Durant: 'Weird' playing without Curry, key Warriors veterans

Make that two straight losses for the Golden State Warriors without Stephen Curry after falling to the Jimmy Butler-less Minnesota Timberwolves on the road Sunday, marking the first time all season the reigning NBA champions have dropped consecutive games.

Kevin Durant just wants his team back at full strength.

"It's weird not having Steph out there," Durant said after his team's 109-103 loss, according to ESPN's Nick Friedell. "And Andre (Iguodala) and D-West (David West), Jordan (Bell), so we're missing a lot, and we're just kind of playing on the fly each possession."

Starting in Curry's place Sunday once again was guard Quinn Cook, who contributed four points and a pair of assists on just 2-of-7 shooting in 29 minutes of playing time. There's obviously a huge discrepancy between Cook's play and that of a two-time Most Valuable Player like Curry.

"He's doing a good job stepping in and playing extremely hard, and I'm proud of him," added Durant.

A right ankle injury has sidelined Curry, while injuries to Iguodala's wrist, West's arm, and Bell's ankle are keeping them out of action. Golden State's second unit is averaging the second-fewest points in the Association (22.5) without their key cogs over the last two games. When they return, Durant expects them to have little trouble fitting in.

"We're a veteran group, and we've got high-IQ players that know how to play," Durant said. "You could plug D-West back in, Steph, Andre, they know how to play, and they're watching the games as well. ...

"Those guys are smart, and we're looking forward to having them back because they definitely change our team and get us back on what we want to do out there as a basketball team. Because we have a system in place that maximizes everybody's strengths, and you could see if you take a few guys out, it's a totally different game."

The Warriors are 1 1/2 games behind the Houston Rockets for the top seed in the Western Conference with a 51-16 record.