SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, as is usually the case in an exit interview, was detailed and revealing during his Thursday afternoon press conference, discussing a variety of general talking points regarding the future of his eliminated team.
His most detailed answer was about Draymond Green and why, after all his past transgressions, the Warriors continue to support him. Earlier in the afternoon, general manager Mike Dunleavy said he “can’t imagine a scenario” in which Green wouldn’t be back with the team next season. Green has three years remaining on his current contract.
Kerr spent more than four minutes explaining the “complex” relationship between Green, himself and the Warriors. This answer can be found at the bottom of this story, in its entirety. But here are some other relevant talking points from Kerr on Thursday.
Both Dunleavy and Kerr reiterated the franchise’s stance that they would like Klay Thompson to return next season. It’s Thompson’s choice. He’s an unrestricted free agent, expected to test the waters. But, if Thompson returns — and Kerr expresses outward confidence that he will — Kerr has mentioned the idea of Thompson coming off the bench.
“I thought Klay really showed he was OK with the sixth man role in the second half of the year, even though we ultimately put him back in the starting lineup,” Kerr said . “I think that needs to be an option in the future. I would prefer not to play it for 35 minutes. There were games down the stretch, I think the New Orleans one, I think I played it for 38 minutes. We need to be able to play it less. But to do that, we frankly need to add more shots to the list. We can add more shots and limit Klay’s minutes.
Jonathan Kuminga’s need to refine his skills as a small forward
In a response about Kuminga’s season, Kerr mentioned the Warriors’ inability to place Kuminga as a small forward in lineups that include Green at power forward and another center in the field.
“When we made the starting lineup change mid-season and Draymond was at the five and (Andrew Wiggins) and JK at the four – or the three and four combined – that was very helpful for JK to get the ball with more space, go down,” Kerr said. “I think it unlocked some of the things he can do.
“Then he got hurt and our defense was at its best with Trayce (Jackson-Davis) and Draymond. This meant it was harder to play JK at three because you don’t have the spacing and he’s not a natural three at this point. Decision making, ball handling. So in the Sacramento game the other night, we went to both lineups. In the first sub we went to this smaller lineup with JK, Wiggs, Draymond. We watched both.
“So what JK looks at is: how can he make himself more versatile to be available in different formations? Can it be a three? That’s a big question. And I don’t know the answer. I know that as we continue to help him and as he continues to learn how to create spacing and shoot a little quicker and be more comfortable catching and shooting, but also making the right readings.
Because in threes, you handle the ball more. Can he become a better passer? I think he sees the field pretty well, but his passing fundamentals need to improve if he wants to play three. We need him to play the three if we want to have Trayce at the five and Draymond at the four. Ideally, this would be a great defensive formation. But we’re not ready for that yet as a team.
The financial crisis
The Warriors are simultaneously telling the world that they would prefer to dodge the second apron and could even go below the luxury tax, if the situation arises, but that they would also like to improve the roster. These tasks seem contradictory.
“Joe (Lacob) is so committed to spending whatever it takes to be great,” Kerr said. “In retrospect, this year it didn’t make sense to spend ($400 million) on a team that didn’t make the playoffs. Obviously, I thought we would do better. But if there was ever a time to slow down, it would be now. I think we need to make sure we’re making wise financial decisions.
“But you just don’t know what’s available.” We just added two rotation players, Trayce (Jackson-Davis) and Brandin (Podziemski), on very small contracts, rookie contracts. It’s a big help. Can we start over somehow with a second round pick? It would be difficult, but we did it with Trayce. If you’re Mike, you’ll need to make a very smart trade to be able to accomplish both of these things. So it’s not easy, but it is possible to hunt around and find guys.
Here is Dunleavy’s response on a similar topic.
Here’s Mike Dunleavy on the Warriors’ financial equation heading into summer and whether to keep Klay Thompson. Dunleavy said there was no directive to dodge the luxury tax, but it was unreasonable to pay $400 million for a team that won’t make the playoffs. pic.twitter.com/MsWpAtePrI
-Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) April 18, 2024
Moses Moody’s lack of consistent role
Moody struggled for a third straight season to seize a consistent role, although he performed better than ever when given the opportunity. Kerr was asked what kept Moody for more minutes.
