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The Golden State Warriors have cruised to three straight easy wins since Stephen Curry injured his knee at the end of the first half of Game 4 against the Rockets. That the Warriors are playing well should not come as a surprise, however, that they are dominating without Curry shows how much the rest of the team has stepped up.
During the regular season, the Warriors were clearly a more dominant team when Curry was in the game, outscoring opponents by at least 13.4 points per 48 minutes in every quarter. The Warriors' point differential was markedly lower without Curry, especially beyond the first quarter of games*.
So far in the Warriors' six playoff games - he has missed four games completely and parts of the other two - the Warriors have seen dramatic improvements in how much they are dominating their opponents without Curry, especially beyond the first quarter.
Cork Gaines/Business Insider
* The point differential in the fourth quarter is skewed a bit by blowout wins. Curry often sits during the fourth quarter when the Warriors have a huge lead and the team is more inclined to use backups.