Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he is unsure whether he will return for a 13th season, telling reporters Friday night that he will take time to consider his options after the team’s elimination from the NBA playoffs.
The Warriors fell 111-96 to the Phoenix Suns in the SoFi Play-In Tournament, missing the playoffs for the fourth time in the last seven seasons. Kerr’s contract has expired, and he intentionally delayed any extension discussions until after the season.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” Kerr said. “I still love coaching, but I get it. These jobs all have an expiration date. … It may still go on. It may not. I don’t know at this point. But we all need to step away a little bit and then reconvene.”
Kerr, 60, said he plans to take a week or two before sitting down with Warriors owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy.
“We’ve always had a great partnership and collaboration and just see where they are and I’ll tell them where I am, and we’ll talk about what’s next for the Warriors, what the plan is this offseason,” he said. “And we will come to a collaborative decision on what’s next.”
The four-time NBA champion coach made clear he has no interest in coaching another team next season and does not want to walk away from star guard Stephen Curry.
“I don’t want to walk away from Steph,” Kerr said. “I’m definitely not going and coaching somewhere else next year in the NBA. I would never walk away from Steph. But all this stuff has to be aligned and right.”
Kerr has led the Warriors since 2014, compiling more than 600 wins and guiding the franchise to four championships and six NBA Finals appearances during its dynasty years alongside Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson. The team has struggled to return to those heights in recent seasons, however, despite adding veterans and drafting promising young players.
Multiple sources in the Warriors locker room indicated they still expect Kerr to return, according to reports. Curry, Green and Lacob have all voiced public support for the coach in recent weeks.
Kerr hugged Curry and Green on the sideline after Friday’s loss and told them he loved them, a moment that underscored the close bond formed over more than a decade.
Whether that partnership continues will depend on the upcoming conversations. Kerr has repeatedly said the organization must be aligned on its direction entering the offseason, which includes decisions on Green’s player option and the team’s roster construction around an aging core and emerging youth.
For now, the Warriors’ season is over. And for the first time in 12 years, the future of their Hall of Fame coach is uncertain.
