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00:00Let's go out to the River Islands guest line for Steve Kerr, presented by Great Clips in Sports.
00:05Success is about team effort, and the same is true for your hair.
00:08Great Clips, it's going to be great.
00:10And it's been a minute because they've been on the break and all of that,
00:12so glad to have Steve Kerr back with us live here on Willard & Dibs.
00:16Hey, Coach, how are you doing this evening?
00:18I'm doing well. How are you guys?
00:20We're great, man. How was the break?
00:22How was the golf swing, or whatever you did with it?
00:26Yeah, the break was great.
00:28It was much needed.
00:30I think everybody, staff, players, everybody needed some time off.
00:36And, yes, I enjoyed myself, spent some time with family, and I did play a little golf.
00:41And, yeah, but it's good to be back at it.
00:44Stretch run, here we go, and obviously a little bit of a whole new world.
00:49Look at this, Steve. You have a tall person on your team.
00:51That's kind of different and fun.
00:54Yeah, it's pretty fun, you know, seeing Chris Topps out there.
00:58He's so talented, and, yeah, he's the tallest player we've ever had, for sure.
01:06And he also can shoot threes from 30 feet.
01:09So he's a really intriguing player.
01:11You talked in the pregame last night, I heard a cut about, you know, the ramp up and having to
01:17limit the offense a little bit as he gets used to the plays and whatnot.
01:20How quickly has he already absorbed some of the actions and some of the things you guys like to do?
01:26I wish I could have heard that question.
01:30I didn't hear one word he said.
01:34I'm sorry.
01:34You got the dibs filter on.
01:36I get that.
01:37Just wondering about how quickly he has picked up the offense and, you know, how much more do you have
01:43to still give Chris Topps so he's fully up to speed?
01:47Yeah, it takes time, for sure.
01:50You know, you've got to get used to the terminology.
01:54We have to figure out, you know, ways to use him and what combinations we're going to put around him.
02:02And that doesn't just happen overnight.
02:05It has to evolve a little bit.
02:07So you could even see it last night, the difference from the first half to the second half was pretty
02:14dramatic.
02:15So it'll be good to get multiple games under our belt for him and for us.
02:22Steve Kerr with us on Willard and Dibs.
02:23Coach, I'm sure this will evolve as you go, but what can you tell the fans right now with regard
02:29to your plans for Chris Topps in terms of minute restrictions, in terms of back-to-backs, in terms of
02:39starting or not?
02:40Like, where do you think this goes over the weeks to come?
02:45Well, hopefully the minutes go up, but it all really is kind of day-to-day, and our training staff
02:53will determine that.
02:55It was a good starting point last night.
02:58He felt good after the game.
03:00We had a good practice today, and Chris Topps took part in everything.
03:04So it's something that we'll just monitor day-to-day, but the hope is and the plan is for the
03:13minutes to go up.
03:14We just can't map it out exactly.
03:17Are back-to-backs just completely off the table, or is that TBD?
03:24That's TBD.
03:26My guess is, you know, the Denver game is the first of three and four, so it's highly unlikely that
03:34Chris Topps would play in that back-to-back next week when we have New Orleans and Memphis.
03:40What's the status of his calf?
03:42I know he was questionable with Achilles.
03:44I think maintenance was the phraseology.
03:47How's the leg doing as opposed to maybe a month ago?
03:51You know, I got other stuff I've got to worry about.
03:54Yeah, that's our training staff.
03:56He's in the training room every day.
03:57He's working with those guys.
03:59I just know that he's feeling well.
04:02He looks good.
04:03He's doing fine.
04:05But I don't really check in on, you know, kind of the minute-by-minute status of his injuries.
04:13Just as a basketball mind, when you imagine the idea of Steph Curry and Christoph Sporzingis being on the floor
04:21together or a pick-and-roll, whatever it may be, what kind of goes through your head there?
04:28Space.
04:29Yeah.
04:30You know, that's the one word that comes to mind immediately.
04:33And you could see it last night.
04:35We had some spacing issues.
04:37I thought, you know, the guys did a good job of moving the ball.
04:43And, you know, we had 30 assists, and we took care of it.
04:47We were making good decisions.
04:49But we weren't generating great looks, and I think some of that was our spacing.
04:54And with Christoph Spacing just happens automatically because of his shooting range and also just how quickly he gets a
05:03shot off.
