Warriors' Steve Kerr on Future, Past & Uncertainties | The TK Show

Hey everybody, Tim Kawakami here, TK Show, recording from the home studio. Very glad to have on as my guest, frequent, frequent guest, maybe the most frequent guest. I shouldn't even say that because he'll start getting, uh, start counting them up. The head coach of the Golden State Warriors and, and also Team USA head coach with the Olympics coming up very soon. It's Steve Kerr. Good morning, Steve. How you doing today?

I'm good. Um, twice a year, right? We do one twice a year, twice preseason, one postseason.

I like someone who keeps to a schedule because I love schedules, and this is great. I really appreciate it. Uh, Steve, you know, you had your presser, end-of-season presser last week. A lot of interesting things. I think I told you it was a very interesting presser. But, uh, now that you're, you know, more than a week removed from the season ending, uh, in Sacramento, does it feel different this time? It's a sense— is to me at least, you know, last year you had the 6-game series with Lakers, or certainly was a give and take on that one. You You had, you know, I don't know, a feeling that maybe like things could just be pushed forward in next season. Maybe a little different with this, like there might be some more changes that, that have to be done. How do you feel kind of about the aftermath of this season?

Yeah, I, um, it feels different, you know. Um, the, the 2 times that we missed the playoffs a few years ago, um, almost felt like we weren't missing out on anything, you know, especially the first year because that was the bubble.

Yep.

And that was such a bizarre time. But even the next year, you know, when we barely missed out, won 15 of our last 20, and, you know, kind of found ourselves again, I think arenas were only half full during that season. And it almost seemed like just the extended pandemic. This year, there's a, you know, terrible feeling of, man, we're missing out. I mean, The playoffs are so fun. The energy in every arena is so incredible. To not to not be there really hurts. So I'm watching. You know, I can't help but watch. But it it's it stinks not being part of it.

Those games last night, man. Man, that was yeah. Both were the two games on TNT were both fantastic. Lakers lose the Nuggets at the end. The Knicks familiar guy hitting that three.

Yeah.

Dante DiVincenzo. Do you watch those games and think we're close to that, or do you think, okay, there's some things that, that separate the Warriors from some of those winning playoff teams?

Both, um, if that's possible. I mean, we won 46 games, you know, that normally that gets you to the playoffs. So, um, you know, I, I really believe that we, um, you know, probably should have won a few more, um, You know, and I take, uh, take responsibility for that. Um, so there's some frustration because I, I know that, um, that we, we can compete with these teams for sure. Um, but this is the very highest level of competition in the world, obviously. And so there's very little margin between, uh, all of the teams, you know, on any given night. Um, you know, anyone can beat anyone. So I watch these games and I think, yeah, we, we Should be out there. But at the same time, we finished 10th in the conference, and, um, you know, that's our fault. And then we put ourselves in this position where it's one and done. Um, you know, I, I feel like that after, you know, after that Sacramento game, I just felt like we should be down 1-0 right now, and we're very comfortable, you know, figuring, figuring out how to win a playoff series. Um, so we just didn't put ourselves in position to get there, which is really disappointing. But At the same time, it kind of makes you look really carefully at what you're doing and, and, you know, how do you, how do you get better?

When you do talk about some things that you could have done better, Steve, I mean, I don't want to just say grill you on those things because you're, you're talking now, but generally, what would you say, like, you could have done better?

Well, I think there was a stretch of games where, you know, we, we lost Really close games down the stretch, games that we, we had in our grasp. So, you know, there's some coaching decisions that I would, you know, probably change up if I could. I will say that that is the case pretty much every year, you know.

Mm-hmm.

And, and it's funny, I, you know, I'm reading stories about Sacramento and the Lakers, and the stories are the same about those teams, you know, like, well, You know, I, I think Harrison Barnes was lamenting some of the games the Kings lost this year, and hey, we'd be at— you know, he's saying the same things I'm saying, you know. So every, every team has games that they lose that they look back on, um, but when it, when it really hurts you, um, you know, you just pick it apart. You know, we lost 2 games to OKC where, you know, our 3-point defense, um, failed us. So, you know, for me as a coach, it's like, man, we, you know, we needed to be better, and that's on me. I've gotta, you know, we've to go over that stuff more. We've got to make sure we have the right coverage in place. So those are things that as a coach, they, you know, they, they eat at you, but especially at the end of the year when they come back to bite you.

