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SAN FRANCISCO — Steph Curry’s comeback ignited cheers from the Warriors’ most vocal crowd yet at Chase Center, and those well wishes were echoed across the NBA from top stars including LeBron James.
Curry appreciated it.
“It’s a brotherhood throughout, and everybody wants to see everybody healthy and playing,” Curry said after scoring 23 points in Thursday night’s 121-113 loss to the Toronto Raptors.
“I don’t really follow the social-media talk and all that stuff. But in terms of people hitting me and wishing me luck, knowing how long the (four-month) rehab process was, that’s a good feeling.”
Just so he knows, his return played out to much applause on social media.
As Curry finished out his 27-minute stint, the Lakers’ James tweeted his admiration: “Happy to see (Curry) back out there again! Nothing like being in your sanctuary! The game missed you.”
Happy to see @StephenCurry30 back out there again! Nothing like being in your sanctuary! The game missed you. 🙏🏾👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) March 6, 2020
“The Basketball World Missed You!” Dwayne Wade tweeted to Curry.
@StephenCurry30 The Basketball World Missed You!
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) March 6, 2020
Utah’s Donovan Mitchell tweeted how it was good to see Curry back from his Oct. 30, left-hand fracture.
Good to see @StephenCurry30 back 💯💯
— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) March 6, 2020
Even Thursday night’s opponent welcomed the sight of Curry, at least before the game, when Raptors coach Nick Nurse called it “a shame” that Curry’s been out for four months. “I certainly think it’s good. We always need our best players out there, all of our superstar players,” Nurse said.
Curry acknowledged that facing the Raptors added more intrigue to his return.
“Playing against Toronto and knowing what happened last June (in the NBA Finals) in that back and forth, I know a lot of guys on that team personally, so it was a cool vibe competing like that,” Curry added. “I’m just excited getting back out there.”
The feeling was mutual among the sellout crowd of 18,064.
“We’ve been together for 11 years,” Curry said of the home fans. “Obviously I’ve never been out this long with the season going on, so with the new building and being on the sideline cheering for so long trying just to get back out there, it’s definitely fun.
“There’s a lot of energy in the building and I appreciate that so much in terms of getting to play in front of the best fans in the league. Regardless how this season is going, you wouldn’t have known walking into this building tonight.”
