Draymond Green is out against the Suns with lower back soreness, and the Warriors are also without Curry, Podziemski and Horford
WhyNBA Sports Desk · Oct 24, 2026
The story
Draymond Green will not play for the Golden State Warriors against the Phoenix Suns on Saturday, October 24, ruled out with soreness on both sides of his lower back, and Golden State now goes into the second night of a back-to-back without its three most experienced players.
The story
Green's name was moved to out on the league's 9 p.m. ET injury report, an hour before tip-off in Phoenix, after he had been listed as questionable and then doubtful during the day.
The story
Stephen Curry (right knee injury management), Brandin Podziemski (lower back injury management) and Al Horford (lower back injury management) are also out, so Golden State will be missing four of its top seven players in minutes from Friday night.
A thin frontcourt gets thinner
The absence matters most in the middle. With Kristaps Porzingis away from the team and listed as not with the club, Green has been playing center for long stretches, and Horford was the other big who could take those minutes.
A thin frontcourt gets thinner
Charles Bassey is questionable with right patellar tendinopathy after missing the first two games, which leaves Graham Ike, who started Friday and scored 10 points in 12 minutes, as the only healthy big man with a regular role.
A thin frontcourt gets thinner
Green's first two games have been about playmaking more than scoring.
A thin frontcourt gets thinner
He had 2 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists in 21 minutes in the 127-105 opening loss to the Lakers, then 5 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists in 31 minutes on Friday, when Memphis closed on a 17-0 run to win 111-108 at Chase Center.
A thin frontcourt gets thinner
He has 9 turnovers across the two games, and the Warriors are 0-2. He returned on a one-year, $27.7 million deal in July.
Who fills the minutes
Gui Santos is likely to start in Green's place, Rotoworld reported. Santos started the opener and had 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, and he was a plus-14 in 20 minutes off the bench on Friday.
Who fills the minutes
De'Anthony Melton and Gary Payton II were already expected to carry most of the backcourt load with Curry and Podziemski out. The rest of Saturday's statuses are on our NBA injury report page.
Who fills the minutes
Phoenix is close to full strength by comparison. Luke Kennard was upgraded to available with left knee tendinopathy, while Oso Ighodaro (right oblique strain) and Mark Williams (left shoulder surgery) are out.
What comes next
The Warriors visit the Suns on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET (5 a.m. Sunday in Cairo): Warriors at Suns Game Center. Golden State then gets a day off before it visits Denver on Monday, October 26, at 10 p.m. ET (5 a.m.
What comes next
Tuesday in Cairo), the next chance for Green, Curry, Podziemski and Horford to return: Warriors at Nuggets Game Center.
Photo credit
Draymond Green in February 2022. Photo: Erik Drost / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Resized.
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