Steve Kerr has had a successful run coaching the Golden State Warriors, winning three championships and appearing in five straight Finals with the team. But he has also battled health issues during their extended playoff runs, which stemmed from a back surgery that he had back in 2015. 

Kerr experienced headaches and nausea caused by leaking spinal fluid as an effect of the surgery, which caused him to miss significant portions of their 2016 and 2017 playoff runs. In 2017, their first year with forward Kevin Durant, Kerr missed Game 2 of the Warriors’ first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers, missing 11 games before returning in the Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Against Portland, Warriors forward Matt Barnes saw his coach struggling with the pain in his back, as he revealed in an interview with Kerr in his “All The Smoke” podcast. He revealed that he saw the eight-time champion stand up one time, and then try to sit down the next just to be able to stay and coach the team. 

In fact, Barnes was so bothered by what his Warriors coach was going through that he was ready to offer him something that he believes would help with the pain, via NBC Sports.

“I can't imagine what you were going through (during) that time. I didn't want to cross player-coach boundaries, but I was gonna say, ‘Coach, let me go in my bag real quick. I got something for you (laughter). I remember the pain you were in. You couldn't sit in the same position for more than two minutes … I was so close that day to being like, ‘Coach. I got a joint (of marijuana) for you man. It's gonna change everything (laughter).”

Kerr had previously spoken about the use of marijuana for chronic back pain, and stated that athletes should be allowed to use medicinal marijuana as a painkiller. However, he revealed that it didn’t actually work for his back. 

“I had literally tried it for my pain for my back stuff and had no success with it. Unfortunately, it didn't work. But because I spoke out on it, all of a sudden I got this reputation as the ‘pot guy.' I'm like, ‘All right, whatever' (laughter).”

Kerr was able to return in time for the Finals, which the Warriors would eventually win in five games, giving Barnes his first NBA title. The bond formed by the coach and player seems to be strong, giving what Barnes was willing to do just to help Kerr with his back pain.