Steph Curry will not play on Thursday against the Lakers

SAN FRANCISCO — No Steph vs. LeBron Matchup This Season

It looks like fans won’t get to see a match-up between Stephen Curry and LeBron James this season.

Curry will miss Thursday night’s game where the Warriors face off against the Lakers, marking the first time this season that he and James could have played together.

Originally thought to be a possibility for return from a knee injury that has kept him out since January 30, Curry was only set to participate in one of the final games—either against the Lakers or the Kings the following night. Given this situation, the Warriors had some choices to make.

Ultimately, Curry was ruled out of Golden State’s last home game of the regular season. If the Warriors manage to advance from the No. 10 seed to the play-in, he might not play at Chase Center again this season.

This development also means that the NBA’s two veteran stars will end up not facing each other throughout the year. James had missed team meetings at the start of the season, and Thursday’s contest will mark the third game since Curry was sidelined due to knee inflammation.

Though James missed the Lakers’ last outing against the Thunder, he wasn’t noted on the injury report for Thursday.

Curry did play against the Rockets on Sunday, contributing 29 points in 26 minutes from the bench. Even though he didn’t finish strong, he logged 25 minutes again in a win over the Kings on Tuesday.

Yet, he managed only one successful 3-point attempt in the second half, and head coach Steve Kerr remarked that Curry appeared “a little rusty.” Curry also recorded three turnovers while the Kings managed to reclaim control during the third quarter.

“For me, the second game is usually harder than the first,” Kerr explained. “Your first game often comes with a rush of adrenaline. Tonight, it seemed like our team collectively let their guard down a bit. We turned the ball over 11 times in the third quarter, and Steph was part of that mistake, leading to poor decisions.”

In terms of injuries, Kristaps Porzingis (illness) and Al Horford (calf) have already been excluded from play. Resting Curry might give the trio a chance to compete together on Friday in Sacramento ahead of Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Clippers.

Porzingis missed the matchup against the Kings and briefly shared the court with Curry on Sunday due to foul issues. That was the only time they managed to play together since the Warriors acquired him before the trade deadline.

Horford participated in a 3-on-3 scrimmage but has been sidelined for 14 consecutive games.

Adding to their challenges, the Warriors are without another big man, Quentin Post, limited to just five minutes in the last eight games due to a foot issue. Will Richard, who was taken out of the starting lineup on Tuesday, is also out due to back tightness.

Meanwhile, the Lakers came into the game with a relatively clean injury report besides Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves, with only Jackson Hayes unavailable due to a sore left foot.