Warriors News: Kevin Durant Says Weird Playing Without Stephen Curry, Others

Kevin Durant claims it is weird to play without the likes of Stephen Curry, Andre Iguodala and others as the Golden State Warriors suffered a second consecutive defeat on Sunday.

The reigning NBA champions, who currently boast a 51-16 regular season record, lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a 109-103 loss in what is now just their second two-game losing run of the season, following a 125-108 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday last week.

Despite the best efforts of Durant, who scored 39 points, 12 rebounds and four assists as well as fellow NBA all-star Klay Thompson, who boasted 21 points and five assists, the Warriors now lag further behind the Houston Rockets, who currently lead the Western Conference with a 52-14 regular season record.

"It's weird not having Steph out there," Durant said after the loss on Sunday. "And Andre [Iguodala] and D-West, Jordan [Bell], so we're missing a lot, and we're just kind of playing on the fly each possession."

Curry has been out of action since twisting his right ankle last week against the San Antonio Spurs in what was a repeat of his injury back in December that saw him miss 11 games. The 29-year-old is expected to return to action on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Lakers.

In addition, the Bay Area side is without the likes of Iguodala, David West and Jordan Bell while Quinn Cook has been deputizing in Curry's absence. Durant praised the job Cook has done, but acknowledged that he and Curry provide a completely different dynamic when they're starting.

"Quinn [Cook] has been up and down in the G-League, so it's something we got to deal with, something that we just got to figure out, work through," Durant added. "And it's actually been pretty fun trying to figure things out throughout the game. Everybody's just coming together even better."

"We lost two in a row, but the energy on the bench was great, the coaching staff has been digging down deep trying to find things for us that will work because our offense is predicated on Steph and Klay [Thompson] kind of running around the 3-point line, knocking down 3-point shots and spreading out."

"Without Steph there, Quinn is asked to do a lot, so it's definitely a different dynamic when you have, [as] opposed to Steph Curry, when you're having Quinn Cook. He's doing a good job stepping in and playing extremely hard, and I'm proud of him," Durant said.

With the Warriors now behind the Rockets by two losses, they are at risk of not finishing the season as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference for the first time since 2014. However, Durant is confident things will come together when all the key players are back.

"We're a veteran group, and we've got high-IQ players that know how to play," Durant explained. "You could plug D-West back in, Steph, Andre, they know how to play, and they're watching the games as well."

"Steph is the system here, and he's been a part of this since Steve Kerr's been here. And D-West knows how to play and won a championship with us last year. Andre is in the same boat as Steph."

"Those guys are smart, and we're looking forward to having them back because they definitely change our team and get us back on what we want to do out there as a basketball team. Because we have a system in place that maximizes everybody's strengths, and you could see if you take a few guys out, it's a totally different game. So I'm proud. Everybody's trying to figure it out, but just to keep working, man," Durant added.