One specific thing, and you can tell me I'm wrong, it definitely seemed that you guys were having trouble bringing the ball up against pressure. You just were. And, you know, I don't, I don't want to get too specific, but, you know, Chris Paul was not bringing the ball up and Steph was not bringing the ball up sometimes. They were running down the side and you had Wiggins or Kuminga or Draymond bring it up. Was that a specific problem you had, particularly late in the season?

Well, against Sacramento for sure. Um, you know, ironically, this team actually did really well in terms of, uh, avoiding turnovers for the most part. Um, for the second half of the year, we were really good taking care of the ball. But, um, you know, the play-in game, uh, Sacramento's pressure Definitely bothered us. I felt like we had, for the second year in a row, we put way too much on Steph's shoulders, um, you know, trying to figure out ways to score, um, you know, and, and we just were— we put too much, uh, burden on him, not only having to score but have to— having to handle the ball against that pressure that you're talking about. So, um, yeah, we tried to relieve that pressure with, um, you know, inverted actions, having JK and Draymond and Wiggs handling the the ball. And, you know, Steph and Klay setting, setting ball screens. And I think for the most part those actions were helpful this year, but, um, in that play-in game, our susceptibility to, to pressure definitely, um, hurt us. And, and those are some of the things that I'm really examining and, and, you know, hoping to fix in the offseason.

We talked a lot about, you know, getting that 2 score, that one, you know, score that can supplement Steph. And then if Steph is having a tough shooting night or is getting blitzed, uh, there's someone else you can count on with 20 points, 25 points, whatever the number is. For a while, looked like Kuminga could be headed that way. Where do you think Kuminga can be in the— you know, I'm not asking you to give a pecking order, but can he emerge as somebody that can take that burden off of Steph for 5 games at a time or a half at a time? Is he moving in the direction, or are you still, you know, maybe like, okay, this Isn't quite happening yet?

He's— he is, uh, someone who definitely has that potential. I think he needs to have a similar leap next year to the one he had this year. Um, you know, I thought this year he really played well. The game started to slow down for him. Um, you know, but there are certain areas where if you're going to be that number 2 guy, you have to be proficient. Um, I think his, uh, His catch-and-shoot, uh, game has to get better. Um, you know, I think to, to be a really productive player in the league these days, um, you've got to be able to stretch the floor and have teams respect you, because part of being a number 2 is creating, creating plays. It's not just scoring, but it's being a shot creator. And, um, you know, right now teams aren't really Um, getting out to challenge JK at the 3-point line. They know he can make them, but they're, they're willing to give them up. And, um, with that being the case, teams are packing the paint, and that's why it's really hard to play them at the 3.

Yeah.

And that's what I've, I've talked to you about in the past, you know. Um, we really love Trace at the 5 and what he can do for us, but, um, if Draymond's at the 4, that limits what we can do with JK because to me, he's offensively He's still very much a 4. Can he become a 3? Yes, but he's got to extend the range, become more comfortable shooting that, uh, you know, that 3-point shot, and then also improve his passing and playmaking. I think he's a capable playmaker, but fundamentally he's got to improve the passing, and that's something we'll be working hard on this summer.

Yeah, that's when you talk about Treys at the 5 and Draymond at the 4. It's just really, really important to have shooting Obviously, uh, with— and I know you don't even like having 2 guys who aren't being guarded at the 3-point line. To have 3 guys, uh, like that would be very difficult, I imagine.

Yeah, you look at the modern NBA and, you know, teams like Boston, uh, Oklahoma City, they have 5 guys who are shooting. And what it does for your spacing, um, is so dramatic, and it makes everybody a step quicker. You know, it just gives everyone a driving lane. It also means you're constantly driving closeouts. Um, if, if it— if you have to, to close out on all 5 shooters, it's so hard to guard. That's why, you know, uh, when we played Boston at Boston this year, um, you know, um, we, we decided not to guard Jaylen Brown.

