With the NBA regular season winding down, the Golden State Warriors (34-38) are slotted at 10th-place in the Western Conference standings. Sadly, they’ll likely have to finish their 2025-26 campaign without Moses Moody, who’s started in 49 of the 60 games he’s played this season. Having only just returned from a wrist injury that sidelined him for three weeks, the 23-year-old was forced to leave American Airlines Center in a wheelchair after a suffering a gruesome knee injury.
How Does Moses Moody’s Gruesome ACL Injury Affect Warriors?
While up 136-131 against the Dallas Mavericks in overtime, a Moody steal put him on the runway for a would-be breakaway dunk. Strangely, after Moody planted his feet to elevate for the slam, he never made it all to the rim. With 73 career dunks heading into Monday’s game, it definitely wasn’t because he’s incapable of throwing one down. That being said, it seemed as if he may have simply lost his footing in real time. However, upon replay, it was clear that it was much worse than that.
As Moody left the ground, he only made it about halfway to his destination before he came crashing back down. He actually threw the ball off the bottom of the rim during his descent, more concerned with what caused this sudden increase in gravitational pull. When he hit the hardwood, hard, he immediately grabbed his left knee while his mouth made an “O” shape. It appeared dislocated.
Moses Moody went down with a serious knee injury on this play pic.twitter.com/9dUlnlI64O
— World Latin Honey (@WorldLatinHoney) March 24, 2026
Having built a small cushion prior to Moody’s injury, the Warriors were still able to pull out the win. However, he did not return to the court. Instead, he was placed on a stretcher and carted out.
Moses Moody had to be carted off after appearing to suffer a leg injury on this play pic.twitter.com/qKgi0Y8RUZ
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 24, 2026
On the sidelines, Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Brandin Podziemski looked devasted.
Steph and Podz react to the Moses Moody injury 💔 pic.twitter.com/rtEAxPeEbY
— Guru (@DrGuru_) March 24, 2026
LJ Cryer, and then Gary Payton II, would replace him for the remainder of the game. As he left the arena, he was seen in a wheelchair with his left knee braced, wrapped, and elevated.
Mosses Moody leaving the AAC😔🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/1e9W7rzJuq
— Ron Harrod Jr. (@RonKnowsSports) March 24, 2026
After the game, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr admitted to reporters (h/t NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dub Talk Live): “We don’t know what it is, but it sure looked bad and just hoping for the best.”
On Tuesday, Moody will undergo an MRI (h/t ESPN reporter Nick Friedell).
What Does This Mean For The Warriors?
If there’s one silver lining in this situation, it’s that Golden State didn’t have Moody available from March 2–22. In other words, they’re more or less in the same predicament that they’ve been in all month.
Now, on the one hand, they went 2-8 without Moody during that stretch. On the other hand, their losses weren’t totally the result of Moody’s absence. At least, not in and of themselves. For those that may have forgotten, team leader Stephen Curry hasn’t played a game since Jan. 30. Furthermore, while Moody was out, De’Anthony Melton received the starting nod in all seven games he was available. In that stretch, Melton averaged 16.3 points per game while playing his familiar brand of staunch defense.
However, despite having made 36.0% of his career 3s, Melton only converted 28.9% of his 3-pointers in that stretch. This is where the difference between he and Moody really lies. For comparison, Moody had made 40.2% of his 3-point attempts heading into Monday’s matchup. With that being said, a 3-and-D wing knocking down over 40 percent of his 3s is going to be very hard to replace. For this roster, it may even be impossible. Nonetheless, they do have a puncher’s chance of doing just that.
Nate Williams To The Rescue?
Signed to a two-way contract on Feb. 17, 6-foot-5 wing Nate Williams has suited up in 10 games for the Warriors. In those games, he’s shot 46.7% from beyond the arc while averaging 6.8 points per game. He’s also been a superb point-of-attack defender, consistently closing the air space between himself and the opposing ball-handler.
Warriors Nate Williams career-high 19 PTS (8-9 FG, 2-2 3P, 96% TS), 4 REB, 2 AST, 1 STL vs. Hawks https://t.co/untEWKRBdX pic.twitter.com/blJIIaOTI5
— Role Player Performances (@BenchHighlights) March 22, 2026
To be frank, nobody is expected him to shoot above 46 percent from 3 for the rest of the season. All the same, if he can keep up his momentum, it should dull the impact of Moody’s loss. Because he’s on a two-way contract, he’s currently ineligible for the playoffs. However, when Uzbek center Omer Yurtseven‘s 10-day contract expires, Williams could easily be promoted to the 15-man roster.
© Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
