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00:00All right, let's do it. Here we go.
00:01Out 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.
00:10I don't know if Steve caught the tail end of that conversation, so let's just ask him.
00:14Steve, do you know who's on the team right now when you're coaching it?
00:18Do you actually know?
00:21Yeah, there are some unfamiliar faces for sure,
00:24but our guys have stepped in pretty quickly and done a good job.
00:30And, yes, it is Nate Williams, not Nick Williams.
00:34Nate has been great.
00:35I mean, he just came out two straight games and played really hard and scored
00:40and got a good, lively body.
00:42We put him on Kawhi Leonard, and, you know, he did a decent job on Kawhi,
00:46as good as you can.
00:48It's been, you know, it's been an opportunity for several guys,
00:54and they're all really embracing the job and doing a good job.
00:58Yeah, Steve, lots of what I would call good stories.
01:01Williams, Guy Santos, Pat Spencer, lots of good stories.
01:05I know you know this.
01:07That can also, at a certain point, get, like, either difficult or frustrating
01:12or tiresome for fans because everybody wants to see this thing compete
01:17at such a high level.
01:19So how are you navigating all of that, all that's gone on with Steph, Kristaps,
01:26Jimmy, Draymond, and then all of those other names that are still actually
01:33available to you?
01:35Well, you know, the way you have to approach this is you look at the whole season,
01:42you look at what the goal is, and there's all kinds of ups and downs
01:46within that season, and you just got to get to the finish line in one piece,
01:51and that's what we're trying to do.
01:54So get through this rough patch with all the injuries, pick off some games here
01:59and there, and hope that we can, you know, get some of our players back.
02:04And if we do, we feel good about our chances to make a run.
02:09We've talked a lot about the system and the Steve Kerr system
02:12and how it really is, Steph, that is the system.
02:15Is it at all plausible or something you could do in the season
02:19when he's not playing to change the way you go about playing offense?
02:24No, no.
02:26We're actually playing quite differently than we did even a few years ago.
02:31So a lot more ball screens, a lot more five-out spacing, spreading the floor.
02:38And, you know, you work on concepts and actions every day in camp
02:44and whenever you do get a chance to have practice.
02:46And it doesn't make sense to try to change the offense all of a sudden
02:52mid-season when a guy goes out.
02:55Steve Kerr with us here on Willard and Dibs, 95-7 the game.
02:59Like, I'm interested in that comment you just made about, like, you know,
03:04maybe we could pick off some games here and there until we get our guys back.
03:07And I think that's completely fair, but I wonder how you would answer this.
03:11Like, do you sort of have a different success gauge in this moment
03:16when you guys go into a game when you're missing your guys?
03:22You know, we just go into each game and see what we can do to win the game.
03:27I mean, I thought our effort against the Clippers was fantastic.
03:32The coaches put together a really good game plan.
03:36You know, we had the Clippers on their heels the whole first half
03:39and had, I think, a 14-point lead.
03:42And, you know, they played a hell of a second half.
03:45They made tough shots.
03:46We went cold, and that's the way it goes.
03:50But that's, you know, that's how you approach every single game.
03:53You look at it and you go, how are we going to give ourselves a chance?
03:56And we've done that.
03:57You know, we beat Denver doing the same thing.
04:01We had San Antonio, you know, down three quarters
04:04and obviously couldn't finish it off.
04:07But this is where we are right now.
04:09So, you know, pro team with the idea that we've got to put together a good plan
04:15and give the guys some confidence and see what we can do.
04:19And that's all in the context of the full 82.
04:22So, you know, when you're going through a rough patch and wins are hard to come by,
04:26you just have to keep the spirits up and keep everybody moving forward.
04:30And how are the spirits?
04:31Because we're kind of in the dog days here with 20 to go,
04:34and you've got younger players who haven't really been through it.
04:36What's the overall mood of the team?
04:39Mood of the team is good.
04:40Our guys have really good energy.
04:43They support each other.
04:45Good chemistry.
04:47Really competing.
04:49So, you know, it's tough.
04:51But everybody goes through this at some point during the season.
04:55And this is our time.
04:56We had good health, you know, early on in the year.
04:59And obviously now we've got a lot of guys banged up.
05:03But we also have a lot of guys playing well.
05:06And, you know, the way you look at it is try to keep the rhythm that you're seeing
05:11from Brandon and Mel and Al Horford.
05:15And, you know, you keep that going.
05:18And then you get guys healthy.
05:19And it's much easier to see a clear picture of what it's going to take to win.
05:24Steve, while we're on the health topic,
05:27we'd love to hear if there is any sort of a plan or what you can share right now.