05:04So it is fun to think about what it will look like when Steph and Christoph are out there together
05:09because Steph should have plenty of room to maneuver him.
05:12And will that give Draymond some more runway to play with Steph and Christoph, because it seems like, you know,
05:18Draymond right now without Steph is kind of struggling.
05:21Would you attribute that to not having Steph out there, or is this Draymond in a little bit of a
05:26tough spot right now?
05:27Well, I think it's directly related to not having Steph.
05:30I mean, you know, the Steph-Draymond pick-and-roll is something that we've kind of built our team around
05:36for the last, you know, decade.
05:39And it's one of the most efficient plays that exists in the NBA.
05:46And it's also pretty unique the way those two guys do it.
05:50You know, it's not just a traditional pick-and-roll.
05:53There's all kinds of variations that come out of it.
05:56And because of Steph's incredible shooting range and gravity, people have to defend that in certain ways.
06:05And that unlocks Draymond's ability to catch the ball in the pocket and then make plays.
06:09And so when you don't have that, it means that, you know, you lose some of Draymond's offensive firepower.
06:18And then teams play us differently.
06:22And so it's definitely been an adjustment period for all of us, but especially for Draymond, you know, playing without
06:28Steph.
06:29Steve Kerr with us here, as he is every week on Willard & Dibbs 95.7 The Game.
06:33I was really interested by what you said about Draymond earlier today, Coach, and just the start of that quote,
06:40how you approach the latter stages of your career as a player is so important.
06:45How do you see Draymond approaching the latter stages of his career?
06:50And as his coach, how do you approach how to put him out there and what situations you're looking at?
06:59Well, it requires some introspection when you're getting older and, you know, you can't quite do what you did in
07:10your prime.
07:12And that introspection is not easy.
07:16You know, these guys are all so prideful.
07:19And being an athlete, you have to build yourself up.
07:22You have to, you know, convince yourself in some cases, you know, that you can still do it.
07:31And the truth is, when you get older, some nights you can still do it and other nights you can't.
07:38And that's a really tough thing to reconcile.
07:41So as you go through it, you have to find that balance between maintaining confidence
07:47and then also being realistic and accepting the fact that there are going to be some tough nights.
07:53And I think what's so impressive for me watching Draymond is how he's handling himself as he goes through this
08:03process.
08:04You know, last night was a really tough game for him.
08:07And he maintained his poise and his composure.
08:10He maintained his energy on the bench.
08:12He cheered the other guys on.
08:13He was pulling them aside during timeouts, you know, giving them advice and thoughts and totally stayed engaged.
08:19And I think that's crucial that he does that because we need him in a lot of different ways.
08:26But he's just not going to be able to do it every night like he once did.
08:30So with that said, are you considering at all having this look a little different in terms of minutes, in
08:37terms of starting?
08:38Is that something you guys are currently looking at?
08:42I think it's already looked a little different.
08:44You know, his minutes are down some.
08:46I think, you know, the one thing that we know as a staff is that when Steph is healthy,
08:51we're going to play pretty much all of Draymond's minutes with Steph just to make sure we are getting the
08:59most out of him offensively.
09:02But, you know, when Steph is not out there, as you've seen several games over the last couple of weeks,
09:11we may not close with Draymond.
09:13We might close with Al, Chris Dobbs, maybe both of them.
09:17And Draymond has accepted that.
09:20You know, he and I have talked about this, and he's handled it unbelievably well.
09:24You know, he's told me, he said, I get it.
09:26If you don't close with me, I'll be all right.
09:29Like, that's where our team is.
09:30That's where I am.
09:31I'm going to stay ready.
09:33And that's exactly what he's done.
09:35Would he be also all right if you didn't open with him?
09:37And has that been a consideration, at least in the short run, while Steph is out?
09:42We haven't really talked about it.
09:44You know, one of the things that we're trying to do is maintain some continuity.
09:49And if you start changing the lineup, especially with Chris Dobbs coming in, it gets tricky.
09:57You know, now you start making multiple moves.
09:59And Steph comes back, you know, hopefully a few games from now.
10:03And it's, you know, now you're changing the lineup again.
10:05So we're trying to maintain some consistency and then just make our moves, you know, within the game, depending on
10:12what's needed.
10:13Speaking of Steph, Steve, I'm sure you've even heard this.
10:17Like, his greatness and the gravity of it, I think fans hear things like, oh, he needs, you know, he
10:26needs another 10 days.
