Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was emotional following his team’s Game 5 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night, because, well, duh. They had just won the NBA Finals, securing their second title in three years.
But his display of emotion was about more than just that. It was about what this championship represented—the culmination of an arduous recovery from back problems that kept him from manning Golden State’s sidelines for much of its historic playoff run. And, make no mistake, “recovery” is a loose term for this situation. The assumption is that Kerr is dealing with pain on a daily basis. He isn’t cured; he is coping.
Could that compel him to hang up his clipboard before next season?
General manager Bob Myers told ESPN.com’s Chris Haynes that worst-case scenario isn’t on the table:
“There’s no doubt in my mind that he will return as the coach of this team,” Myers told ESPN after the Warriors won the NBA championship after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games. “I’m confident we’ll have him back. Steve will be our coach.”
This is good news, even if you resent the Warriors. It suggests the team and Kerr are optimistic about his prognosis. If he’s able to continue coaching, it’s because he’s healthy, perhaps even because the pain has entirely subsided. And, as we’ve said before, this is the main concern here: Kerr the human being.
His coaching career is secondary to his off-court livelihood, and while he certainly looked at ease upon returning to the sidelines for Game 2 of the NBA Finals, the events of the past two seasons, which included him missing a protracted stretch of time in 2015-16, serve as a reminder that his day-to-day life is anything but simple.
At the moment, it appears to be a grind. Maybe next season it’ll be more manageable. The Warriors’ collection of All-NBA talent may be able to transcend his absence, but there’s something inherently off about a version of Golden State that doesn’t include one of the co-authors of its unrivaled culture.
