Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr gave his season-ending press conference on Tuesday, a few days after the defending NBA champions were eliminated from the playoffs.
For the first time since Kerr took over as the Warriors’ head coach back in 2014-15, they lost a Western Conference Playoff series. It came in the second round against the in-state rival Los Angeles Lakers with Friday’s blowout loss acting as the clincher. Golden State was 19-0 under Kerr in Western Conference Playoff series prior to falling to the Lakers in six.
In his season-ending presser, Kerr did not hide from the fact that the training camp altercation between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole played a role in chemistry issues that seemed to plague the Warriors:
“There’s no hiding from it. The incident with Draymond and Jordan at the beginning of the year played a role in that. It’s hard for that not to impact a team,” Steve Kerr told reporters. “There was some trust lost. We have to get back to a trusting environment.”
It was back in early October that a video was released of Green punching Poole during a training camp practice. It led to the four-time NBA champion stepping away from the team. However, things never seemed to be right between Green and Poole after that ugly incident. It certainly did seem to play a role in the locker room dynamics with chemistry being impacted.
Interestingly enough, Kerr did tell reporters that he still believes Poole is one of the six foundational pieces moving forward. Having signed a four-year, $128 million contract extension with Golden State ahead of the 2022-23 season, Poole played well during the regular year. He averaged 20.4 points and 4.5 assists on 43% shooting.
With that said, the former first-round pick from Michigan was borderline unplayable in the postseason. He averaged 10.3 points on just 34% shooting. In Golden State’s conference semifinals loss to Los Angeles, those averages dipped to 8.3 points per game. It’s led to speculation that Poole could be moved this summer.
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Steve Kerr talks Bob Myers, future of the Golden State Warriors
This coming summer is going to be filled with some sort of change in Northern California. First off, the aforementioned Green can opt out of his contract and become a free agent. He plans on doing just that. Whether the Warriors are willing to offer an aging Green what would be a max contract remains to be seen.
Potentially joining Green on the free agent market is general manager and former NBA Executive of the Year Bob Myers. His contract is set to expire in June. Myers indicated recently that he plans on taking a couple weeks to figure out what to do next.
Myers is among the central figures who helped create a dynasty in Northern California. It is also already being noted that there’s a ton of interest in him. That includes the Los Angeles Clippers.
“I absolutely hope he comes back. But it’s also a case where I want what’s best for Bob. If he decides he’s going to leave, I’m going to support him 100%. I will miss him but I support him, regardless,” Steve Kerr on Bob Myers’ future with the Golden State Warriors.
In addition to Green and Myers, Klay Thompson’s future with the Warriors will also come up this summer. The future Hall of Famer is set to become a free agent after next season and could be angling for a final max contract.
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While Thompson had a bounce back regular season, he was downright atrocious as Golden State fell to Los Angeles in the second round. One of the best shooters of all-time, Thompson connected on just 21% of his shots over the final three games of the series.
- Steve Kerr coaching record: 473-238, .665 winning %, 4 NBA titles
As you can see, Kerr is among the most successful NBA head coaches of the modern era. Though, it must be noted that Golden State has posted a combined 151-150 record over the past four seasons. He began his career in Northern California with a 322-88 record in five seasons.
Kerr acknowledged that his contract situation will also come up at some point ahead of the 2023-24 season. Though, he also said that what happens with Myers’ contract should take precedence. Kerr has only one season remaining on his deal and has seen other big-name head coach fired recently after some major success.
“Look at your phone every day and see the next Hall of Fame coach fired,” Kerr told reporters.