Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry will not reach his goal of playing Sunday, with the team saying Saturday that he is on track to return "at some point in March."
The Warriors released a statement providing an update on Curry, who has missed all but four games this season after suffering a broken left hand in October and undergoing procedures in November and December.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters that Curry would not play Sunday against the Washington Wizards or Tuesday at the Denver Nuggets but could have a chance to play Thursday against the Toronto Raptors.
Kerr added that Curry wasn't thrilled by the decision to keep him out.
"He put up a little bit of a fight but also understood why we wanted to take extra precaution," the coach said, later adding that there is no concern from the training staff about Curry reinjuring the hand and that it's more about conditioning following a long layoff.
Sunday, March 1 had been the goal, with Curry saying last week that he was targeting that date after being cleared for contact.
But the Warriors said Saturday that Curry is participating in full scrimmages and is scheduled to practice with the G League's Santa Cruz Warriors on Monday.
"That allows for a more natural steppingstone to playing in an NBA game," Kerr said. "So I think our training staff was more comfortable with that, coaching staff was more comfortable with that. Steph wanted to play, but we're just going to take the precautionary step and give him a little more prep."
ESPN's Josh Weinfuss contributed to this report.