Mm-hmm.

And the reason was, you know, we were— we knew if we're going to close out on all 5 of these guys, um, we're in big trouble, especially where we were in the season. 3rd game in, in 4 nights. We had spent the night on the runway in, in New New York, uh, very little sleep, older team. We went into that game, we said we got to take a huge risk. Um, let's just— we'll take their weakest 3-point shooter, not guard him. And, you know, we, we were— I think because of the shooting that exists in the, in the league today, whether it's Boston or OKC, it's just way harder to gimmick, um, a defense, to, to scrounge together a, you know, a desperation defense like a box and one or a triangle and two, or, you know, switch the And that's why the, the league is so much more difficult now than ever, um, defensively, because teams are putting 4 or 5 shooters out there and it, it's, uh, creates all sorts of problems. So where we are right now, we're a little bit, um, betwixt in between, you know, offensively, because while we have, you know, 2 of the great shooters on earth in Steph and Klay, we're very top-heavy in that, in that department. in that regard on the shooting front. So, you know, that's, that's where I think, you know, Mike and I are going to really talk this summer about, you know, how can we balance out our, our shooting? How can we get more shooting on the front line? Can, can our current players get better with that stuff? And can we put together lineups that are, um, that make, make the game easier for Steph?

You mentioned the 15-5 finish a couple years ago, and I've referred to it. I know you guys think of it as kind of the lead-in to what happened the next season. Go for the championship 2022. Uh, not exactly like guaranteeing you were going to do it, but it was a sign that this was possible. And anyway, can you see 27-2 to finish— 27-12, not 27-2, that'd be something— 27-12, uh, to get your— at least to get yourself into the play-in? You did have Houston coming at you there for a while, right? Uh, is a similar thing. I don't, you know, obviously you don't want to overstate it. Your guys are 2 years older. all these other things that we can talk about. But, um, in your mind, does 27-2 kind of unlock some things? 27-12— I keep saying it— 27-12 unlocks some things?

27-2, that was like 7, 8 years ago. We used to do that occasionally.

Yes.

Um, I think it's different. I mean, I, I think we have to, um, recognize where the rest of the league is, you know. That's the difference. I think 3 years ago when that happened, I think we were, uh, Very confident that that team would, uh, that we had that finished 15-5, um, could find something, and we did. I think, um, this team, 27-12, but also, um, top 10 in both offense and defense, which is significant. I believe it was, uh, 7th on offense, 5th in defense, if I'm not mistaken. Um, that's pretty impressive. That's half the season. So I think we need to hang on to that and recognize, hey, we were pretty good second half. We, you know, we were one of the top teams in the league. But also understand there's a reason we were as flawed as we were in the first half of the season. And it wasn't just Draymond's suspension, you know, it was, you know, there, there were some holes that we, that we need to fill. And so I'm kind of looking at it as a combination of, um, you know, yes, I, I think we can still be good, but, um, you know, the rest of the league has done some things, uh, the rest of the conference is loaded. In order to compete, um, we do need some change. We do need to adapt and adjust a little bit.

When you mentioned maybe change some things offensively, I think you mentioned that last week, would that be going more back to the stuff that you did, you know, the split, all the split cut, all the, all the movement, or would you think Okay, maybe I gotta dial up just some more plays, just call some plays.

Well, it's, uh, it's— to me, it's more about making the game easier for the players, um, within our actions. You know, I, I think— I mean, we've always had, uh, kind of a read-and-react motion style, um, that for many years was obviously lethal. You know, we— the last couple years we've kind of been a little bit stuck in between. We ran more pick and rolls this year than we have, um, in a long time. Um, and, and, and it— you know, the— our pick and roll game is effective, but without the spacing that a team like Boston or OKC has with all the shooters, you really do need to generate offense through passing and movement and cutting. And I think there's a way to make that movement easier on the younger players and the guys who maybe, you know, haven't felt as comfortable within the stuff we've been doing the last couple years. So I'm not talking about a complete overhaul. I'm, I'm really talking more about simplifying things and finding better ways to teach those actions that we, we are going to run.

