Golden State guard Stephen Curry said he is preparing his body so he can decide for himself whether to continue playing after his 40th birthday, which is a little less than three years away.
“I just want the option,” Curry told Mark Medina of EssentiallySports. “If I’m still capable of playing at a legitimate level, I want that to be my decision, not one made for me.”
The 37-year-old enters his 17th NBA season coming off a second-team All-NBA campaign and his 11th All-Star appearance. Last season he logged 70 games, averaging 24.5 points in 32.2 minutes while shooting 39.7 percent from three-point range and leading the league in both three-pointers attempted and made.
Trainer Brandon Payne told Medina that this summer’s program emphasized strength work and quicker decision-making. Curry credited consistent offseason routines and a support staff that keeps him “limber, loose and focused on injury prevention.”
Coaching outlook
Steve Kerr, who is entering the final year of his contract, told ESPN’s Anthony Slater he has no plans to seek another job. “Management and ownership would have to want it to continue. I would have to want it to continue. Steph would have to,” Kerr said, adding that he will not finish his deal and “go leave for such and such job around the league.”
Injury update
Rookie guard Brandin Podziemski exited Friday’s preseason finale after falling hard in the first quarter. The team announced a left hip contusion, and the 20-year-old needed assistance from director of sports medicine Rick Celebrini to reach the locker room.
Seth Curry’s status
The Warriors waived veteran shooter Seth Curry on Saturday. Because Golden State is hard-capped at the second apron, the club cannot fit his pro-rated veteran-minimum salary until at least November. Kerr said the late-arriving guard sat out the entire preseason while the staff evaluated other players but called his progress “fine” and expressed no concern about his readiness.
Golden State opens the regular season next week with Curry at full strength, Kerr coaching on an expiring contract, and roster moves still limited by the luxury-tax apron.
Source: HoopsRumors
