76ers Will Face Steph Curry When They Visit Warriors on Saturday

The 76ers probably didn't anticipate seeing a Steph Curry return this weekend when they face the Warriors. Now, the Golden State matchup just got tougher for Philly.

The Golden State Warriors have missed their star guard, Steph Curry. The rest of the NBA? Probably not so much. While it was a bit strange to see the once-dominant dynasty of Golden State lose a lot more than they've won this year, it was only a matter of time before they get back to their winning ways.

However, nobody expected that to start this season, though. With Klay Thompson out for the year, and Steph Curry nursing a hand injury, it seemed as if the Warriors were just going to shut down both of their top stars and chalk the season up.

But Curry doesn't seem willing to do that. In fact, the Warriors' star wanted to return to the court last week and had every intention of doing so until the team forced him to slow his role. Golden State's wise move of easing Curry back onto the court made it seem as if there was a chance the Sixers would get away with playing the Warriors twice without Curry on the court this season.

As it turns out, that won't be the case. As the 76ers are prepared to wrap up their four-game road trip with a visit to Golden State on Saturday, the Warriors are more than likely going to have Curry available to play. As of Wednesday night, the team announced that the veteran star is cleared to return on Thursday for the Warriors' home matchup against the Toronto Raptors. And as long as the Warriors don't hold Curry out for Saturday's game for whatever reason, he will get a chance to play the struggling, shorthanded Sixers.

Stephen Curry will return to the lineup tomorrow night against the Toronto Raptors. pic.twitter.com/BIYevShRs6

— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) March 5, 2020

Curry's return isn't great news for Philly. While they would more than likely be able to defeat a Curry-led Warriors team when fully healthy this season, they won't be as fortunate for Saturday's matchup. Ben Simmons is already ruled out, while Joel Embiid seems like a longshot to play. Meanwhile, Philly's starting shooting guard, Josh Richardson, remains in concussion protocol and has missed all but ten minutes of action during this trip so far.

For a team that could use wins during the next two games against Sacramento and Golden State, the Sixers continue to get dealt a bad hand. That's not to say that Curry's Warriors have an automatic win coming their way on Saturday, but the Sixers surely aren't going to pick up an easy victory -- that's for sure.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_