Steve Kerr dropped a truth bomb on the Golden State Warriors' 2019 NBA season, Kevin Durant's last with the franchise. On an episode of the Ringer's Real Ones podcast hosted by Logan Murdock and former NBA player Raja Bell, the seven-time NBA champion compared the 2o19 season to the Warriors' 15-50 2020 campaign.
Steve Kerr told @loganmmurdock he enjoyed last season (when the Warriors went 15-50) more than Kevin Durant's final season with the Warriors.
"That last year was tough. There was a lot going on — some that you know about and some that you don’t. That was very difficult."
— Drew Shiller (@DrewShiller) March 22, 2021
The most visible of these rough patches for Durant was a verbal altercation with Draymond Green after an emotional loss to the Clippers, which Durant has commented on many times. On ESPN's First Take, KD went in-depth on the Draymond situation with the Warriors at the time:
“When your teammate talks to you that way you think about it a bit,” said the 2014 NBA MVP. “We talked about it but definitely [it weighed on his decision to leave], for sure.”
What Kerr said about the Warriors and their two most recent seasons is still a surprise in spite of the obvious clash between Durant and Green. One of the most famous adages in sports is that winning cures a lot of problems. The opposite insinuation being that losing creates a lot of problems.
But with the Warriors' injuries of yesteryear–Steph Curry was out for the majority of the season for a myriad of injuries, and Klay Thompson's entire 2020 was erased because of ACL injury–the pressure was definitely off Kerr's shoulders.
“The first four years of our run the coaching was way more fun,” said Kerr. “What you want is a good vibe. What you want is to look forward to going to the gym every day and seeing everybody. And that last year was tough.”
Both parties went their separate ways in the 2019 offseason with KD leaving for the Nets and the Warriors entering an injury-induced rebuilding process, but it's clear the 2019 Finals run was laden with internal strife which took an emotional toll on many in the Dubs' inner circle.
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