In the NBA Saturday Showcase, there won't be any star-studded action as many stars for both the Spurs and Warriors won't be playing. Steve Kerr said after Friday's loss to the Timberwolves that Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala will all sit out in Saturday night's game due to rest. Spurs star Kawhi Leonard won't play because he is currently in concussion protocol. Also LaMarcus Aldridge is out for due to a heart condition that will keep him out longer than Saturday night's game.
Road Trip Blues
The Warriors have been on quite the road trip over the past week They have been on the road for seven of the past eight games where in that stretch they lost two back to backs.
The Warriors are struggling with the loss of their alpha dog, Kevin Durant who is out with a bone bruise and a grade 2 MCL sprain. They have lost four of six and are trying to hold on to the No. 1 seed in the west from the Spurs who are now right on their tails. This is the last game of their road trip before the Warriors head home. Kerr knows that health is the most important thing coming into to the playoffs. "We're going to get [to San Antonio] at 3 a.m.," Kerr said. "Those guys are all playing big minutes, and this would give them three days before our home game, and then we'll have a whole week at home next week and a chance to get recharged." (ESPN).
The players have no choice but to rest, even if they don't want to.
Andre Iguodala didn't question Kerr's decision simply replying "Nope, no clue," he said. "I do what master say." (ESPN). The players will appreciate it now, as they need the rest to recharge for the home stretch of the season. The Warriors need to find a way to pick it up in order to have the one-seed in the West, and maybe even home-court in the finals, if they make it that far.
Banged up Spurs
The Spurs have their own set of injuries keeping key players out of the lineup today. Kawhi Leonard was put into concussion protocol on Friday, making him unavailable for Saturday night's game. LaMarcus Aldridge found out today that he has a minor heart arrhythmia and will be out indefinitely. These are San Antonio's top two scorers, with Kawhi averaging 26.2 PPG and Aldridge averaging 17.3.
Veteran point guard Tony Parker is also out due to a back injury. The Spurs are a well-oiled machine, so expect nothing to change for them.
Stars aren't shining
The point of the NBA Saturday Showcase is to give the fans a chance to see the best talent from the best teams take each other head on in a nationally televised game. Well this won't be the case as we will be seeing backups take the spotlight in this match. Many people take issue with the whole "rest your players" debate, but science has backed up the method of resting high minute players. That still doesn't help the fans who are paying good money and not being treated to the stars playing. The Cavs took some heat for this early in the season when LeBron, Kyrie and company rested for a road game against the Grizzlies.
This game won't be the two best teams battling at full strength, Both teams will be without their star players so now it feels like a preseason game. This game still has some weight as the Spurs need this win to inch closerto obtaining that No. 1 seed from the Warriors. a head-to-head win would help them greatly.
The game will be on ABC at 8:30, but can also be streamed on the Watch ESPN App.