Now, you did some isolation with Jonathan, am I right? I mean, not a ton, but you got to stuff that let him go into some Did you like that? Could you do more of that?

Again, if there's no spacing, isolation is hard for anybody. And that's, that's what we were facing. You know, at the end of the year, we sort of had some decisions to make, offense or defense, you know. And when Trae and Draymond played those 5 or 6 straight games when JK was out, those were our best defensive lineups of the year. And so we leaned defense. Um, but then, you know, when we brought JK back, um, couldn't really play those 3 together because of the spacing, spacing issues. So, um, that, that's the biggest thing for me is, you know, winning the championships that we've won here, getting to the Finals, those teams found 2-way balance. You know, they were all top, basically top 10, both offense and defense. Uh, how can we find that again? Um, but have it hold up under, you know, playoff-type pressure. Um, it— that, that, that's what we're trying to, uh, to figure out this summer.

Uh, your conversation last week about Draymond got very, very in-depth and a little emotional. I don't know, I was even— I mean, I understood all of it, I've written a lot of it, uh, but to hear it all come out like that was fascinating to me. Did you plan to talk like that about Draymond, or did it just kind of come out, you know, just the things you've all gone through together?

Yeah.

And that Draymond has put you through, quite frankly.

Yeah, yeah, it just, it just came out. I've said this before, Draymond and I are a lot alike in, in many ways, um, and, um, people probably wouldn't guess that, but one of the ways we're alike is we kind of speak our mind, you know, in these media sessions and podcasts or whatever, and Um, I don't really hold back, and I think Draymond appreciates that. Um, so I don't think he has any problem with me being so open about, uh, you know, our relationship, but also, you know, the, the, the positives and the negatives that, that, um, you know, he has brought in his time. Um, the overriding message from me in that press conference was that Without Draymond, none of this happens, and we don't have a single championship. I really believe that. And but on top of that, it's not just the winning. It's I just believe in him as as a human being. He's he's a I think he's a wonderful person. He's so passionate, and he's so competitive, and he cares so much that it gets him into trouble sometimes, and he goes you know crosses the line. But I love the guy. I love, I love what he brings. I love how much he cares, and, and, um, and I want to help him. I think, um, he is a guy who responds to coaching. Um, Tom Izzo and I talk about it frequently. We both care about him because he is such a, a passionate, competitive, loyal person, and that unfortunately has required You know, a lot of work over the years, but, um, he's worth it on, on and off the court for me. And that's, that's why I think I got, you know, a little emotional and, and revealed what I did in that, in that press conference. Because I, you know, we, we do hear a lot from our fans, and, and, you know, I know that people get frustrated with him with everything, um, and I get it. But, um, I just want people to understand how special of a guy Draymond is.

I think the part that I really focused in on is there is a practical— like, you are— the team is going through, okay, is this worth it to go through this? I mean, that sounds a little cold, but it is what this is. You can always be friends, you can always have memories, but to have him continue on the team, it's— is he what's best for the team? And you do have to measure that. You do have to take— you know, there's some kind of formula that you are weighing here.

Yeah.

that you don't have to with Steph, let's say, or haven't had to with Klay or whatever. Do you enunciate— I mean, do you think that is part of what you want fans to understand too? Is like, this isn't like, oh my God, I just hated what he did there, so let's get rid of him. You can't make— you can't— a team can't just do that. Or obviously the Steph, you know, the emotional Steph reaction to the ejection, that got a lot of people's attention. It was something to see. And I'm sure you were— yeah, you were there next to Steph when it was happening. But it's a moment, right? It's one moment and then you get through it and then you figure out what's best for down the road. I guess that's part of the communication here.

