Stephen Curry cleared for Warriors' opener against the Lakers after ankle scare

The Golden State Warriors exhale. Stephen Curry, the 38-year-old engine of everything they do, is expected to play in Wednesday night's season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers after an ankle scare that briefly emptied the air from the franchise's final week of preseason preparation.

Curry injured his right ankle during Sunday's open-practice scrimmage, slipped while dribbling, stopped dead, slammed the basketball into the court in frustration and limped to the locker room after briefly trying to walk it off. For a team already opening the season without three rotation players, it was the kind of scene that stops a franchise cold. By Monday morning, the panic had passed: Curry was a full participant in practice, and head coach Steve Kerr left no room for doubt.

"He's fine," Kerr said. "He practiced fully."

The coach also clarified that the injury was to the ankle, not the knee — an important distinction given Curry's recent history and the way Sunday's incident initially appeared. ESPN's Anthony Slater reported that a team source considered the injury not serious, and Monday's full session backed up that assessment.

Why it matters

Golden State can ill afford another absence. The Warriors open the season without Jimmy Butler, still recovering from a torn ACL, without Moses Moody, working back from a ruptured patellar tendon, and without Kristaps Porzingis, sidelined with a health issue. Guard Brandin Podziemski, dealing with a back problem, missed Monday's practice and is questionable for the opener.

Curry is the offensive system. He was limited to 43 games last season, much of the absence tied to a lingering knee injury, yet still averaged 26.6 points, 4.4 made three-pointers and 11.3 attempted threes per game — all above his career averages. The numbers underline a career that keeps defying its calendar: a 12-time All-Star, two-time scoring champion, two-time MVP, Finals MVP and four-time NBA champion, holding the league's all-time records for three-pointers made (4,248), attempted (10,073) and made in a single season (402), with a career scoring average of 24.8 points.

At 38, every scare carries more weight. This one, thankfully for Golden State, appears to be exactly that: a scare.

A brutal opening-night landscape

Curry's clearance arrives as the NBA tips off its 2026-27 regular season with a loaded Tuesday slate. The New York Knicks raise their championship banner at Madison Square Garden against the Philadelphia 76ers, a ring night that already carries spice: the Sixers arrive with a retooled roster and a lengthy injury list of their own, including Dean Wade (questionable, left ankle sprain), Anfernee Simons (questionable, left hamstring tightness), Adem Bona (questionable, left foot sprain) and the season-ending absences of Ariel Hukporti (ruptured right Achilles) and Dominick Barlow (low back stress reaction).

Earlier Tuesday, the Detroit Pistons host the Boston Celtics in an unusual 3 p.m. tip-off — the earliest opening-day start in recent memory — with both Eastern Conference contenders reporting essentially clean bills of health. Detroit finished as last season's East top seed; Boston, despite a transformed roster featuring Jayson Tatum, Paul George, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard and Mitchell Robinson, won 56 games to claim the second seed. New addition Devin Carter is the Celtics' lone injury listing, out with mononucleosis on a two-way deal.

Tuesday's nightcap sends the Oklahoma City Thunder to San Antonio for a rematch of last season's Western Conference Finals, which the Spurs won in seven games. Chet Holmgren, who missed all five preseason games with a quad contusion, will play, while the Thunder remain without Otega Oweh (Achilles), Thomas Sorber (knee) and Nikola Topić (back). The Spurs are missing Tobias Harris (calf) and Jayden Quaintance (knee).

Warriors walk a tightrope

Golden State's margin for error is thin. Butler's ACL recovery, Moody's patellar tendon and Porzingis's health issue leave the rotation heavily dependent on Curry and on the young players around him. Podziemski's back, now questionable, is another watch item. The Lakers on Wednesday night are a genuine measuring stick, and Kerr's group needs its best player to take it.

For one weekend, at least, the Warriors feared the worst. Sunday's scrimmage went quiet when Curry went down; the image of the game's greatest shooter slamming the ball in frustration was unsettling. But a full practice Monday turned the story around, and the NBA's most reliable show rolls on to Los Angeles. Curry, Kerr and the Warriors will take the floor on Wednesday night — and for now, that is all Golden State needs.