05:34Everyone knows, I think, that Kristaps made the trip but will not play tomorrow.
05:39Is there anything else you can share for the plan on the trip?
05:43Well, if I remember correctly, you got in trouble.
05:47We will not be doing health matters.
05:50Yes.
05:52Yeah.
05:53Is that fair?
05:54No, that's totally fair.
05:56I'm not asking about any.
05:57Yeah.
05:58Yes.
05:58Does he have a fever, Steve?
06:01No, no, no, no conditions or anything like that.
06:05I just, yeah, I want to know if there is a plan for his ramp up
06:10or when you guys, if there's anything with regard to him just playing ball.
06:16Well, it's just going to be day to day.
06:18So he's on the trip and he'll be working with the training staff.
06:21And he won't play tomorrow.
06:23But, you know, we'll just take it day by day from there.
06:26Just curiously, is Steph on this trip or is he still back home getting better?
06:31He's home.
06:32Yeah, Steph stayed at home.
06:35And, Steve, I want to ask you about, like, I'm sure you've heard everybody say this.
06:38Just from a mathematical standpoint, it very much appears like you guys are going to be in the play-in
06:44tournament.
06:44I know that's not for sure, but that's the way the math sort of looks right now when you pull
06:49up the standings.
06:50To your guys thinking, how important, how much of a chase is the 7th seed versus the 8th seed versus
06:58the 9th seed?
07:00How do you view that?
07:03Well, we don't even talk about it as a team because all the guys, they know the standings.
07:08They know the play-in rules.
07:10We all want to be, you know, as high up as possible to get a, you know, a home game,
07:15to get two cracks at it.
07:16But all of that stuff matters.
07:19But you don't spend a whole lot of time analyzing it and thinking about it because you just have to
07:26focus on the game the next night.
07:28And that's all we're doing.
07:30But our guys are well aware of what's at stake.
07:33And sure, I'm also well aware of what's coming up.
07:36You've got four games and six nights and four cities and a back-to-back.
07:40How much should we be looking at, you know, certain guys missing certain games, Melton and Horford and back-to
07:46-backs?
07:47Are you already strategizing how you're going to approach that?
07:51Nope, because we've got three games on this trip that are all obviously separate entities.
07:59And we have to gauge where everybody is when the back-to-backs come next week.
08:05So, for now, we won't even consider that.
08:08Steve, we've talked on this show before about how you're not on social media.
08:14Or at all, right?
08:15You're not on any of the platforms?
08:18I'm not.
08:19Can you tell our listeners, like, is that a conscious decision?
08:24Why are you not?
08:26Well, it was a conscious decision about five years ago.
08:30So, James Wiseman was getting beaten up on social media.
08:33And I went to him and I said, hey, let's get off social media together.
08:38And we did it.
08:41And I figured it would be, you know, a month or two and I'd go back.
08:46Because I did enjoy, you know, a lot of it in terms of the news feed on Twitter
08:51and just following people that I like to follow and all that kind of stuff.
08:55And then I realized after a couple weeks how great it was that I didn't actually miss it
09:01and that I could just do the navigation on my own and find, you know, stuff that I wanted to
09:07read
09:07but avoid a lot of the toxic stuff.
09:10And it was one of the best things I've ever done.
09:14So, I'm really able to avoid reading what a terrible human being and coach I am.
09:21And that's healthy for me.
09:24I bet.
09:25And with full respect to that, like, since we're all asking right, we're going to agree.
09:30We're not going to talk about the health of players.
09:32I also, how about another agreement?
09:34If this is in any way like sort of an unfair question, you tell me, we can move on.
09:41But I also think the opportunity to have you on and connect direct with the fans,
09:45one of the things that's cool about that is to sort of have you maybe address some of the things
09:50that do get said.
09:52And I know you're not on there.
09:54So, I wonder if I could throw a couple of them at you.
09:56Like, let's start with one that I think we hear a lot, which is Steve is clearly in love with,
10:04like, three and four guard lineups.
10:07What would be your response to that?
10:13Well, it just depends on who those three or four guards are.
10:16You know, I mean, I'm most concerned about two-way combinations.
10:22I would say the reason for smaller lineups is to generate offense and spacing.
10:29One of the reasons we traded for Chris Stops and signed Al Horford and have developed Quentin Post is that
10:37we want to play bigger lineups.
10:39But in the modern game, you have to have spacing.
10:42And so, we're looking to play bigger as much as we can.
10:48But I'm just playing the best two-way lineups that I can to find the offensive and defensive rhythm.
10:56Another one that we hear a lot is the pods.
11:00Not pots, Steve.