100%. You can't overreact to everything. You also can't underreact to everything. And we've definitely, you know, tried to do everything we could to handle Um, all these situations that have happened over the years, and we're— um, we definitely don't get everything right. We, you know, we deserve criticism that comes our way. Um, but these decisions are just not black and white, and they're not easy. And, you know, I, I just think that, um, I've always, you know, talked to our players about how tricky this business is. You know, as a player, you have to commit to your organization and do everything you can to help the team win. With the full understanding that they might trade you or cut you at any time. That's a really difficult balancing act, and a lot of professional athletes can't reconcile that. And so then they become mercenaries, you know, they just say, all right, I'm a professional athlete, I'm just going to do this for the money, and there's no emotion attached. And that's okay. It's just that if you want to win, You can't have guys like that. And what I'm saying is Draymond is no mercenary. Draymond is fully invested in this, and he's been an incredible player, and he's made plenty of mistakes, and we've just tried to balance everything throughout and support him. But he also knows if he's not worth it to us, we are going to move on from, from him, even, you know, as much as we love him and as much as we've been through, because Again, this is what I explain to the team all the time. This is professional sports. Like, you know, you have to be valuable. You have to be your own best asset to make yourself valuable to the rest of the league. And when you have that, but you have people who are really emotionally invested and care about winning and care about each other, then that's how you win. And Draymond's been a big part of that despite, you know, the mistakes he's made.

You mentioned yourself last week that he yells at you. I know, I know that he has throughout the years. Did he yell at you less when he came back from suspensions?

I would say, I would say our last 3 or 4 years, we've probably had some, some, some kind of a truce, I guess you could call it. The first 6 years were They were really animated. Every year we would get into it, screaming matches, and— but there was always an underlying respect and loyalty to each other. But over the last few years, I think we've both mellowed a little bit in terms of the way that— the way we've treated each other, the way we've handled situations. You know, he's, he's gotten older, I've gotten older. His position on the team is different. He, you know, he has been one of the leaders, whereas my first few years he was one of the young guys, and that changes relationships too. So, um, but he's, you know, you, you, you, you see it. He still gets upset sometimes about something that happens in the game, and he's yelling, and I got, I got no problem with that. That's, that's part of it.

Well, just like, you know, uh, he's worth it to you guys, You guys are worth it to him, right? I mean, it's a combination thing. And I think he has always— and he's talked about that— he sees the value of this. He knows the value of this. And there's a guy named Steph Curry who's pretty valuable to be a teammate of throughout the years.

Yeah.

You've also mentioned, you know, like, when you're asked— you don't volunteer this— but there is a responsibility to something as great as this has been to end it in the right way. You want to bring it to a conclusion with grace or honor. And these words that that you've used too. You were around, you know, the Bulls, Phil Jackson, they win a champ— you know, you win the last championship, Phil gets on a motorcycle and he drives off. You know, Popovich is different. Like, Popovich kind of was winding down, then they get Kawhi, and then it kind of rebirths a little bit. And then, uh, he's still there because he happened to get a pretty good player in the draft, I think. Um, do you, like, use anything as models on— obviously there's a middle between those 2 things, or The way, the way you think about your responsibility to bring this to an honorable, graceful end, whenever that ever comes?

I don't— there's no, um, recipe for how, how to end it, you know. Um, these things all end, uh, however they end. In the Bulls' case, it was, all right, everybody's a free agent, see you later, and it was over, you know. Um, in San Antonio's case, They, they found a way to revive it, win another title, um, and then guys ended up retiring. And now, you know, they've been in a situation where they haven't made the playoffs in a few years. And, um, so you can describe it however you want. Um, I think what's important to me is that our guys, uh, do it the right way, with, with dignity, with, uh, grace. And, and I understand that, uh, You know, we, we haven't, you know, always done that. Like, there's been moments where, you know, with, with Draymond, where, you know, the, the incident with Jordan last year, like, that's not dignified, you know. Obviously, the, the stuff that happened early in this season, that's, that's not, uh, you know. And so part of my conversations with, with Draymond were, you know, you owe it to yourself but also to the franchise to do this the right way, to go out competing as best you can. Yeah. Be the best version of yourself. Lead the younger guys. Teach them what being a pro is about. And he responded beautifully in the whole second half of the season. I thought he was amazing. I thought he played well. I thought he handled himself well. Took on the leadership role, and it was it was fun to watch. Now you can say, "Well, you didn't make the playoffs." Like yeah, we didn't. And that's you know that's part of it. But I'm really proud of the way. Draymond and Klay handled themselves in the second half, and proud of the team for making the push that we did. But this is, you know, the reality of Father Time catching up, and, and this is the way pro sports works, you know, whether it's the end of our run or whether we have a little bit of time left, which we're hoping. Um, you know, we are where we are, and, and not much is going to change that.

