Steve Kerr on Team USA, Warriors' Future, and More: A Q&A

In the first of a series of interviews with NBA head coaches leading up to the 2024-25 season, Steve Kerr sat down with NBA.com last week during the NBA Coaches Association's annual meetings to discuss coaching Team USA, his expectations for the Warriors, and much more. The following Q&A has been condensed from their full conversation.

NBA.com: So this is a pretty quick turnaround for you.

Kerr

: Ahh, way better than last summer. Last summer the World Cup ended Sept. 12. We had, like, two weeks and it felt like … This has been great. I’ve been off the last few weeks and relaxing.

Did you enjoy it?

Yeah. I enjoyed it because we won.

Is it really that binary?

Unfortunately. What happens is, if you win, you can enjoy it afterward. When you’re in it you’re enjoying it. But there’s also this lingering feeling you have, “If we lose…,” that would kind of ruin the experience. When you win, you are sort of absolved of that feeling of “Aw, man, I could have done this or that.” Then you win and all you think about it, “Wait, we were in Paris for three weeks?”

How does winning Olympic gold compare to chasing and earning an NBA championship?

It’s equally as gratifying. But totally different in that it’s a five-week sprint. You’re coaching guys that you’ve been coaching against. I loved getting to know these guys. LeBron [James] was so incredible, just in his preparation. Engagement in every practice and every meeting, he was amazing.

Up and down the roster, these guys are superstars in their own right and then to see them sacrificing, it’s inspiring.

The way a lot of people’s opinions of Carmelo Anthony changed based on his team-first play in previous Olympics.

It gives guys a chance to show themselves in a different life. I mean, Kevin Durant – having coached him now both in the NBA and the Olympics – it’s easy to see why he loves it so much. He’s all about the game, he’s all about the work.

There’s something special about a five-week sprint, trying to come together with the group, nobody really caring about stats. The media’s not talking about much of that. And it’s just pure basketball. Kevin’s passion is the game itself and the work, and he loves the whole process.

I found myself wondering if these players – because they’re famous and highly paid and function as their own conglomerates – experience the same fundamental joy and satisfaction from an Olympic experience. Even the patriotism, when so many are global “brands.” What do you think?

I think there’s a real sense of pride. You saw our guys on the gold medal stand holding their hands over their hearts. That was a genuine display of affection for our country. It’s very moving to have that feeling of “Wow, we’re representing our country.” I think it’s a real emotion.

How did you leave it with the guys who didn’t play so much, specifically Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton?

Those guys were all great. Jayson handled things so well. Then obviously it became a media subject, but he couldn’t have handled it better. Tyrese, same thing. Every game was different. And we talked about that from the first night – 12 superstars and probably only nine can play consistent minutes.

They handled themselves really professionally and pulled for each other. I couldn’t be prouder of them all.

So when you go into Boston this season on Nov. 6 (7:30 ET, ESPN), how are Celtics fans…?

I think they’re going to be all over me. [laughs]. That’s fine.

What did you learn about the Warriors last year that will pay off this fall?

First of all, winning 46 games is – normally – a good season. You win 46 and you’re probably a 5 seed. But given how deep the West is, we ended up as the 10 seed with 46 wins and losing in the Play-In. The conference is so loaded. But what I took from last season is that we’re still very competitive. We still have a chance to have a great year, to do a lot of damage. Steph and Draymond still are playing at a high level. And as much as we hate to lose Klay, we feel we have a lot of young players who are ready to take on bigger roles.

Is there more of an opportunity to win with Steph and Draymond or an obligation to win for them?

The one thing that Draymond and Steph will tell you is that this organization has never failed them. Joe Lacob, to his credit, has year in and year out spent every dollar trying to make this team great. The rosters that have been put around Steph and Draymond, they would both tell you they can ‘t ask for anything more.

And even with how many “road blocks” the league throws in there structurally in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, as far as luxury-tax restrictions?

Yeah, this is the most difficult obstruction yet with the current CBA. Our front office swung for the fences this summer and tried to get a star. Didn’t happen. But that’s OK. The situation, where it ended up, we had a good summer

adding

Kyle Anderson, De’Anthony Melton, Buddy Hield. Those guys are all really good players. So we feel like we have a deep team, adding those guys to our young crop – [Trayce] Jackson-Davis, [Jonathan] Kuminga, [Moses] Moody, [Brandin] Podziemski. Now it’s got to sort itself out.

But I love competition in camp. I love to be able to say “Jobs are available. Go earn it!” That sets you up for a good camp and I think a tone for a good season, too.

How do you know when young players are feeling some ownership in a team, where they’re taking responsibility?

Every player is unique. In his game and his personality, and his fit. It’s different for every single guy. Each of those guys has come along at a different rate. Each has had different opportunities based on who’s been in in front of him. We like all of them.

Does your approach to the regular season vary, based on that year’s specific ambitions or what your roster looks like?

It does. We had a year in 2019-20 where we had the worst record in the league. Steph and Klay were out and we had lost Kevin, Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala. That season we had a different approach in terms of expectations.

The approach you lean into are your values, what’s important day in and day out. The process is the same. But the mindset changes. You don’t want to go in and throw your clipboard after your fifth straight loss if you know your guys are competing and trying their best. You have to keep them going and shift the goal. Our goal that year was development. We had to get better so once we got healthy, we could get back to being a great team. That year helped us win in ’22.

Jordan [Poole], that was his rookie year. Boy, that was a tough year for him. But he worked and worked and worked, and two years later he was one of our key guys in the Finals.

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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find

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