Warriors’ Steph Curry, 38, sees ‘multiple’ seasons still ahead of him

PHOENIX — The knee injury that sidelined Steph Curry for a large chunk of this season isn’t going to end his career. Not anytime soon, anyway.

Curry, 38, was asked after the Warriors’ 111-96 play-in loss to the Suns on Friday whether he still hoped to play “multiple” seasons.

“Multiple, for sure,” he said. “That’s more than one?”

It was, perhaps, an obvious answer to a nevertheless worthwhile question after Curry slogged through one of the most injury-plagued of his 17 seasons in the NBA. Most troublesome being the bout of runner’s knee that he has said will require a “new normal” to manage while remaining on the court.

Curry worked his way back from a two-month absence to play 36 minutes in both of the Warriors’ play-in games. But after a 35-point explosion in their comeback against the Clippers, he suffered a bit of a letdown with 17 points on 4-of-16 shooting in their season-ending loss to the Suns.

“For us to have that moment we did in LA, the highs of that and the lows of tonight, it’s just what basketball — what sports — is about,” Curry said. “For us to have had these last three, four days and the whole play-in situation, I’m proud of the way we finished it. Because it could’ve been very sleepy. Like I [don’t] come back and we get blown out in the first game and everybody kind of just goes into the summer with no real direction. It was a fun ride these last four days.”

In all, Curry appeared in only 43 games, the third fewest of his career. He could only watch as the Warriors went 9-18 over a 27-game stretch he missed with the knee issue in January and February.

The Warriors also lost Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody to season-ending knee injuries, shipped out Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield, and welcomed Kristaps Porzingis into the fold.

“It was a roller coaster ride, to say the least,” he said. “You see just momentum slipping away. But there was still this underlying belief that when it comes to the Warriors, you’re always talking about championships. That’s what we’ve established as a goal. But we had to reshape that, like can we just make something out of this year? Get a playoff experience and a playoff berth. That felt like the right goal and why I forced my way to try to get back.”

Going forward, Curry said he didn’t expect the injury to be a long-term issue. However, it will have to be carefully managed. Runner’s knee is an overuse injury, and Curry runs more miles per game than anybody in the NBA.

“I think big picture, you have to be mindful of how it showed itself this year, knowing there was a clear [difference] how I prepared pre-injury and post-injury,” Curry said. “It is kind of touch and go, just knowing hopefully rest will get me right, go into training camp feeling good and be able to manage it early in the year and kind of see where I’m at. That’s kind of the idea. But I don’t feel there’s going to be any kind of real long-term symptoms or anything.”

As far as his future is concerned, Curry is signed through next season, along with Draymond Green and Butler. Kerr’s contract, up for renewal, is considered to be the Warriors’ top priority.

But if Curry wants to commit to his age-39 season or beyond, add one item to their checklist.

Curry was asked if he was interested in an extension.

“For sure,” he said. “But none of those conversations have happened. Be a busy summer for the Warriors.”

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