Golden State Warriors Without Brandin Podziemski In Phoenix Suns After He Played Through A Scare Against Memphis Grizzlies

Brandin Podziemski missed the Warriors' season opener with a sore back, played in their home opener on Friday, and now won't play on Saturday. That is the timeline of a rough first week for Golden State. He got a shot to the head early against Memphis, left the game, and still came back to put up a strong stat line. After the game, he said he will sit out Saturday's game in Phoenix. The Warriors are already short-handed, and reports say Stephen Curry will probably sit too.

Podziemski misses opener, plays Friday, sits Saturday

Podziemski missed Wednesday's 127-105 loss to the Lakers with lower back soreness. He had been out of practice for three days before that, and he missed a game for the first time in a long while after playing all 82 last season.

On Friday, coach Steve Kerr said before the game that he was good to go. “He had a workout this morning,” Kerr said. “Went through it fine, so he'll be in the starting lineup.”

His night got off to a bad start. With 8:17 left in the first quarter, he went backdoor for a layup, took a pass from Graham Ike and was hit in the face by Grizzlies center Zach Edey's arm. No foul was called. Podziemski stayed down, then got up and walked to the locker room on his own. He had four points at that point. He came back later in the quarter, stole the ball from former teammate Quinten Post, hit a three and ended the period with a buzzer-beating layup that gave the Warriors a one-point lead.

He played 33 minutes and finished with 18 points, three assists, three steals, a block and two threes. Afterward, he said he would not play in Phoenix. That puts the Warriors in a tough spot, since Curry is also reported to be unlikely to play in the first back-to-back of the year.

Warriors let one get away against Memphis

Memphis won 111-108 at Chase Center, and it was close all night. Golden State trailed by as many as eight early before Draymond Green and Gary Payton II hit back-to-back threes to spark a 10-0 run. The Grizzlies pushed their lead to 13 in the second quarter, and the Warriors answered with a 19-4 run to take the lead late in the third.

The Warriors led by as many as 13 in the fourth. Then Memphis tied it with a 10-2 run in the final minute and finished the job with a pair of buckets and a free throw. Curry led Golden State with 24 points but shot 5-for-15, and the team could not hold the lead.

Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg had his first career double-double, with 18 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. He is the first Warriors rookie to do that since Chris Webber in 1994. Ike made his first NBA start and scored 10 points, and five Warriors scored in double figures.

The Warriors are 0-2 and head to Phoenix with a thin lineup. They return to Chase Center on Oct. 30 to face the Lakers.