SAN FRANCISCO — Steve Kerr wanted to make one thing abundantly clear as he began the news conference to announce the two-year contract extension he agreed to earlier this week to remain the Golden State Warriors’ head coach. The smile on his face and the ease with which he walked into the room high atop Chase Center Friday afternoon spoke just as much as the words that came out of his mouth.
“I’m thrilled to be back,” Kerr said. “I couldn’t be more excited to continue on this job.”
The 60-year-old Kerr acknowledged what has been well-documented since he shared a hug with stalwarts Steph Curry and Draymond Green at the end of the Warriors’ season-ending Play-In Tournament loss to the Phoenix Suns on April 17: There was a chance his run with the Warriors had ended. While Kerr had many conversations with Warriors owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy over the last few weeks, he said his wife, Margot, ultimately made him realize he didn’t want to leave what he had built.
“She said you might coach again someday, but you’ll never coach the Warriors again,” Kerr said. “And that was really meaningful to me, because I love this team, I love our players, and that struck me. You know, I couldn’t imagine walking away from the Warriors. At that point, it was really, you know, what do (Lacob and Dunleavy) want to do? We had great meetings. Over the course of about a week, we all agreed, let’s do it.”
While Kerr remains happy to continue coaching Curry, he was also critical of his own performance during the Warriors’ 37-45 season.
“I know I have to be better,” Kerr said. “I didn’t have a great coaching year this year. I know there are a lot of things I can do better.”
Specifically, Kerr and Dunleavy continued to hammer home the importance of ball security. Turnovers have plagued the Warriors for years — they ranked 26th in the NBA in turnover percentage last season and have only ranked in the top half of the league twice in Kerr’s 12 seasons.
“We got a little too loose,” Kerr said. “Obviously, literally loose with the ball. But I think we, because of our age, because of our injuries, we spent a lot of time kind of resting, and I got to tighten the ship up next year.”
Dunleavy said last season was “pretty underwhelming” and was derailed by a variety of injuries, some of which (Jimmy Butler’s torn ACL and Moses Moody’s ruptured patellar tendon) will spill over into next season. Friday’s news conference was the first time a key member of the Warriors’ hierarchy acknowledged the team would not walk into next season with clear-cut aspirations of contending for a championship, though Dunleavy said his hope is still to have a chance to make a postseason push once the entire roster is healthy.
“I don’t think (Lacob) would mind if I shared this,” Kerr said. “But we were talking about our injuries and how this is the first time where we can’t realistically just say, ‘Hey, let’s win a title next year, you know?’ He just said, ‘I’m the owner, and I can’t help but just say I expect to be in the playoffs every year and have a shot.’ Frankly, that’s one of the reasons why we have done that is because of his vision and his passion.”
So what does success look like next season?
“I think it looks like recommitting to our values and our process,” Kerr said. “I think the last couple of years, frankly, have been difficult with the age, the collective age, of our team, the injuries. I think we had, like, six guys this year who either couldn’t play back-to-backs or were on minutes restrictions — often at the same time.
“I think I really, frankly, gave everyone too much leeway this year. It just felt like we were constantly resting everybody and just trying to survive to the next game and have enough healthy bodies. … I think we lost some of our discipline, and we got a little loose. And that’s my job.”
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Dunleavy said there were nights he went to sleep thinking Kerr wouldn’t be back, and he said Kerr probably felt the same way. In the end, the Warriors’ triumvirate of Kerr, Dunleavy and Lacob decided they were better together than they would be apart. After multiple conversations over the last few weeks, both Kerr and Dunleavy sounded unified in their messaging and on the same page with Lacob.
“I think this year was such an obvious inflection point for the franchise,” Kerr said. “It’s why we deliberated. It’s why we really gave it a lot of thought. I think, as I said, we came to a really clear path of, let’s really recommit to this group and how we’re operating and what we’re trying to do, and make sure our foundation is strong, and that it’s setting up whatever is next. Because we have to be looking forward. I can’t predict any of that.”
Kerr said he doesn’t want to stay too long. His goal is to leave the Warriors in a good place whenever the time comes for him to walk away. But his answers Friday and his day-to-day approach this past season show he still has a passion for the job and is not feeling burnt out.
“I’m happiest when I’m on the court with my players,” Kerr said. “When I’m collaborating with Mike and the organization. I love this. Even through the struggles this year, I love the struggle. I love the challenge.”