So much of this is always focused on Steph, and it should be focused on Steph. I think we all saw him get tired. You mentioned it pretty early that you thought he was fatigued coming out of the All-Star break, or the first few games after the All-Star break, or first few weeks. And I noticed it certainly at the end there. Uh, what responsibility do you have, or does the team have, to make sure that does not happen and to sustain what he's got left, right?

Yeah.

I mean, he's almost as a as important a force in NBA history as anything else that we're seeing, uh, him and LeBron right now. What's the kind of the focal point to say, okay, Steph, you are still really good, really, really, really good. So what do the Warriors do to make sure that this thing lasts a while longer, at least his greatness lasts as long as it can?

Yeah, I mean, I, I think, uh, our training staff, um, does an incredible job. Rick Celebrini and, and his whole group. Um, I think they They really have thought this through with Steph and have him on a program all year long that, that makes sense. Um, ironically, um, the fact that he didn't get injured this year and only missed, I think, 6 or 7 games, um, maybe that wore him down because playing so many games, um, maybe that wore him down a little bit. But I think from a basketball standpoint, the responsibility that my staff and I have is to try to take some of the pressure off of him. And that's where I think we can improve on the, on the offensive side of the ball, um, you know, taking, uh, taking him off the ball a little bit so he doesn't have to handle the pressure, but, but giving us some patterns and, and, um, and sets that we can really rely on and, and, and help everybody else get better too, because the better everyone else plays, the less pressure there is on Steph.

Little-known secret, little thing was him missing, what, the final 15 games of 2022 regular season, right? And he comes into the playoffs pretty fresh. I thought that was a very interesting, a little accidental thing. The way you're speaking, I know you're not the general manager. Mike Dunleavy, he's mentioned some things about where to improve. Just from the way you're talking and what we, we saw, would an offensive initiator be like one of your top priorities if you could get a guy at whatever position? that can initiate things, get things going, and maybe Steph can play off of that. You know, maybe a bigger Chris Paul, or maybe someone, you know, someone who can play multiple positions but also initiate the offense. Would that be like number one?

I mean, you know, I, I, I was just gonna say, I mean, we had that in Chris this year, and Chris was fantastic. I thought he had an excellent year. Um, you know, I, I think when you look at the team as a whole Um, where we can get better, uh, defensively is, um, equally as important as, you know, having, you know, whether you want to say it's a, you know, a, a number 2 scorer, you know, another organizer, whatever it is. Um, we need point-of-attack defense.

Yeah.

You know, we, we, we just do. You could see it in the Sacramento game. Uh, they were able to put a lot more pressure on us. You know, with Mitchell and Fox and Ellis. And, um, you know, we, we, we have to do a better job at the point of attack and not only containing penetration but, but really pestering people. Gary does a great job of that. Um, it's one of his big values to the team, but he's been injured, um, quite a bit, and we haven't had a consistent ball pressure guy. Wiggs can do it as well, and I thought You know, for the most part, especially in the second half of the year, he did a nice job defensively. But yeah, I mean, you know, all of these things are, you know, you point to and, and you try to achieve and, you know, you realize how lucky you've been in the last decade to have, have these teams, you know, especially during our run to 5 straight Finals where— You just had incredible 2-way basketball all the time because of the personnel. But that's That's the exception rather than the rule. And so you do your best with this stuff and you, you try to, to find lineup combinations that, you know, kind of COVID for each other, balance, balance things out. Um, but, you know, there's a reason teams win championships. Generally, those teams have the most 2-way players and the most ability to play long stretches with, with 2-way lineups.

