After the Warriors finished 37-45 and missed the playoffs, Steve Kerr admitted he didn’t do a good enough job coaching the team and said the frustration from last season played a major role in his decision-making process before returning for a 13th year on the sidelines.
“I know I have to be better,” Kerr said. “I didn’t have a great coaching year.”
Kerr and Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. spoke with reporters in San Francisco on Friday, where both acknowledged the organization underachieved throughout the year.
Dunleavy described the season as “pretty underwhelming,” while repeatedly pointing to Golden State’s turnover problems after the team averaged 15.7 turnovers per game, tied for the third-most in the NBA.
Kerr revealed he has already started reviewing every turnover from the season in an effort to fix the issues moving forward.
“We got a little too loose,” Kerr said. “Literally loose with the ball. But because of our age, because of our injuries, we spent a lot of time resting. So I’ve got to tighten the ship up next year.”
Kerr also made it clear the organization plans to give any young addition a genuine opportunity to contribute immediately.
“Totally,” Kerr said when asked if he’d commit to playing a rookie. “I’ve talked to Mike. I don’t know the draft, but he feels really strongly we’re going to get a good player. It could be a 19-year-old and it could be someone older. … That guy has to play. He’s got to earn it. But we’re committed to the development of our young players.”
Kerr admitted he spent about a week debating whether he still wanted to coach before conversations with his wife Margot, Dunleavy and owner Joe Lacob helped solidify his decision to return. But he also acknowledged the Warriors are entering a different phase as a franchise.
“We had to come to a much more reality-based shared vision on what success looks like for us,” Kerr said. “What are we trying to accomplish? Because for the first time since our injury-plagued year (2019-20), we aren’t sitting here saying, ‘Hey, we can win a championship.’ I don’t need to say that. We know that right this second.”
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