The last thing the weary Warriors need is another injury. But in a crucial game deciding their NBA Cup contention, they suffered a setback. Gary Payton II had to abruptly leave before the second quarter ended. He looked in bad shape while doing so too. The Warriors were in the lead at that time. And if they win the game, they secure their spot in the NBA Cup Knockout rounds. It appears that his absence could change the tide of the game.

Gary Payton II apparently went for a rebound but landed wrong. He limped to the locker room and was ruled out for the rest of the game. He played for five minutes and had only a rebound and assist each.

The initial report says he’s sprained his left ankle. Further evaluation will reveal the severity of it and if the Sonics legend’s son would miss further games.

He didn’t return for the second half. Will Richard subbed him. The Rockets managed to steal the lead by the end of the third quarter. But the Dubs are already catching up in the fourth.

It’s almost similar to what happened to Gradey Dick simultaneously during the Raptors vs Pacers game tonight. Gradey went for a rebound and fell and hit his head though. Payton hurt his foot.

Richard, who had started the game, was back and saw an uptick in minutes. He’s gone over 25 minutes and scored 16 points so far. But to salvage their season, the Dubs are going to need Payton back.

The Warriors shifted to Gary Payton II from Jonathan Kuminga before injury

The Warriors barely managed to prevent a drop below .500 by beating the Utah Jazz this week. After back-to-back road losses, Steve Kerr had to make radical changes to the rotation. That involved benching Jonathan Kuminga and putting Gary Payton II and Will Richard in the starting lineup.

Payton averaged a meager 10.8 minutes per game off the bench this season. When Draymond Green was sidelined for a sprained foot, too, he subbed in. Green’s back and not even on restricted minutes. Because the Warriors can’t afford to lose a single player.

Amid the Kuminga stalemate this offseason, it raised a few eyebrows when Payton was signed. He didn’t have impressive numbers last season, averaging 6.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 62 games during the 2024-25 season. So keeping him almost didn’t make sense.

Kerr relies heavily on Payton to get the rebounds more than his inefficient scoring. Goes without saying that Payton plays a huge role defensively. Taking on guards, wings and even much bigger forwards for his size—offering Kerr a more versatile Swiss Army Knife archetype defender.

Playing within the Warriors’ system, he has also adjusted his offensive attributes to fit alongside Draymond and Steph, becoming an effective off-ball screener, roller, and playing through the dunker role, as well as making timely threes—such as he did against the Spurs when Curry erupted during their NBA Cup matchup.

Obviously, he tried too hard to hustle for a rebound and got hurt. Ironically, fans are sympathetic to him and hope that he returns to the floor sooner.