Who will step up for Warriors in Stephen Curry's absence?

This is the crisis moment.

The first round of the playoffs, starting next Saturday. The Warriors won't have Stephen Curry - he's out with a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee. He could return for Round 2.

They have to survive until then.

“We're an outstanding team without Curry,” Warriors assistant coach Ron Adams said over the phone. “But we can't be who we are without him. Steph has a certain kind of flare, a certain kind of confidence that our team feeds off and our crowd feeds off. He makes the game easier for other guys on our team, simply because defenses have to pay so much attention to him.”

Here's the proof: When Curry is on the court this season, the Warriors shoot 42.5 percent from behind the 3-point line, and their offensive rating is 120.4. When Curry is not on the court, the Warriors' 3-point shooting percentage drops to 35.3 percent, and their offensive rating to 106.3.

“We've got all the facts. Curry makes the team go,” said Jim Barnett, the Warriors' television analyst who played for Golden State from 1971 to 1974.

Here's one more voice on how the offense changes without Curry. “They're such a pace-and-space team. The Warriors play with flow and rhythm, and that happens because of Curry, just him quarterbacking the whole thing,” Garry St. Jean said. He's the television analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area, and was the Warriors general manager from 1997 to 2004, plus their head coach in the 1999-2000 season.

“When Curry's out, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson will hunt for more shots,” St. Jean said. “That's not bad, because they're both great scorers. But it is a change.”

In other words, open shots won't present themselves as frequently.

“You don't replace Steph,” said Adams. “We will rely on other people. Kevin steps up a bit, and Draymond and Klay. And the guys on the bench and the guys taking Steph's minutes, they're on alert. Everyone steps up.”

But, who will take the biggest steps? Who will become the most important person on the Warriors when Curry is out?

Let's meet the contestants.

CONTESTANT NO. 1: QUINN COOK

Cook began the season in the G League, and took over as the Warriors' starting point guard when Curry sprained his right ankle on March 8. Since then, Cook has averaged 14.9 points and 4.1 assists, and shot 43.5 percent from 3-point range.

“He's one of the terrific shooters in the league right now,” Barnett said. “Teams can't lay off him. He keeps defenses occupied. That frees up Klay and Durant.

“I wouldn't say Cook is lightning quick, but he's deceptively quick and he's smart. He went to Duke for four years. He knows how to use a screen, knows how to get his shot, and he doesn't try to take over a game. I wish he would shoot a little bit more. When he is open, there's a better than 50 percent chance that ball is going to go in.”

Cook has averaged 11.8 shot attempts since March 8 - third most on the team behind Durant and Thompson. “Cook is very important,” Adams said. “He understands what we're doing. He distributes the ball well. He has played really good basketball for us. He's a young player, but he's precocious. His knowledge of the game and, more than anything else, his poise in the game, will serve us well.”

Will he be the Warriors' most important player in Round 1?

St. Jean doesn't think so.

“He's going to be off the ball in a secondary role. They can run point forward with three different guys - Durant, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala. That's a luxury that the Warriors have to overcome the loss of Curry. The regular, old-fashioned way is to tell Cook, ‘You're going to do it.' But they've got a lot of ways to take the heat off him.”

Quinn is not the most important player.

CONTESTANT NO. 2: KLAY THOMPSON

Thompson is a shooting guard, and Curry is a point guard. The two supposedly play different positions.

Adams disagrees.

“Steph is really the new kind of guard in the league. He's a scorer who can distribute some. We have a number of guys who see the floor well and can make plays. I see an improvement, for an example, in Klay's playmaking. Klay has been very alert at times at making teammates better. I think his all-around game is really coming along.”

Adams considers both Curry and Thompson “scorers who can distribute some.” Fair enough. But Curry is much better at scoring and distributing than Thompson.

“If Curry's on the floor, everybody is better, especially Thompson,” Barnett said. “Thompson is the biggest recipient of Curry's teamwork. Thompson's percentages are precipitously higher, and he gets better shots.”

When Curry is on the floor, Thompson shoots 49.4 percent from 3-point range this season. When Curry isn't on the floor, Thompson shoots only 38.9 percent from 3-point range - a drop of 10.5 percent.

Thompson could struggle during the first round.

Thompson is not the most important player.

CONTESTANT NO. 3: KEVIN DURANT

Durant is a worthy contestant - he's a former MVP. And he has been the focal point of the Warriors' offense since returning from a partial rib cartilage fracture on March 29.

