sidelined since an Oct. 30 game against the Phoenix Suns, when he suffered a hand injury that required surgery.

Along with the two-time NBA MVP's long-term absence, the Warriors have played the entire regular season without backcourt mate Klay Thompson because of a torn ACL. Add in Kevin Durant's departure in free agency and the previously star-studded Dubs have endured a transition year.

Golden State owns the league's worst record at 13-48, including a 1-9 mark of its past 10 games.

From that perspective, it's somewhat of a surprise the Warriors are going to bring Curry back for the final quarter of the campaign. They will soon be eliminated from playoff contention and too many wins down the stretch could hurt their odds in the 2020 draft lottery.

Kerr explained last month the decision to bring the 31-year-old Ohio native back rather than shut him down for the year:

"He's perfectly healthy. He's in the prime of his career. If the point is because he might get hurt, then what's the point of ever playing anything? People can get hurt any day. I guess the argument would be, 'Well, we're not going to the playoffs.' So are we not trying to entertain our fans? We're selling tickets to all these people who love basketball, and Steph Curry is one of the most amazing, graceful, exciting basketball players on earth. And if he were healthy and we didn't present him to our fans and say, 'Here you go. Here's your gift for staying with us for this whole season,' what would that say about us? That we don't care about our fans?"

It's unclear whether Curry will face a minutes restriction upon his return.

The future remains bright for Golden State. Its starting lineup next season could feature Curry, Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green and a top prospect. Center James Wiseman represents the best fit on paper from a positional view.

Getting to see Curry back in action is the main selling point for the rest of this year, though.