Warriors' Steph Curry a late scratch in Charlotte after 'not feeling well'

Warriors guard Stephen Curry missed Saturday night’s 102-100 loss to the Hornets because he was “not feeling well,” the team announced in the first quarter.

Curry went through pregame warmups, but he was scratched moments before tipoff. Mychal Mulder replaced him in the starting lineup.

“Going through his usual warm-up routine, he just did not feel well at all,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said after the game. “So, he came back in, saw the Charlotte team doctor, went out, tried to warm up and just wasn’t feeling good. We made the decision, the training staff, Steph and I, we all made the decision to not play him.

“We’ll see how he’s doing (Sunday). ... There were no (coronavirus) protocols in place. Just him feeling sick.”

This was a personal setback for Curry, who only gets to play in his hometown of Charlotte once a season. The allure of the homecoming was lessened, of course, by the fact that there were no fans allowed at Spectrum Center because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The NBC Sports Bay Area telecast showed Curry walking slowly off the floor with director of sports medicine and performance Rick Celebrini just as the Warriors and Hornets were getting set to tip off. Curry was grabbing the right side of his shorts, his head hung low, as he headed toward the visitors’ locker room.

Saturday marked the first time this season Curry had missed a game, a significant development given that he was limited to just five games in 2019-20 because of injuries. In 34.1 minutes per game, Curry, 32, is averaging 29.9 points on 48.6% shooting (42.3% from 3-point range), 6.2 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals.

Without Curry, the Warriors lost to the Hornets 102-100.