A question I'll ask— I ask you always at the end of the year, uh, any coaching staff changes Do you expect, or were you at this point going to bring back almost everybody or everybody next season?

I anticipate bringing, uh, everybody back. Um, you know, obviously we, we do have an opening with, with Decky's death. Um, you know, we will examine, I think, everything. Um, and I'll— I've already talked to a lot of things with, uh, to Mike Dunleavy about a lot of things. We're going to meet with Joe, you know, this week. We'll talk about everything— staff, personnel, options going forward, the path. So I think, I think everything is always— we, you know, we always keep a very open mind about any way we can improve. We're going to improve, but we have to give it some time and see what that means.

Now, you do not have the summer off, obviously. You've got Team USA. You got a loaded roster, obviously. Obviously with huge— you guys did not back off in picking the huge names. How do you watch the playoffs then? You see Joel Embiid on the ground. You see, you know, you don't know if Kawhi's playing, you know, in this series. As do you think of it, like, how do you approach watching these games and knowing this roster is full of superstars, but they're not a bunch of young guys? You know, you got a bunch of later career, mid-career guys. Who are in the middle of a long season right now.

Yeah, yeah. Well, you know, Sean Ford and Grant Hill and I, um, we had, you know, kind of monthly Zooms and, uh, multiple in-person meetings this season. Um, usually when Grant would do one of our games, um, you know, Sean would come in town, the 3 of us would, would meet. Um, and, um, you know, this is, um, a pretty popular Olympics. You know, in Paris, um, with a lot of stars who, you know, want to either, like in Steph's case, be in an Olympics for the first time, or in LeBron's case, you know, or Kevin's, uh, you know, be in, in, uh, in the Olympics for maybe their final time. Um, so it's, uh, it's an incredible roster. It's, um, it's going to be so much fun to coach the team with Mark Few and Spo and Ty Lue. Um, couldn't be more excited. It does remind you a little bit of the Dream Team in '92, but what's different is everybody else is good now, you know. I mean, '92, that, you know, Chuck Daly didn't even have to take a timeout. They won every game by, you know, 20, 30, 40, 50 points. It's different now. Um, everybody's loaded. There's some great teams out there. This is not going to be easy despite The names on our roster. But if we can get our guys to play together and, uh, compete together and sacrifice for each other and bring their best stuff, it's, um, it's going to be a lot of fun.

I know you didn't pick the roster, that was, you know, Grant and Sean, but you obviously had conversations with them after the World Cup. Did you say, here's what we need, this on this roster, like, here's our 2 things that I really want on this roster? Was there something like that?

It was, it really was a collaboration. And that Sean Ford is an amazing guy, one of the best people I've ever been around. He would make an amazing team president or general manager in the NBA, but he's too smart to do it because he's got a great life with USA Basketball and he's got certainty in his life and his scheduling. And, but he's really good at his job and he's, he's really part of the staff. And so even during the World Cup, um, you know, after games, we would talk about, you know, where we needed to get better and what we needed to do. Um, and we had those conversations, as I said, you know, pretty much monthly all year. And those conversations were always about, you know, what, what FIBA requires, um, personnel-wise. And, uh, so we feel like we have a roster that covers covers all our bases. And, um, you know, now it's a matter of going and getting it done.

Get that coaching done, get that coach, uh, up to gear here. Uh, and yes, and having Steph is probably going to be pretty fun, I imagine.

And I'm so excited to have him. Um, you know, and he brings so much to a team. It's, uh, you know, obviously the stuff on the court, but, um, you know, I think he's gonna help, um, the chemistry and get everybody to understand the commitment that this is going to require. I mean, if you think about it, if we play 9 people, there's 3 Hall of Famers now who aren't going to play in a game.

Mm-hmm.

That is unique and different and potentially damaging if the guys don't handle it the right way. And so you need everybody on board emotionally, spiritually, Physically, you know, in my experience, you need everybody eventually, but it requires a lot of commitment to each other to be successful in these environments. There you are.

