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The Golden State Warriors have been hit with more injuries than just about any team in the NBA in recent years, and 2022-23 has been no different. Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala only just returned after missing several weeks worth of games, Gary Payton II is still a ways off with his core muscle issue and rookie Ryan Rollins is already out for the season following surgery to address a stress fracture in his foot.
As for starting wing Andrew Wiggins, well… your guess is as good as ours.
Indeed, starting center Kevon Looney has been the only Dubs player to consistently avoid the injury bug’s bite over the last two-plus years. On Tuesday, however, the 27-year-old very nearly joined the ranks of the walking wounded.
Looney’s name made a surprise appearance on the official injury report ahead of the club’s road bout with the Oklahoma City Thunder. His status in the hours before tip-off: questionable as a result of back soreness. In the end, though, the baller decided to gut it out (albeit in a bench role). As a result, he preserved one of the best current streaks in the Association.
Kevon Looney’s Consecutive Games Streak Remains Intact
The Thunder game officially brings Looney’s active streak of consecutive games played to 177. That’s the second-longest streak in the Association today, trailing that of Brooklyn Nets star Mikal Bridges (who’s at 374 straight and counting). However, one might be tempted to toss an asterisk on the back of Bridges’ total.
The former Phoenix Sun technically missed Brooklyn’s bout with the Chicago Bulls on February 9 — the day he was sent to the team in the Kevin Durant deal. Since the league office was late in approving the trade, the lockdown ace was technically listed as inactive for the contest.
That said, those were extenuating circumstances and, assuming his streak continues, Bridges will actually have appeared in 83 games by year’s end.
Looney — who’s averaging 7.1 points, a career-best 9.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 66.8% from the floor — hasn’t missed a game since he was scratched from the lineup due to health and safety protocols for a March 2021 bout with the Memphis Grizzlies.
Nick Wright Pooh-Poohs Dubs’ Playoff Chances
During the Monday episode of Fox Sports’ First Things First, the panel debated whether the Warriors or the Los Angeles Lakers had a better shot at winning rejoining the contender’s table this season. For his part, Nick Wright seized upon the discussion as an opportunity to slam the Dubs.
“The Warriors have a zero percent chance of winning the title,” Wright said. “So every team that I think could do it has a better chance.”
While he weirdly cited the James Wiseman trade and the Draymond Green-Jordan Poole alercation as key planks to his argument, the longtime pundit did strike a chord on one particular issue.
“And then there is this other problem, which is this, the road record — can we show it please — because we know they’re going to be on the road for every series. And that strikes me as a team that can’t win four series in a row, all of which will start and end on the road,” Wright said.
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