The Golden State Warriors run in the 2025 NBA Playoffs was largely disrupted by injuries. Stephen Curry’s hamstring injury was obviously the worst of the bunch, as the Warriors were unable to generate much offense against the Minnesota Timberwolves in his absence, which led to their elimination. Several other players were grinding through their own ailments, such as second-year guard Brandin Podziemski.
As the season went on, Podziemski grew into a bigger role for the Warriors, and it resulted in him starting all but one of their 11 playoff games. Making Podziemski’s rise even more impressive is that he was battling a pair of serious injuries that required surgery. After he previously underwent a procedure on his wrist, Golden State announced on Thursday that Podziemski went back under the knife this week.
Warriors Share Brandin Podziemski Injury Update
The Warriors selected Podziemski with the No. 19 overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft, and he immediately contributed to their team as a rookie. In 74 games, 28 of which were starts, Podziemski averaged 9.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game while shooting 45.4 percent from the field. That earned him a spot on the All-Rookie Team, and a fifth-place finish in the Rookie of the Year race.
Podziemski took on a bigger role in his sophomore season, averaging 11.7 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game for Golden State. And while he shot just 36.4% from the field during the postseason, Podziemski’s two-way abilities helped ensure that he remained a crucial piece of head coach Steve Kerr’s rotation, especially once Curry suffered his aforementioned injury.
Shortly after the Warriors were eliminated, Podziemski got surgery on his left wrist, which could have contributed to his woeful shooting down the stretch of the season. But that’s not the only injury he was dealing with, as the team revealed on Thursday that Podziemski also underwent surgery to repair a core muscle injury. Despite that, he’s still expected to be ready to go for the start of the 2025-26 season.
“Golden State Warriors guard Brandin Podziemski underwent successful surgery yesterday to repair a core muscle injury,” the team said in an official statement. “He is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the start of training camp. Podziemski previously underwent successful left wrist debridement surgery on May 27.”
Warriors Hoping Brandin Podziemski Can Continue to Grow in 2025-26 Campaign
It’s always concerning to see a player undergo multiple medical procedures, but Podziemski seems to simply be cleaning things up after a long season on the court for the Warriors. Considering all the basketball he and his squad played, it’s standard operating procedure for a lot of these guys, and it doesn’t seem like this is anything that will hamper Podziemski for a lengthy period of time.
That will be music to Golden State’s ears, because Podziemski has quickly emerged as a key piece of their team, and his emergence helped the team turn things around and go on their run to the Western Conference semifinals this year. With Curry and Jimmy Butler still in tow, the Warriors will be looking to contend again next season, and if Podziemski takes another step forward, the team could make one last title run to keep their long-running dynasty alive.