Okay, I lost you there for a little bit, Steve. I hope you're back. We'll end this with a version of a question that I've asked you before, and I am very eager to hear the answer. answer this time. Steve Kerr, what's your favorite book right now? What book do you recommend?

Um, I'm reading a book right now called The Black Wave by a woman named Kim Ghattas. She's a Lebanese woman, and it's, uh, it's nonfiction. It's really a story about how the current Middle East political situation got to this point, and her theory is that everything stems from the late '70s, the Iranian revolution, the invasion of the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia, the foreign policy decisions in Israel and the United States. It's, you know, if you're not interested in Middle East politics, it's probably not for you. But, you know, with everything that's going on these days on college campuses, with the you know, Palestine-Israel situation. It really gives you a ton of background and knowledge on, you know, kind of why we are where we are in the world. And so it's a fascinating book.

I mean, I imagine you know a lot about this history. Is it something you gravitated towards?

Yeah, you know, in 1979, I was actually living in Cairo, Egypt. My dad was a professor at the American University in Cairo, and I remember when the Iranian Revolution started and the Shah was ousted from power, his kids moved to Cairo and came to our school. I'll never forget, they walked onto campus, they had security around them, and so that time of my life, you know, I was I was really becoming aware of world events and the hostage situation at the American Embassy was, for us, for you and me and people our age, that was one of the most dramatic political situations we've ever experienced. So the book touches on a lot of that stuff, but makes sense of it. And what I would say is the bottom line for me is extremism in any form is the biggest issue we face, you know, in the world, whether, you know, it's, you know, Islamic extremist terrorism, which took my dad's life and which we've seen so much of over the last, you know, 30 years, extremist Israeli settlers who are, you know, taking over Palestinian land and trying to, you know, extricate people from their own homes, from their own land. Hamas, you know, going in and killing 1,200 people in Israel, starting this war. In our country, extreme politics on either the left or the right, so unhealthy for our country. You know, the the gun situation. So much of this is perpetrated by extremists. It's it's I think as you get older, I know I've I've observed it with a lot of people. I know as you get older, you sort of start to gravitate towards the center a little bit.

I was gonna agree. Yep.

And and I and I understand it now because you when as you get older and you. You see what comes from extremism in whatever corner of the world you want to talk about. It's really scary, and it really does take collaboration and meaningful discourse and negotiation amongst governments, amongst people, to create a society that makes sense. And it's probably the hardest thing mankind has, you know, to tackle, just people getting along together and figuring out how to live together. It's really a scary time in the world, and that's, you know, it's the extremism of any kind is really a huge, huge problem.

Yeah, the thing that always strikes me lately, definitely as I've gotten older, is that How similar, even if they come from totally different things, religion, politics, whatever, how similar extremists really are. They do the same things.

Yeah.

They seek out to cut off the other side.

That's right.

And end all arguments. Don't want the discussions. And I end up having— I've said this before, is like, the thing that you're saying is exactly what your enemy says.

That's right.

Just in a different way. And this, cut off that. Don't let them do this.

Right.

And it's the same thing.

Creating fear, you know, creating fear of the opposition. And, and, um, and then of course in the modern world with, uh, misinformation, social media, uh, people are so susceptible, um, to, uh, lies and, and, um, you know, things that are just aren't true. Um, but you know, that creates even more emotion and even more animosity and So it's definitely a scary time in the world. But this book that I'm reading, it explains a lot of kind of how we got here in terms of the Middle East situation. It's very interesting.

All right, Steve, on that interesting note, as always, I appreciate you bringing up these thoughtful things, Steve. Appreciate it as always coming on my show and talking. Always a good time. Always good conversation.

Yeah, I know. I guess we'll be back at it in Early October or late September. I'll see you then.

Yeah, you'll be busy off somewhere else. I don't even know where, but I will not, not be there for Limp Bizkit. I'll be watching and we'll catch up again in October, Steve.

All right. Sounds good.

Thanks.