It took less than three minutes for the Golden State Warriors’ nationally televised Thursday night showdown with the San Antonio Spurs to turn into a bummer for Dubs fans.

After Draymond Green stole the ball from Spurs point guard Dejounte Murray, he threw a hit-ahead pass to Klay Thompson, who hit Curry in stride as he streaked down the court to get out on the break. Curry caught the pass, gathered and rose for a layup with Murray and LaMarcus Aldridge converging on him. They made contact in mid-air, with Murray getting called for a foul … but the real harm came after Steph landed.

Curry limped back onto the court to shoot his two free throws, then immediately subbed out of the game, with Kerr bringing in second-year reserve Quinn Cook to handle the ball. Steph didn’t appear to be limping that badly as he made his way back to the locker room, and the Warriors’ initial diagnosis offered some hope that the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player might return to the fold:

Midway through the second quarter, though, the team announced that Curry wouldn’t be making a comeback later Thursday evening.

We don’t know yet know whether the Warriors’ decision was based on the “tweak” itself winding up being worse than initially feared, or if it’s just a team with nothing left to prove in the regular season deciding that discretion is the better part of valor when it comes to the health and well-being of the fulcrum of their offense and identity. What we do know, though, is that after several mostly incident-free years following his early-career woes, Curry’s right ankle has now suffered multiple injuries in the past couple of months …

… which has to make the Warriors and their fans feel a little bit ill at ease.

The Warriors rallied to beat the Spurs, 110-107, behind 37 points (15 in the fourth quarter) from Kevin Durant and a triple-double (11 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists, three steals, two blocks) from Draymond Green. ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne that Curry didn’t seem too much the worse for wear after the game …

… but Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated reported that Curry would still miss the team’s upcoming two-game trip to take on the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night and Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday afternoon:

Taking a cautious approach with Curry’s right ankle makes all the sense in the world for the Warriors, who have now won seven straight and sit a half-game behind the West-leading Houston Rockets. June matters much more than March for the defending NBA champions, and reducing the risk of a tweak turning into a tragedy in the spring can only bolster Golden State’s chances of getting back to the Finals come summer.

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Dan Devine is a writer and editor for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@oath.com or follow him on Twitter!

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