SAN FRANCISCO — Stephen Curry squared up Monte Morris before crossing him up. After the Golden State Warriors star made it past Morris, Nikola Jokic remained between Curry and the basket. But before Jokic or Morris could stop him, Curry split them on a spin more and finished with a layup as he crashed to the ground.

The Denver Nuggets called timeout, and as Curry made his way down the court, you could read his lips saying three very clear words: “I’m f—ing back.”

“[There was a little] pep in my step and the body felt good,” Curry said after the Warriors beat the Nuggets 126-106 on Monday at Chase Center to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series. “You make certain shots, feels a little bit different and more normal and more emotion comes out, especially with that layoff. It was a nice feeling.”

Perhaps the Warriors didn’t need Curry to be back in that form. They managed just fine with his quieter night in Game 1, his first game back since March 16. Ahead of Game 2, a source told ESPN that the Warriors were hoping Curry would start to find his groove but wouldn’t be concerned if he didn’t. But when he did, it gave a taste of what this Warriors team can look like fully healthy and clicking on all cylinders — like a serious contender in the postseason for the first time in years.

With Curry coming off the bench again and still playing under a 22- to 23-minute restriction, he said it was his goal Monday to simply make his minutes impactful.

Curry finished the night with 34 points, four assists, three rebounds, one block and one assist for a plus-32 net rating.

“Jesus,” Draymond Green said when he saw Curry’s net rating on the stat sheet.

“He was incredible,” Green said. “He just kept driving, and I think that broke their defense. Once he did that, you’ve got him into the paint kicking out and flying back off for 3s. That’s when Steph is at his most dangerous — off the ball. The way he came in and settled our offense, it’s what…