Steph Curry has started the season on a blistering tear, averaging 27.8 points per game on 45.7% from three-point range. That, along with a stellar start from rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, has lifted the Warriors to 8-4 to start a season that most people thought would be a disaster. 

But Curry left the Warriors’ loss to Houston Wednesday night with an abdominal injury, telling coach Steve Kerr, according to ESPN, that it was a feeling he hadn’t felt before. On Thursday, the Warriors announced the injury was a tear in his oblique. Here is the team’s full statement:

“Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, who exited last night's game at Houston with 6:25 remaining in the first quarter due to injury, underwent an MRI last night. The MRI confirmed that Curry has an oblique abdominal tear. He will be re-evaluated in two (2) weeks.”

This impacts the Boston Celtics because their first matchup of the season against the Warriors falls within that timeframe. 

The Celtics are currently enjoying three days off, a welcome break in the middle of a grueling November schedule that includes only four home games. Two of those home games are this weekend, against Dallas and Orlando, before the Celtics head back out for a four-game road trip. 

The trip starts in Denver on Wednesday the 18th, then continues through Sacramento and San Francisco before wrapping up in Washington against the Wizards. The Warriors game on Sunday the 22nd comes just 11 days after the injury, three days before Curry is even due to be re-evaluated, so he’s all but certain to miss it. Golden State visits Boston on February 10, which would be the only other chance Celtics fans have to see Curry versus the Celtics, unless the Warriors somehow come out of the West in the NBA Cup and face Boston. The Celtics are 2-0 in Cup play and have a +53 point differential, so they are in good position to advance to the knockout rounds.

The Celtics have jumped out to a 10-2 start, but only one of their wins has come against a team with a winning record at the time of the game (Philadelphia on Tuesday night). The upcoming schedule provides fresh challenges and tests for the Celtics, and guarding Curry certainly would have been a big one. 

Boston will have its hands full before then with Cooper Flagg coming to town Sunday evening. Flagg, a Maine native, is averaging 25.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 6.9 assists for the 7-4 Dallas Mavericks, so even without Curry, there is plenty of star power ahead for the Celtics for the rest of this month. In addition to Nikola Jokic next week, the Celtics will face Flagg again on a back-to-back to end the month after taking on Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.