Without Steph, the Warriors will find out if the depth is as good as advertised

Without Steph, the Warriors will find out if the depth is as good as originally advertised on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – After only having a full roster for the first four days of their season, the Warriors are now in the process of figuring out whether the quality of their strength matches the quantity.

Franchise player Stephen Curry will miss at least two games – and likely more – after suffering a sprained left ankle in the fourth quarter of a 112-104 loss to the Clippers on Sunday.

Less than four minutes after Curry entered the locker room, combo guard De'Anthony Melton left the game with a lower back strain.

Curry and Melton will each miss at least two games and possibly more. Both are scheduled to be reevaluated Friday before the Warriors leave town for a five-game road trip that begins Saturday in Houston.

In addition to Curry and Melton, starter Andrew Wiggins also has a strained lower back and is listed as questionable for Tuesday night's game against New Orleans.

“I don’t even know who I’m going to play against tomorrow,” coach Steve Kerr said Monday after practice.

That's the dilemma that arises when two starters – including the franchise's most valuable member – and a key rotation player end up on the injured list.

While Kerr acknowledges that a rotation of nine or 10 players is typical in the NBA, he has stated that he is willing to use 12 players and 14 players if necessary. All 14 active players participated in the first two games of the season, both of which were close, the first in Portland and the second in Utah.

Now, however, the Warriors (2-1) are entering the discovery phase. While there is a reasonable chance that Wiggins could be available on Tuesday, the loss of Curry – the league's most unique point guard – leaves a void that simply cannot be filled.

Someone has to be the primary ballhandler, and whoever gets the job will have a completely different skill set than Curry.

“(Brandin Podziemski) will handle the ball quite a bit,” Kerr said. “Kyle Anderson can play points forward. Draymond (Green) can play a point forward. We have a lot of people who can handle the ball. We will most likely activate Pat (Spencer, two-way guard) as an additional ball handler tomorrow and go from there.”

The first inclination would be to start Podziemski at point guard. He has spent a lot of time leading the second unit, a role he shared with Melton. The problem with such a move is the impact it would have on the spacing Kerr prioritizes. Through two games, Podziemski is 1 of 14 from distance.

Through three games, starting small forward Jonathan Kuminga is 1 of 9 from deep and Green has just four attempts from beyond the arc.

The Pelicans probably wouldn't mind Golden State fielding a lineup with Podziemski, Kuminga and Green, as well as center Trayce Jackson-Davis. If Wiggins were available, he would get a lot of attention and the paint would be crowded.

“We’re still learning our team,” Kerr said. “We’re going to see some different combinations out there. That was part of the idea in preseason, to try out as many combinations as possible.”

Here's another option that will certainly be considered: Moses Moody comes in for Kuminga. Moody is 6 of 15 from deep. Only sixth man Buddy Hield (13), Curry (11) and Wiggins (11) have attempted and made more triples than Moody.
The next 24 hours will make for an interesting lineup. One with a much lower margin of error. It will give the Warriors an indication of whether their roster is large enough to keep the team afloat without Curry. Or just deep.

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