A year filled with records and chasing history kept Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr from experimenting with his team lass season. After losing six players to free agency this offseason, Kerr will be likely forced to tweak things until he finds something that works organically.
The three-year coach was asked if he planned to go after any records with the addition of Kevin Durant.
“I don’t think we’ll have that this year,” Kerr told J.A. Adande of ESPN. “We’ve kind of been through that. We’d rather win a championship than set a record, that’s for sure. Last year we felt like we could do both — and we were pretty close — but we couldn’t pull it off. This year’s more about just growing and getting better and experimenting the first couple months of the season.”
Rest was also an issue as some players seemed fatigued from the long season, which starters played from start to finish in pursuit of the wins record. Kerr didn't directly commit to resting his guys.
“It’s a tricky issue on this team because people come out to see these guys play,” Kerr said. “I am sensitive to that. Not at the expense of our team’s health, but if guys are healthy, at the very minimum I want to throw them out there — for a few minutes, anyway — so fans get to see them play. But health always comes first.”
The coaching staff has indirectly warned Warriors fans that it won't be as smooth sailing as they expect the season to be. Other teams in the Western Conference have gotten better as well, like the San Antonio Spurs adding Pau Gasol and the Memphis Grizzlies signing Chandler Parsons (although nearly half of their team is currently injured).
While it does help that Durant has every intention of playing within the system, it's unrealistic to expect ultimate greatness by boasting the best starting lineup in the league — bench play is a huge part of the equation and so are coaching and tactics.
As seen in the Warriors first five preseason games, Durant will likely be taken out of quarters early and stacked along with the second unit, allowing him to get some extra shots while always keeping a playmaker on the floor.
At the end of the day, Kerr will try to bring a healthy roster to the playoffs, without going full-on Gregg Popovich and giving several of his starters the night off when playing non-contending teams.
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