Steph Curry’s hand injury forces him to miss Warriors’ next game

CHICAGO — Steph Curry was clearly bothered Friday night by an awkward fall he took in the second quarter, but he remained in the game anyway, frequently flexing the fingers on his right hand.

The injury will, however, prevent Curry from playing in the finale of the Warriors’ four-game road trip Sunday in Minnesota. He appeared on the injury report Saturday afternoon with a sore right hand, less severe than the worst possible outcome.

When Curry fell to the floor, landing on his right hand, about 3 minutes into the second quarter after colliding in the air with Bulls guard Lonzo Ball while going to the rim, he said that he initially feared the worst. He missed 58 games two seasons ago with a fractured left hand.

“There was some PTSD from two years ago when I landed,” Curry said. “It felt kind of the same. … Anything that involves the hands especially is a little concerning. But the feeling came back, the strength came back.”

Curry stood at the foul line squeezing his hand open and closed, then badly missed his first free throw attempt. He righted it by his second shot, but the Warriors called timeout and Curry went directly to trainer Drew Yoder, who spent the length of the stoppage inspecting Curry’s right hand.

Although Curry re-entered the game after timeout, he didn’t stop messing with his hand for the rest of the night. With 19 points on 7-of-15 shooting (4-of-10 from 3), Curry still managed to turn in a more efficient scoring performance than he has recently amid an uncharacteristic slump.

It took about 9 minutes before he made his next shot but ended up scoring 12 points after the injury.

Following the game, though, Curry was still feeling the effects of the fall.

“It hurts, but it’ll be all right,” said Curry, who shoots with his right hand. “When it’s your right hand you don’t want to feel anything game to game. I can deal with the left hand. The right hand is totally different.”

He did not believe it was anything serious — and his designation on the report, “soreness,” could indicate as much — but was still going to get it looked at in between games.

Curry’s absence means the Warriors will be without their two most important players against the Timberwolves as they look to ride the momentum from their 138-96 win in Chicago.

Draymond Green (calf tightness) did not travel with the team on this trip.

Golden State will, at least, get back Klay Thompson, who was already due to see more minutes Sunday as he ramps back up from his own two-year absence caused by injuries.

Gary Payton II (back spasms) was also upgraded to questionable, after missing Golden State’s last game.