Watch: The exact moment LeBron James pushes Steph Curry back to bench as he tries to have a conversation with the referee

Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors came out of the gates flat and inefficient against the LA Lakers who didn’t have LeBron James. LA’s 33-18 advantage early on set the tone of the Lakers’ aggressive play for most of the game.

With about five minutes left in the first quarter, Curry was passionately explaining something to one of the referees, with James intently watching the exchange. After Curry’s plea went unheeded, the Lakers’ superstar did this:

The four-time MVP gently nudged Curry in the direction of the Golden State Warriors point guard’s bench. While walking back to join his team’s huddle, Curry could still be seen gesturing with dissatisfaction.

The animated conversation between Steph Curry and the game official came after Anthony Davis’ putback dunk gave the Lakers a 25-12 lead. “Chef Curry” must have been complaining about a few ticky-tack fouls that went the LA Lakers’ way.

Golden State led 7-4 before the Lakers’ 13-0 blast put the home team ahead by 10 points in one quick, decisive spurt. The Warriors tried to battle back in that quarter but the Lakers simply can’t seem to miss.

Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors, however, bounced back in the second quarter. They outscored the Lakers 36-22 to transfer momentum to their side heading into the second half.

After sitting out for nearly a month due to a leg/shin injury, Curry struggled right off the bat. He didn’t score his first basket until the second quarter when the Warriors had their own little run to catch up with their opponents.

After the loss, the Warriors dropped to 34-31 but still kept them in fifth place as the battle for the sixth spot starts to heat up.

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Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors are not worried about their regular-season record

Steph Curry missed four weeks due to a shoulder injury and another four weeks with a recent leg/shin injury. He has played a total of 38 games, while Andrew Wiggins has seen action just 37 times this season.

Despite all that, the Golden State Warriors have slowly crawled out of the top 10 in the Western Conference standings to fifth. There are still 18-20 games left for all NBA teams, so the competition will only get tougher.

Steph Curry, however, isn’t worried about where they’ll end up in the standings as long as they are healthy come playoff time.

“The way we’ve been shorthanded, these guys have been stepping up and playing at an extremely high level and giving us even a little bit of life to where we are in the standings. There’s just a lot that we’re trying to deal with.

“Still, we’re optimistic about where we’re heading. Until we get beat, I feel like we’re a tough matchup for anybody and that’s the confidence we have to have down the stretch and headed into the postseason.”

The Golden State Warriors, who have won four championships over the last eight years, know what it takes to turn on their proverbial switch. Over the last few games, they’ve shown that they can do just that.

Steve Kerr’s squad is starting to get healthy and gel in just the right stretch of the season. No one will be happy to see them regardless of where they end up, particularly with Steph Curry still somewhat fresh and invigorated.

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