Steve Kerr: Warriors 'Through the Woods' After Steph Curry's Return from Injury

The Golden State Warriors welcomed two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry back on Thursday against the visiting Toronto Raptors after he missed four months with a broken left hand.

Curry dropped 23 points, seven assists and seven rebounds in 27 minutes during a competitive 121-113 loss against the 44-18 Toronto Raptors.

Afterward, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said the following to reporters (h/t Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle) in regards to his team's remaining 2019-20 season prospects with their top superstar in the mix.

"To me, it feels like it's on again," Kerr said. "We're now through the woods. We can use these games to try to reach a higher level of play."

The 14-49 Warriors sport the league's worst record and will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2011-12. However, brighter days lay ahead in 2020-21, when the backcourt should feature the return of Klay Thompson, who suffered a torn ACL in last year's NBA Finals and will miss the entire 2019-20 season.

Golden State will also welcome a top 2020 draft prospect barring trading their first-round pick, which is guaranteed to be a top-five choice post-lottery if the Dubs finish with the league's worst record. That's the case right now with the 17-45 Cavs closest to them at the bottom of the league ledger.

However, the Warriors look like they'll be far more competitive down the stretch with Curry back. Although the Raps were shorthanded themselves sans Fred Van Vleet and Marc Gasol, the Warriors took them to the limit and even cut the Toronto lead to 115-113 with 1:03 remaining.

Toronto ended the game on a 6-0 run to spoil Curry's return, but the point guard will look to put the Warriors in the win column when they welcome the Philadelphia 76ers into San Francisco on Saturday at 8:30 p.m.

Expect Curry to play more in that one, with Kerr also telling reporters (h/t Letourneau) that the team was "going to ramp up the minutes from here." The point guard had a 24-28 minute restriction Thursday.