Sam Amick

USA TODAY Sports

OAKLAND — How’s this for the Stephen Curry branding that you never saw coming?

The NBA’s reigning MVP, this Golden State Warriors star whose image is as pristine as you’ll find in pro sports, is a bald-faced liar.

Just ask him.

"I thought I was good (to play) tonight, so my word is not very good on that front," Curry told USA TODAY Sports after his Warriors downed the Houston Rockets 115-106 without him on Monday night at Oracle Arena to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference first-round series. "I’m going to approach (Game 3 in Houston on Thursday) like I’m playing for sure."

But enough about the ankle injury that limited him to head cheerleader duties on the Warriors bench. Curry was more interested in talking about his teammates than he was himself.

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Anyone who has been around Curry for any length of time knows that this is no act. His selfless style has been one of the keys to the Warriors’ rise to the top, the kind of quality that allows everyone around him to grow and thrive. Some players suck the air out of the room, but players like Curry have the rare ability to breathe life into it. And even when he didn’t play, when his teammates were delivering a demoralizing loss to the Rockets without him, it was there for all to see.

One minute he was leaving the floor in frustration before the tip, disappointed that the right ankle that he tweaked in Game 1 on Saturday wouldn’t cooperate. With hordes or reporters and fans watching his every move and wondering if he’d take part, he cut his routine short and even punched the ball on his way off the floor for good measure.

Yet some 90 minutes later, with Curry sporting a suit coat and a collared shirt on the sideline, he looked like someone who had been selected on The Price is Right. He danced with more than enough spirit to make Warriors coach Steve Kerr and the rest of them nervous. In the second half, he was relegated to the second row after losing his front-row seat to a second-year player James Michael McAdoo — a testament if ever there was one to the way Curry and his Warriors are wired.

There was great joy in this Warriors win, even if he had nothing to do with it.

"They did their job," he said on his way out of the building. "It was obviously a big opportunity to continue the momentum in the series and play a style that they needed to get the job done. I’m proud of the way they competed. They fought hard the entire game, and really to me, it never felt like they had lost any confidence and the game was never in doubt."

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This was more than a playoff win for the Warriors. This was a green light special for the ones who were asked to fill the enormous void Curry left behind.

From Klay Thompson to Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston to Draymond Green, there was a well-timed uptick in production that allowed Curry to head home with a smile. But of all the contributions, the performances that kept the Rockets from having any hope in this series, Iguodala’s caught Curry’s eye most of all.

Golden State’s resident Finals MVP played just one game from March 1 to April 3, an ankle injury of his own prompting an extended absence that threatened the Warriors’ rhythm at the worst of times. So this — an 18-point outing in which his four early three-pointers sparked the Warriors’ fast start — was the kind of breakout that could help them all as they get deeper on this title defense.

"Andre, for sure — especially," Curry said. "He’s still been looking for his rhythm since he’s been back, and to see him come out with that aggressiveness to shoot the ball to start the game and make them respect his offensive presence.

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"It’s just about having confidence. You live with the results. Obviously if he goes 0-for-4 in those first four threes, then I still like the shots. You still like the aggressiveness. But I think his confidence leads to results, and that’s been the case ever since he’s been here. He obviously has taken a different role. But every time we need him to do something special, or win a game for us, or win a series for us, he’s stepped up. It’s kind of a surprise, but it’s to be expected."

No one on the Warriors’ side was shocked that Livingston filled in so admirably, either. The 30-year-old will never be mistaken for Curry, but his versatile game is as unique and effective as they come in the reserve ranks. He finished with 16 points, hitting seven of nine shots and tallying six assists as well.

"Obviously Shaun is our Mr. Reliable," Curry said. "It doesn’t matter what he’s called to do. He’s always ready. He played an efficient, solid game controlling the tempo, controlling the game. Everybody did it by committee, and I think defensively that’s where they won the game tonight. "

Curry, at long last, was telling the truth.

Follow Sam Amick on Twitter @sam_amick.