“We've seen him with the ball in his hands up top a lot since Curry has been out,” St. Jean said. “The majority of the action is pick and roll. And then, sometimes Durant goes one on one, gets 12 to 14 feet from the basket, creates space for himself and shows you that beautiful mid-range shot. He can do anything they want him to do.”

Including facilitate. Durant can create shots for his teammates, although not as well as Curry. Durant has a different mentality.

“Steph is going to take his shots and score, but he's going to drive and kick,” Barnett said. “When Durant gets inside the 3-point line, he's usually finishing the play, whether it be an 18-foot jump shot, or a drive to the basket where he gets fouled - he finishes plays. That's what he's good at doing. Curry may kick it out a little more. They're very different players.”

Will Durant become more of a facilitator in Round 1? Is that required?

“Kevin just has to be Kevin,” Adams said. “He is a brilliant player. He needs to play his game.”

Durant's offensive efficiency largely depends on Curry. This season, Durant is shooting 55 percent from the field and 45.7 percent from 3-point range with Curry on the floor. But without Curry, Durant is shooting 48.1 percent from the floor and 38.3 percent from 3-point range. He will have to work harder than usual to score in Round 1.

“Durant could go for 40 and they could still lose,” Barnett said.

Durant is not the most important player.

CONTESTANT NO. 4: DRAYMOND GREEN

“Draymond is going to run the offense,” Barnett said with conviction. “He brings the ball down the floor. He is their primary assist man. He leads the team in assists. If he could shoot 3s like Klay or Kevin, what an awesome team they'd have because opponents leave Draymond open all the time.”

In other words, Green is currently the real point guard on the team. Green isn't dependent on Curry like the rest of the Warriors. Green is wide open whether or not Curry is on the floor. And Green's greatest asset is his defense, which, again, has nothing to do with Curry.

“I'll tell you what, they don't win without Draymond,” Barnett said. “And they might win without Durant. Just pick up the stat sheet from Tuesday when they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-107.

“Draymond didn't have a field goal. He scored five points, all free throws, had four rebounds, seven assists, and was plus-five. Durant had 34 points in the game, and was minus-four. That tells you something about Draymond's defensive presence.

“Draymond plays the right way. He's a throwback. He plays like we did. He plays like he doesn't have a guaranteed contract. Plays with a sense of urgency, a sense of desperation.”

Green is the best defender in the NBA, when he wants to be. The past three seasons, he needed to be the best defender. Needed to prove himself every night.

Now, he doesn't need to be the best defensive player. He's received his recognition. And it shows. He won the Defensive Player of the Year Award last season for the first time. Since then, he hasn't played nearly as hard on defense. Hasn't had the same maniacal drive.

Is he pacing himself for the playoffs?

“I think that's what it is,” Barnett said. “They've gone deep into June three years in a row. It takes it out of you. But Draymond is really concentrating on defense right now.”

He'll need to in the playoffs.

He is the Warriors' most important player in Round 1.

But someone else will be just as important, and he's not a player.

CONTESTANT NO. 5: STEVE KERR

The first-round series is a test for Kerr.

Sometimes the past three seasons, he could sit back, watch Curry do his thing, and the Warriors would win easily.

Not anymore. He has to do some serious coaching. “Kerr has had 26 different starting lineups this season,” Barnett said. “We'll see in the playoffs if he can bring it all together.”

Adams believes Kerr can. “We played without Steph before in the playoffs two years ago. Adversity is part of the sport. It has brought out good things in Steve and our coaching staff this year. You're forced to be creative and innovative. Steve is going to adjust to the situation. He's got a great basketball mind. He'll figure it out.”

Kerr figured things out in December when Curry missed 11 games with an ankle injury. The Warriors' record was 9-2 during that stretch.

“Kerr told the players, ‘Let's take this as a challenge and notch it up defensively.'” St. Jean said. “And for 11 games, they were the best defensive team in the league. I think that's going to be part of their mantra. Defense. The challenge will be taken there.”

The Warriors didn't take the challenge Thursday. They played awful defense during a 126-106 loss to the Indiana Pacers. “It's hard to win an NBA game if you don't put forth an effort at all,” Kerr said after the game. He sounded furious. “I'm mad. I'm embarrassed. The playoffs start next week. It was a pathetic effort.”

More than anyone, Kerr seemed to be talking about Green, or to Green through the media. Green had only three rebounds against the Pacers. Rebounds require effort, and he didn't give much.

The Warriors can't afford Green to play like that anymore. He has paced himself enough. The first round comes down to him and to Kerr's ability to make Draymond Green play like Draymond Green.