Warriors guard depth thins as Brandon Williams hurts hamstring and Will Richard tears thumb UCL

The Golden State Warriors won for the eighth straight game Monday night, and they also lost two backup guards. Brandon Williams left the 138-87 rout of New Orleans in the first quarter with a left hamstring injury. Will Richard missed the game entirely with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb.

Williams played 1 minute, 39 seconds. In that time he made two straight layups and went 2 of 3 for four points, then checked out with 3:18 left in the opening quarter and did not return, USA TODAY Sports reported. The team has scheduled an MRI. Steve Kerr did not hide his concern after the game. "He's a huge part of our team, and he's given us such a lift," the coach said, according to USA TODAY. Williams has been one of Golden State's steadiest bench scorers, averaging 10.4 points and 2.3 assists, Fadeaway World noted.

Richard's injury could keep him out longer. The Warriors have ruled him out indefinitely. He told Joseph Dycus of the Mercury News that he hurt the thumb on a boxout and wants to play through it once the swelling goes down. NBC Sports Bay Area reported that the team will choose between surgery and a splint depending on how the swelling responds. Before the game, Kerr praised Richard's confidence, defense and shooting, and said the guard had moved between the starting lineup and the bench.

The two injuries add to a long absence list. Gary Payton II sat out Monday with an illness and left knee inflammation, and Moses Moody and Jimmy Butler III remain out. Golden State got by against the Pelicans with two-way guard LJ Cryer, who scored 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting after entering in the second quarter. The game was decided early enough that Stephen Curry and Draymond Green each played about 21 minutes.

What it means at Houston

The Warriors are 8-3. They opened the season 0-3, with losses at the Lakers, against Memphis and at Phoenix, and haven't lost since. Over the eight-game streak they have scored 123.6 points per game, allowed 106.8 and won by an average of nearly 17. The run includes wins at Denver and Minnesota, home wins over the Lakers and Clippers, and a 116-113 home win over Phoenix that made up for the earlier loss in Arizona. Not every game was a blowout, though. Three of the eight wins came by seven points or fewer: Orlando, Phoenix and Minnesota.

Wednesday's game in Houston opens a five-game road trip that continues in San Antonio. Golden State is 2-2 away from home this season. The guard rotation will be the main question. Without Williams and Richard, and possibly without Payton, Kerr's backcourt minutes behind Curry run through Cryer and whichever wings he trusts with the ball. The MRI results on Williams will decide whether this is a short patch or a longer stretch of the trip with the bench thinned out.

Full team coverage is on our Golden State Warriors page.