11:01Pods with a DZ.
11:03And fans just don't get what you see in pods.
11:07So, what do you see in young Brandon Pajemski?
11:12Well, he's got a really good feel for the game.
11:16When he's off the ball, he is one of the best defensive players we have on our team.
11:24And I know people may not see that.
11:27But, you know, it's the anticipation.
11:31It's, you know, playing on the weak side.
11:34It's weak side help.
11:36It's being disruptive.
11:37It's taking charges.
11:39He's one of our best rebounders.
11:41You know, two straight 15 rebound games last week.
11:45And offensively, you know, he's still finding his way.
11:48I mean, I talk about it all the time publicly.
11:51But, you know, getting off the ball early in a possession and then getting it back,
11:56he generates a lot of shots for us.
11:58You know, running through the catch, generating closeouts,
12:01and then, you know, all of a sudden we're attacking five on four.
12:05He does that better than most of our guys.
12:09And for us to generate good shots, he's generally got to be out on the floor more often than not.
12:16Steve, here's one more.
12:18And this is a big buzz phrase.
12:19And I've actually fought against it quite a bit because I think it can be disproven.
12:23But I'd love your response.
12:24And it's that Steve Kerr doesn't develop young players.
12:26And in addition to the question, I wonder if you even see that as the role of a head coach
12:32in the NBA.
12:35Well, it's the role of the organization.
12:37And I think we've really addressed that over the last four or five years.
12:43You know, we felt like there were some improvements we could make.
12:47And we changed some things organizationally.
12:51We brought in a couple of people to put them in charge of player development.
12:58And I think we've done a pretty good job with that over the last few years.
13:03And I think, you know, part of the frustration of our fans probably stems from the fact that, you know,
13:09we've got we had the three lottery picks coming at a time when we were winning a championship.
13:16And it's just hard to play, you know, 19-year-olds on championship teams.
13:22And so, you know, the development that comes is going to be different than it would come on a team
13:30that's in the lottery where you just put a guy out there for 35 minutes and let him make his
13:34mistakes.
13:35And I think that's probably where some of the frustration comes.
13:40But you see how it can work, too.
13:42You see Moses Moody.
13:44You see his development over time.
13:47You see Guy Santos.
13:48I think Brandon is really coming into his own and playing well.
13:53But it takes time.
13:55And I remember when I got to Chicago, we had a couple of drafts.
14:00And I was in my 10th year, 9th year.
14:03And I asked Phil Jackson, you know, what he thought of the guys we drafted.
14:08He said, well, it won't matter for a few years.
14:10And I said, how come?
14:12He said, well, because grown-ups win championships.
14:15And it's true.
14:16It's true.
14:17It's really hard to come in as a young player and be expected to have the knowledge, have the wealth
14:24of knowledge and skill and feel that you have to have to be a championship NBA player.
14:33I would equate it to just about anything else on earth.
14:36Tell me the profession where, you know, the guy with the highest test scores at Stanford can go and, you
14:44know, be a CEO or, you know, be a partner in a firm or something.
14:48It just doesn't, life doesn't work that way.
14:50And so, I think the, when I think about any frustration from our fans, it's probably just coming from this
14:59idea that young players should get it right away.
15:03It just doesn't work that way.
15:04Wow.
15:05And you guys did go and set a pretty high bar for yourself, Steve.
15:10Well, you know, we've been incredibly lucky, obviously, to have Steph Curry and Draymond Green and a host of other
15:18credible veteran players over the years.
15:21And, you know, they won championships.
15:24They set a tone, set a bar.
15:25And we're still, you know, competing, which is just incredible when you think about, you know, how long this run
15:32has gone on.
15:33And, and obviously the last couple of years have, have not gone as well as we'd hoped.
15:38On the other hand, you know, we've, we've won a couple of playoff series over the last couple of years
15:42and we've, we've been in the mix.
15:44And I, I still think that, you know, that the team that Mike Dunley be put together at the beginning
15:50of this year with, with Jimmy and Steph and Al Horford and, and the young guys, I felt great about
15:57this team coming in to this year.
15:59So I think overall, you know, the, the Warriors have, have given ourselves a swing at the plate year after
16:06year.
16:07And that's as, as good as you can possibly do.
16:10And everyone can, can they pick with, you know, coaches decisions or roster decisions and all that stuff.
16:18But, and we all make mistakes, you know, I've made plenty of mistakes.
16:23The players make mistakes.
16:25And so you do the best you can, you stick together and you give yourself a shot.
16:29And we've done that for more than a decade.
16:31And I'm, I'm really proud of that.
