It’s been a whirlwind year for Steve Kerr, filled with ups and downs – both on and off the court. Wednesday on Tolbert & Lund, Kerr joined the show to recap the 2016-17 season that was for his Golden State Warriors. Kerr talked about everything from the differences in feeling after winning the title this year and in 2015 to the decision his team may have to make on visiting the White House.
Much of the conversation, however, centered around the man who was just named the unanimous Finals MVP and lifted the Warriors to a five-game series win over the Cavaliers. Kerr interestingly noted that when Durant suffered a February injury against the Wizards, the team came into the locker room at halftime and was told that Durant would be out for the season. Ultimately the coaching staff and team found out that Durant would only miss about six weeks after the game, but Kerr said the emotional stress of that night was tough.
When talking about Durant’s performance in the 2017 Finals, he was nothing but praiseworthy, saying the clutch 3-pointer that won Game 3 for the Dubs will be the lasting memory of the series in his mind. Kerr said that shot “changed everything” in terms of the momentum of the Finals. Surprisingly, however, Kerr revealed that he had some concerns about Durant’s ability to step up in the Finals when the series began, solely because of the intense scrutiny he was under.
“I was actually a little surprised [by Durant’s performance in the clutch], only because he had so much pressure on him coming into the series and all the speculation and talk all year, just chatter about him leaving and coming here and a lot of people didn’t like it,” Kerr said. “And the thing with Kevin is he’s such a conscientious human being, like he genuinely cares about people and I think he can be vulnerable, which is what I love about him… He’s a regular dude, and so I thought before the series, I wondered, ‘Is he going to be a little nervous, is he going to feel pressure?’ And he didn’t show any of that. It was like he was born to be in that spot.”
When asked about the rumors that flew around Twitter on Monday night about the Warriors reportedly having voted on turning down a White House visit, Kerr was light-hearted yet dismissive.
“I laughed when I saw the report that the guys had a vote, like can you imagine a whole team like celebrating a championship, pouring champagne on each other, ