The Golden State Warriors managed to steal Game 1 from the Minnesota Timberwolves to open their Western Conference semifinals series on Tuesday night, picking up a 99-88 victory when all was said and done. Perhaps more impressive was the fact that they managed to win this game despite not having Stephen Curry on the court for the majority of the game, and after the game, his injury status drew a strong message from Charles Barkley.

Curry was forced out of the game in the second quarter after he appeared to suffer a hamstring injury. The Warriors continued to play stifling defense against the Timberwolves, though, and the end result was a gritty victory in their opponent's territory. However, Golden State quickly needs to turn their attention to Game 2, with Barkley confidently declaring that Curry won't be on the court for this clash.

“There's zero chance that Steph plays in Game 2, zero chance” Barkley said on “Inside The NBA.” “But that's gonna give him, Games 3 and 4, he gonna probably be off like four or five days. He's definitely not playing in Game 2 since they won today.”

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Warriors pick up much-needed victory in Game 1 without Stephen Curry

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) stands on the court during a break in the action against the Houston Rockets in the fourth quarter of game six of the first round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Chase Center.
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Golden State will obviously look to win Game 2, but they already managed to accomplish their goal of taking home court advantage for themselves in this series in just the first game. That could result in them deciding to give Curry an extra break so that he can sort out his hamstring injury before he makes a potential return in Game 3 or 4.

More info is ultimately needed before the Warriors will decide Curry's Game 2 status, but considering how quickly he was ruled out in Game 1, it seems like this could be a concerning injury. Golden State did well to win Game 1, but all eyes will be on Curry's injury status for the rest of this series, as that could play a major role in deciding which team ends up moving onto the Western Conference Finals.