16:33And, you know, I hope we can keep this thing going, but I understand fans frustration because trust me, I,
16:41I, I'm one of them, you know, and, and I want my teams to do well too.
16:46And it's just, it doesn't always happen that way.
16:49When you, while we're on the development topic, I believe you, especially after the contract extension, you called the Guy
16:56Santos situation, quote, an incredible development story.
17:01I'd love to hear more about that and how you see it as coming together.
17:07Well, again, it's the patience, uh, uh, organizationally and, and Guy himself, you know, he started out in Santa Cruz.
17:16Um, it took him a couple of years even to get to the Warriors and the work that the Santa
17:22Cruz coaches did with him, the work that our development coaches have done with him here in the last couple
17:27of years.
17:28But most of all, the work that he himself has put in and the energy with which he plays and
17:35the intelligence, you can see the confidence growing daily, but it's been a four-year process.
17:41And, and, um, you know, I, I, I would say the same thing about Moses Moody.
17:46You know, this is, uh, I think it's year five for Moses and he is now one of our most
17:52consistent players.
17:53And it's been nothing but work and, you know, coaching from his individual coaches and development coaches and a lot
18:02of ups and downs.
18:03And this is how life works.
18:05You guys know this.
18:06And, and it's, uh, there's a lot of pride organizationally when you see, you know, young players like Moses and,
18:13and Guy really, you know, come to the forefront and, and, um, sign a good contract, life-changing contracts.
18:19It's, uh, it's very gratifying.
18:21And Moses is out, uh, earning his contract with the way he's been playing.
18:26And this is almost a borderline medical question, Steve.
18:29So I'm tiptoeing into it, but he had the shoulder and he had the wrist.
18:33How's he doing?
18:34I'm not looking for a concrete update, but just how's he doing?
18:38What hurts the most?
18:40Well, the, the wrist is, I talked to him today on the plane.
18:43The wrist is, uh, the concern.
18:45And he said the shoulder is something that he's dealt with in the past and, uh, and that he's going
18:51to be fine on that front.
18:52But, um, yeah, he's gotta, he's gotta take, take care of that wrist.
18:58And, and that's going to be a day-to-day thing.
19:01Um, he'll be out tomorrow and, uh, we'll see, you know, the rest of the trip.
19:06It's just gonna, it's just gonna be day-to-day.
19:08Okay, so, so no Steph, no Jimmy, no Chris Stops, no Will, no Moses.
19:14Uh, are, are we being introduced to any other new players, uh, in this game tomorrow?
19:18Name tag basketball.
19:19I love it.
19:21Yeah, you know, we, uh, we, like I said, we've got, we got guys ready to go and they're going
19:27to compete tomorrow and we're going to bring it.
19:28And it's, uh, you know, it's, it's no fun losing, but it is fun watching a group of guys compete
19:35together and, and try to accomplish something.
19:38And, and so I'm, I'm enjoying myself.
19:41I mean, uh, you know, I, I, I love coaching in general, but, um, yeah, I'm really enjoying coaching these
19:46guys.
19:47And I do think that you have to set a tone, you know, now while all of this stuff is
19:52happening with how hard you're going to compete,
19:54how much you're going to stick together because it, it pays off, you know, when the reinforcements come.
19:59Steve, you're, you're really good at this, which is why I, I, I ask, I think you're really good at,
20:04at, at, at awareness and sort of admitting this, that, or the other.
20:07You've done it on this show many, many times.
20:09So I'm struck when you just said a couple of minutes ago, Hey, I'm like anyone else.
20:13I I've made a bunches of, of, of mistakes because of where you guys are at.
20:19You've called it a fading dynasty.
20:22Is there anything you would share about regrets?
20:25Like, do you, do you look back on anything recently or, or beyond that, that you wish you had done
20:31differently?
20:32Well, there's always stuff that you do in games, you know, late game, you, you call a play that doesn't
20:38work.
20:38You make a substitution that doesn't work.
20:41Um, and, and there's, that's just always going to happen.
20:45There's, there's just stuff.
20:46And, and obviously the, the opposite happens too.
20:49You know, you make a good call, you, you make a good sub, you, you do something that, that clicks
20:53and that's kind of coaching.
20:55And I, I think the biggest thing though, is, you know, how consistent is the vibe in the building for
21:02the players every single day?
21:03You know, are they, are they understanding and aware that we're here for them?
21:08We're trying to make them the best players.
21:10They could be, you know, help them along to their best careers.
21:13So that's the focus, um, the end game stuff, you know, there's always regrets and, and I have some for
21:20sure.
21:21Nothing that I would be willing to share.
21:24Yeah.