10:27And then we'll reevaluate.
10:28And with the situation the team is in, we hear a lot of fans immediately go, you know what, just
10:34protect him.
10:35Protect him, shelve him, maybe even for the rest of the year.
10:39What do you say to a fan who thinks that when they hear yesterday's news?
10:44What are we protecting him for if we're, you know, I mean, we're not going to do anything silly, obviously.
10:53You know, we are protecting him, but as soon as he's healthy, he's going to play.
10:58That's what this is about.
11:00We have lots to play for, you know.
11:03We're right in the mix in the playoffs.
11:05And, you know, this is an injury that's been nagging him, but it's not like this is something that's going
11:11to hurt him, you know, next year if we put him out there now.
11:15So it's just injury management.
11:17As soon as he's healthy and ready to go, he'll be out there.
11:21And what's that process like in the present when, you know, Dr. Celebrini is over in Italy having pasta and
11:28watching his son try to break American hearts?
11:30I know he's a staff, but are you calling Rick like in the first intermission or how's that actually working?
11:36Yeah, we've stayed in touch every day.
11:38This has been so much fun for all of us, but especially for Rick and his family, you know, to
11:44watch Macklin.
11:45And we had this morning, we were getting ready to start our film session and the Canada game was 2
11:53-2 in the final minutes.
11:55And basically the whole team was watching the last two minutes.
11:58And we saw them score and everybody went nuts.
12:01And we're all so thrilled for Macklin and his family and Rick.
12:06And so it's been fun to follow.
12:09And obviously we've got great people here and, you know, and our performance staff.
12:13They're in touch with Rick every day.
12:15So am I.
12:17Rick's been talking to Steph.
12:18And so we're all in concert and Rick's right in the middle of it, just happens to be over the
12:25phone right now.
12:26So what will you be doing at 5 in the morning on Sunday when your friend and his son and
12:31then your country go up against each other?
12:35Is that when it's on at 5 a.m.?
12:37That's what we're hearing.
12:39Yes, that is, I know, crazy, right?
12:42Yeah, that hurts.
12:43That hurts.
12:44But I will be watching.
12:47It's going to be, I mean, I think everybody, and I'm not really a hockey fan, but, you know, with
12:53a personal interest in it, you know, having known Macklin and Rick for so long, it's, I think everybody has
13:04been anticipating, you know, Canada versus the USA.
13:08And I'm glad we get the matchup.
13:10It should be really incredible to watch.
13:12I don't want to put you in a weird spot here, but, like, what does a person like you do
13:16as far as rooting interest in a matchup like this?
13:19Well, you realize there are major political implications when you ask a question like that.
13:25Absolutely, especially for you, I know.
13:28That's why I said I don't want to put you in a tough spot, but I was kind of curious
13:30of the answer.
13:32We won't tell Donald.
13:33How about that?
13:34Okay, yeah, fair, fair.
13:36Okay, all right.
13:37So you still don't want to answer the question, though, do you?
13:39No.
13:40Okay, all right.
13:42I love my country, and I love the Celebrini family, and we'll leave it at that.
13:47Steve Curry can't lose Sunday, 5 a.m.
13:50The only loss would be if you came out with some cockamamie split jersey with half Canada and half U
13:55.S.
13:55There we go.
13:56That's going to be a no from us, Steve Curry on the 95-70 game.
14:01All we can really hope for is what you got in the summer games with the Golden Dagger and an
14:07absolutely thrilling gold medal game.
14:10Would that be something that we can all expect from this matchup?
14:14Oh, man, I hope so.
14:15Again, you know, I'm the wrong guy to ask.
14:17I don't know the sport well, but I do enjoy watching it, and, you know, I've really been having a
14:26lot of flashbacks to Paris just with the format.
14:30You know, it happens so quickly.
14:33Three pool play games, and then you're right into the quarterfinals, and, you know, all it takes is one game,
14:41and anybody can beat you.
14:43And these teams are all good, you know, all these teams in the medal round are filled with NHL players,
14:50and it does remind me a lot of our circumstances with USA basketball.
14:57It's just, you know, you're supposed to win, but there's no guarantees, and there's so much pressure, and so we
15:05have been definitely living vicariously through Rick.
15:09Steve Kerr with us on Willard and Debs.
15:11By the way, before we completely leave Steph and the situation, we noticed he wasn't where he usually is in
15:19games that he doesn't play.