“Decision making on both ends needs to be improved – quicker decisions, quicker defensive rotations, pattern recognition,” Kerr said. “I told him directly, I want him to shoot faster. I think he should be a great 3-point shooter. There are times when he is open and he doesn’t shoot, he drives and we immediately lose the advantage.
“So those are all things that we’re trying to help him with and again, he’s in his third year, he hasn’t played a lot, so you need some reps to improve those kinds of things. I think next year will be a big year for Moses I would love to get him out there more But when you look at the roster it’s just a lot of people and we haven’t always been able to get him on the field. .
Kerr finished his answer by saying he “needs more opportunities, that’s for sure,” but that’s been the case for a few seasons.
Temper the panic
Kerr didn’t seem extremely alarmed by the loss in Sacramento on Tuesday night.
“If we were down 1-0 in a playoff series right now after that performance the other night, I would be 100 percent confident we could win the series,” Kerr said. “But we put ourselves in a position to lose in a playoff game and we lost. So we need to examine: why have we put ourselves in this situation? What did we do at the start of the season that cost us and where can we improve?
“We won 46 games in a loaded conference. This is usually sufficient. It is not enough. So we need to think about where we are in relation to the rest of the conference. It is much more difficult today than it was nine years ago to succeed at this conference.
Draymond Green’s continued support
During a radio interview following Green’s ejection in Orlando last month, Kerr called the incident “unforgivable,” given Green’s past incidents and the importance of this match particular.
“And yet I forgave him,” Kerr said.
For what? Here is Kerr’s full response.
“I have so much confidence in Draymond because I know him so well as a human being. It has flaws. We all have flaws. But he would be the first to tell you that he probably has more flaws than the rest of us. It was he who committed these transgressions, not the others, it was him. He would be the first to tell you.
“But he’s one of the most loyal people I’ve ever met.” He is one of the most competitive and intelligent players I have ever been around. And yet he makes decisions that harm the team, that are not intelligent. So how do we reconcile all of this? It’s really difficult. The first thing I would say is that if we had decided he wasn’t worth it, we would have left him years ago. But he’s worth it, and he’s worth it not only because of the banners that are hanging there, but because he truly is a wonderful human being.
“He’s someone that I love deeply, that I care about, and in a way I love him because of his flaws, because he’s so human. What happened at over the last year is that maybe he yelled at me and we had a fight or he got kicked out or he performed his techniques or he committed a foul blatant, to, wait a second, this became violent.
“He hit Jordan (Poole). He grabbed Rudy Gobert by the neck. He fought against (Jusuf Nurkić). These kinds of things, just by virtue of the basic laws of society, the basic norms, you can’t do that, right? So at that point, you know, when the league suspended him, it was the best thing that could have happened to Draymond. His career was on the line. It’s online every day.
“As someone who loves Draymond and appreciates him so much, I will continue to help him in any way I can to live his best life, to be the best version of himself, which he truly has been the last couple of months I’ll be really honest, during the suspension I was sitting there wondering, “Can he actually benefit from some therapy and change? I don’t think that’s possible.”
“But whatever he did in the last three months, he was the best version of himself, not just on the pitch, in the locker room, leading the kids. His teammates would all tell you how great he was .
“He was deported to Orlando, which became a national story. Maybe it’s just because I understand it so well that the expulsion doesn’t bother me. It was bad timing, but if you want to accept the fact that Draymond is this crazy competitor who is going to play with so much emotion and passion, which makes our team so much better, then you kind of have to accept it, All right. , he’s going to get kicked out of a few games a year.
“That’s my approach. Other things can’t happen. You know, the physical acts that will cost him his career, not only in the NBA but beyond. He knows it.
“Draymond’s compound. His relationship with our franchise is complex. But at the heart of it all is a deep loyalty, passion and love, and we share that with him. It’s really hard to reconcile. You almost don’t even try to reconcile it. You help him through it and make sure he’s the best version of himself and you keep pushing.
“Then you say something is unforgivable and you forgive it. Let’s be honest. But I think he crossed a line with what happened at the start of the season and he knows it. For the rest of his career, he knows the league won’t let him cross that line, we won’t let him allow him to cross that line again. Because it was different.
Steve Kerr: “Draymond is complex. His relationship with our franchise is complex.
Four minutes of Kerr on Draymond and why the Warriors continue to back him pic.twitter.com/6QTzINAv3K
-Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) April 18, 2024
(Top photo of Kerr and Green: David Berding/Getty Images)