21:25I mean, that's fair.
21:26That's about right.
21:27And, uh, you know, people, a lot of fans talk about Steve Kerr's rotations and this and that.
21:32Can you just give the audience a little bit of a look inside the process and how it's more of
21:37a collective and how you decide like who gets to play and, and who doesn't?
21:43Well, we, we set the rotation before the game and then we obviously are very flexible depending on, you know,
21:49how the game is going.
21:51Uh, but we, we are constantly looking at lineup combinations.
21:57Um, analytically, we have so much more information now.
22:00Uh, we're able to match the information with the tape and, and I think make more educated guesses, um, on
22:08lineups.
22:09And, um, you know, Seth Cooper, one of my assistants, uh, puts together the rotation before our meeting each day.
22:17And then we, we meet as a staff before the games and, and go over his, his rotation and, and
22:25debate, you know, what, whether, what we'd like to see.
22:28And, um, all the combinations are well thought out and, and, um, but then, you know, it's the old Mike
22:35Tyson line.
22:35You get punched in the mouth.
22:36You got to make them, you know, let's see if you still have a plan, but you have to take
22:41some chances sometimes.
22:42And, and, um, you know, you've got to find a group that can click together.
22:47And sometimes that's, um, sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn't.
22:51But, um, when you're, when you're injured, like we are now, you've got so much fluctuation in your rotations that,
23:00uh, it's, it's not easy to find, find a rhythm for the team, but, uh, you do what you have
23:05to do.
23:06How is the Rockets team that you beat in the playoffs last year, different from this one?
23:11Uh, now that, you know, they, they obviously swapped in Kevin Durant for, uh, for Jalen Green and others.
23:18Yeah, that's a pretty big difference.
23:21Yeah.
23:21I mean, Kevin is having an incredible year and, uh, still one of the great players in the league and
23:27he's given them what they didn't have last year.
23:30You know, the reason we beat them in the playoffs was because we, we defended them, uh, well enough over
23:35seven games, uh, to really, um, you know, keep them from, from, uh, many separation.
23:42And we were able to stay in most of the games and, and, uh, and obviously, you know, Buddy had
23:4833 in game seven and we, we played a great game, uh, that night.
23:53And so it's, um, you know, there's a different team, but, uh, they're young and, and huge athletic and now
24:01they've got Kevin.
24:02So they're, they're the real deal.
24:03They're a real threat out West.
24:05Steve, we're allowed to ask about your health, right?
24:07Like, uh, you know, you turned 60 last year.
24:10Is anything hurting?
24:11Are you feeling good?
24:11How's that all going?
24:13You kidding me?
24:14Everything hurts.
24:15Okay.
24:16I played golf on Sunday, which was really fun.
24:19It was a beautiful day and, uh, felt fine.
24:21And then I woke up the next morning.
24:23It's like, did I just play in an NFL game yesterday?
24:27How is it possible to, you know, to hurt your groin playing golf?
24:31I don't know.
24:32Steve, I tried to tell him cause he's, he's barely cresting 50 and I'm closer to being 60 and, you
24:38know, five things hurt every day.
24:40And sometimes it rotates.
24:42Yeah.
24:42And you, and you don't earn it either.
24:44That's the problem.
24:45Like when you're young, you kind of earn your aches and pains and you get older and you can't even
24:50figure out why you're hurting.
24:51And that's, that's no fun.
24:53Those are Dan Diddley's rotations.
24:54That's very different than your rotation, Steve.
24:57By the way, what do you shoot when you golf?
25:00What's, what's your, what's your, your thing out there?
25:03Uh, I'm okay.
25:06I'm not, I'm not a great golfer.
25:08I'm, I'm okay.
25:09But, uh, are we breaking 90?
25:11Are we breaking 90?
25:12Yeah.
25:12Yeah.
25:13Okay.
25:14All right.
25:14You're competitive.
25:15All right.
25:16That was borderline insulting.
25:17Well, I just, I got to get a, you know, I got to get a bar.
25:20Yeah.
25:21It's pro athlete here now.
25:23Honestly, I, I don't play often.
25:25Um, so it's, um, in the, in the season, we just don't have much time, but, uh, I do love
25:32it.
25:32It's a great way to unwind and get outside, especially on a beautiful day.
25:37Uh, Steve, thanks for answering all the questions, man.
25:40Uh, we'll, we'll talk to you again next week.
25:42Go get them tomorrow night.
25:43All right, guys.
25:44Thanks a lot for having me.
25:45Thanks, Steve.
25:46Steve Kerr.
25:47Yeah.
25:47I'm learning dibs.
25:48Yeah.
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