How to watch Warriors vs. Spurs

10.03.2024 00:30

Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

Golden State basketball is on the way! Come join our game thread and chat about tonight’s matchup here.

The Golden State Warriors finish up this recent homestand with a Saturday night matchup against the San Antonio Spurs. The game will be played at 5:30 PM PT in San Francisco and can be watched on NBC Sports Bay Area.

Previously with the Warriors:

Golden State lost another heartbreaker on Thursday night, suffering defeat by the Chicago Bulls, 125-122. It was a competitive back-and-forth game, however, as it’s been the theme all season long, the Warriors struggled to close things out in what was their 20th loss in a clutch game this season. They are now 18-20 in such games, leading the league in most clutch games played this season.

The bigger news coming out of the game was the ankle injury to Warriors’ superstar Stephen Curry. He exited the game late in the fourth quarter after landing awkwardly on his right ankle. Fortunately, his MRI the following day revealed no significant damage to his ankle, however, he is still expected to miss some time before returning to the court.

Warriors star Stephen Curry will miss some time – at least a game or few games – with a right ankle sprain but there's optimism his absence will not be lengthy, sources tell me and @anthonyVslater. pic.twitter.com/Tl2JCDKcOx
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 8, 2024

What to watch for tonight:

While the Warriors are dealing with the injury to Curry, the Spurs are dealing with an injury to their best player as well. Rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama is ruled out for tonight’s game due to an ankle injury he suffered last week. San Antonio was already the Western Conference’s last place team with him, so his absence will be a significant loss for tonight’s matchup.

Spurs make it official and say Victor Wembanyama is OUT tomorrow with his right ankle sprain.

Team fully expects him to be ready to start the homestand on Monday against the Warriors. https://t.co/1VYlX9Tf2D
— Andrew Lopez (@_Andrew_Lopez) March 9, 2024

Having said that, the big thing to watch going into tonight’s game will be how the Warriors adapt to Curry’s absence. Although nobody can ever replace the impact of the Warriors’ two-time MVP, the team is fortunate enough to have another future hall of fame point guard on their roster in Chris Paul. The seasoned veteran has played great since returning from a hand injury of his own and seems the most likely candidate to replace Curry in the starting lineup.

Paul’s slower, more methodical approach to the game is a big contrast to the team’s free-flowing style with Curry in the starting lineup. Defense, shooting, and a good lob threat are more important when Paul is in the game as he uses these type of players to pick defenses apart with his high basketball IQ. His high on-ball usage also means that a secondary ball handler won’t be needed as much, especially without Curry there to attract attention off-ball. Because of this, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see head coach Steve Kerr go with Klay Thompson back in the starting lineup, while rookie Brandin Podziemski comes off the bench to lead the second unit.

Whatever they decide to go with, the Warriors will need to make it work tonight because there are less than 20 games left in the regular season, and the team has a lot of catching up to do in the standings if they want to avoid being in the play-in tournament.

It should be a fun game. Enjoy the basketball Dub Nation. GO WARRIORS!!!