15:21He wasn't there on the bench last night.
15:23Where was he, and what's he up to?
15:26I'm actually not sure where he was last night, but he was at practice today, and, you know, he's in
15:36the weight room, you know, getting his work in.
15:40And the guy has an amazing ability to keep himself in impeccable condition through any injury.
15:48He just, you know, he's always working, doing everything possible that his injury allows, and he's so dedicated, you know,
15:59to keeping his body strong.
16:01And so he's working hard, and he'll be back as soon as he's capable.
16:07So in a situation like that, do you do what us parents call dot watch?
16:12Are you able to, like, go look at his location on your phone and find out where he is?
16:18Right.
16:20Yeah, maybe that's what I should have done last night.
16:23All right, but he's not, so he's not AWOL, though.
16:26No, no.
16:27Okay.
16:28He's fine, yeah.
16:29All right, good to know.
16:30Is there protocol for that, or, you know, can a guy just say, hey, I want to watch it in
16:33the suite, or do you kind of expect him to be on the bench?
16:36What's the, kind of the general rule with that?
16:38We generally expect guys to, you know, to be on the bench, but they're always extenuating circumstances, and so it's
16:48not a, you know, it's not a hard and fast rule.
16:51Steve, I want to know a little bit more about what I heard you say it last night.
16:57I heard Joe Lacob say it last night.
16:59Just, we get it.
17:00These circumstances are tough, but we've got to figure out a way to kind of handle it and play well
17:06and win.
17:06I'd love to hear more about that.
17:09How do you go about working on this and figuring something out with the absent stars?
17:16Well, that's what our film session was about today.
17:20You know, there's, I think, an energy and a collective competitiveness that you have to find when your stars are
17:33out.
17:33And it involves just really paying attention to detail.
17:38And, you know, we always talk about winning the battles, winning the small battles, and, you know, outrunning your guy
17:45down the floor, you know, being the first to box out on the glass, the first guy to rotate defensively.
17:54And when you get five guys doing that together, you develop a different kind of confidence than you would normally
18:02rely on, which is, we've got Steph Curry, we've got Jimmy Butler, you know, we're going to be fine.
18:08And so it really does require the group coming together and competing at a high level.
18:15And that means you've got to win those battles, and that's what we're focused on.
18:20Is that partly what went awry in the second quarter last night?
18:24I mean, Boston was great, and you mentioned that, but did you kind of lose a little bit of your
18:28team's competitive edge in that second quarter?
18:30Yeah, we lost a little steam.
18:32I think, you know, some missed box outs didn't help.
18:37Transition defense a couple times.
18:39We lost guys, cutters to the rim that turned into layups.
18:43You really have to take care of the easy stuff when you're down your best players.
18:49And we let them get several easy baskets in that way, and that hurt us.
18:56And then offensively, you know, we went cold, but I thought we weren't getting great shots because of the spacing
19:02that I talked about earlier.
19:05So that's what we worked on today in practice.
19:07Steve, there's such an interesting case study, the team you played last night, because, and I get it, they've still
19:12got Jalen Brown.
19:13They've still got Derek White.
19:15They've got, you know, a lot of established players.
19:18At the same time, they've had, I mean, starting with Tatum, but they got rid of a lot of their
19:23big-name players from last year.
19:25When you're looking at them, what do you see as far as how they've been able to kind of keep
19:30the ship so steady?
19:32I see a team that is really well-coached and connected, and, you know, they've maintained the continuity that their
19:40roster has brought over the years.
19:42You know, they're still obviously playing through Jalen Brown and Peyton Pritchard, and then they've got really good role players.
19:49But they've been able to replace Chris Dobbs and Al Horford.
19:55You know, they've done a good job of that through both Keita and then trading for Vucevic a couple weeks
20:02ago.
20:04But they've just done a really good job organizationally.
20:07You know, I think Brad Stevens and Joe Missoula are really to be commended for the season they're having this
20:16year.
20:17Just being able to stay at such a high level after losing so many guys, it's really, really impressive.
20:24All right, Coach.
20:25Wonderful to talk to you.
20:26We're so glad that basketball is back and rolling.
20:30Go get them against Denver.
20:31We'll talk to you next week.
20:33Okay, sounds good.
20:34Thanks, guys.
20:35All right, there he goes.
20:36That's Steve Kerr, head coach, GSW Hoop, right here on Withered and Debs.
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