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Steve Kerr won titles as head coach of the Golden State Warriors and as a member of the second Chicago Bulls dynasty. He spoke on what “The Last Dance” has validated about the Warriors' run from 2015-2019, which included three championships and five consecutive trips to the NBA Finals. Specifically, Kerr pointed out the exhausting toll multiple high-stakes deep playoff runs takes on a team.
Kerr told ESPN's Nick Friedell:
“The whole messaging for the year was based on my experience with Chicago and feeling that level of fatigue [and] emotional toll that had been over the previous four years…And so watching this now is just a reminder of how difficult it is to sustain that kind of run.”
Friedell noted that members of the Warriors organization are finding similarities between Chicago's 1997-98 season and the Warriors' 2018-19 iteration. Both teams made title runs while knowing that star contributors — in Chicago's case, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and head coach Phil Jackson; in the Dubs' case, Kevin Durant — would be gone the following season.
The Bulls went 13-37 in the lockout-shortened 1999 campaign, and it took years for the franchise to reach respectability again. Golden State — hampered by injuries to Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson while coping with Durant's departure — limped to a 15-50 record until the 2019-20 season was suspended indefinitely.
Unlike the Bulls, the Warriors are expected to regain contender status as soon as the 2020-21 season, with a healthy roster and a potential top draft pick on board.
