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Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr can easily look himself in the mirror today and see a similarity to Miami Heat tactician Erik Spoelstra when LeBron James left South Beach in 2014. The Heat was immediately left in shambles as they settled for a 37-45 record in their first season without the four-time NBA MVP at the helm.
Just like Spoelstra, Kerr found himself on the losing end as well when Kevin Durant opted to jump ship to join Kyrie Irving with the Brooklyn Nets before the 2019-20 season. On the other end, the Warriors accounted for the worst tally in the league with a 15-50 record last season.
“We have had similar experiences. This is nothing new for him. He went to the Finals four years in a row and a couple times before that they had injuries, won 17, 18 games. If you coach in the NBA long enough you’re going to see a little bit of everything,” Kerr said via the Miami Herald.
Despite the All-Star's sudden exit, Kerr's partnership with Durant definitely bore fruit as both of them went on to snag two consecutive titles from 2016-17 and 2017-18. The Warriors have not been the same since Durant left the Bay Area, though injuries to Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson have been huge factors as well.
“And that’s what I’m experiencing now. To come into the league right away and to coach a team with the talent we had and get to the Finals that first year was really a dream. Six years later, things were a lot different, and we got wiped out by injuries and had the worst record in the league [in 2019-20]. You have to learn as an NBA coach to roll with everything and figure out your job based on that year’s circumstances.”
Midway through the 2020-21 season, it is safe to say that Durant made the right choice to join forces with Irving and eventually, with James Harden as well. They lifted the Nets from a midfield team to a potential title contender in the early stages of this season. Although their chances of successfully winning a championship later in the playoffs is another conversation of its own.
Meanwhile, Kerr and his squad have been forced to rebuild in the past two seasons. He can even draw some similarities to Spoelstra today as the Heat are also struggling to win games this season, only several months after they overachieved and surprisingly made the most recent NBA Finals.
Steve Kerr and the Warriors may be journeying through tough times as of the moment but the MVP-caliber performances being put up by Stephen Curry certainly serves as a bright spot amid a long 2020-21 season for the rebuilding team.
