Stephen Curry missing the rest of the season would stun Mike Dunleavy Jr.

Golden State Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. he said that it would be a surprise if star guard Stephen Curry was forced to miss the rest of the season with a knee injury.

The The Warriors’ season continued to slide on Monday night with a 114-101 loss to the Los Angeles Clippersdropping Golden State to 31-30 and marking their second straight loss. Curry has not played since Jan. 30 while dealing with what the team described as “runner’s knee,” creating uncertainty about his return timeline.

In a report Wednesday by Tim Kawakami of the San Francisco Standard, Dunleavy addressed the possibility of Curry being sidelined for the rest of the season.

“That would be very surprising to me; very, very surprising,” Dunleavy said. “But I’m not going to rule anything out. I’m not a doctor and things can go a certain way. I don’t want the headline to be, ‘Steph could be done in a year,’ because I’m not ruling it out. But just because he’s not playing right now, I just have to admit that yeah, of course there’s no way we’re expecting that.”

Stephen Curry continues his rehab as the Warriors monitor the timeline of knee injuries

Curry last appeared in The Warriors lost 131-124 to the Detroit Pistons January 30. The 37-year-old finished that game with 23 points, two assists, one rebound and one block in 25 minutes. He shot 7-for-16 from the field, 4-for-10 from 3-point range and 5-for-5 from the free throw line.

Despite the lack of time, Curry has remained one of the league’s most productive scorers this season. In 39 games, he is averaging 27.2 points, 4.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 46.8% from the field, 39.1% from beyond the arc and 93.1% from the free throw line. He had 31.3 minutes per contest.

The Warriors provided a medical update on Sunday Curry continues to thrive.

“A re-evaluation concluded that Curry continues to progress. He will be re-evaluated in 10 days,” the team said.

Additional reports suggested The Warriors remain cautious with their franchise cornerstone as the regular season enters its final stretch.

ClutchPoints NBA Insider Brett Siegel reported Tuesday:

“While Curry was expected to return to the court after the All-Star break, the reality of his situation is that he is still dealing with discomfort in his right knee, which has led to more rest and the Warriors taking more shots on his knee, which has come back clean. Although he has been working a little behind the scenes, Steph has yet to go through a full, extensive workout on the court.”

Curry wants to return before the playoffs amid the Warriors’ cautious approach

Siegel continued:

It will be essential that Steph be available for the playoffs, as well as being 100 percent healthy for whoever they may face in the first round playoff series.

That’s why there’s no rush to bring him back, and that’s why sources say he’ll be back at the earliest, but unlikely before this date, the start of the Warriors’ six-game road trip against the New York Knicks on Sunday, March 15.

To be perfectly honest, it may be in the best interest of the Warriors and Curry to shut things down indefinitely until after this trip, since seven of the Dubs’ final 10 games of the season will be in San Francisco. The Warriors have time because they’re not moving anywhere in the playoff standings, which is why Steph’s return doesn’t matter right now.

So far, there has been no talk of the Warriors ruling Curry out for the rest of the season, and sources say he’s especially eager to return before the playoffs to try to build some momentum for this team.

For now, Golden State will try to stop its slide down the Western Conference standings without its star point guard. The Warriors currently sit in eighth place in the conference as they begin a three-game road trip that begins Thursday against the Houston Rockets at 4:30 PM PT on Prime Video.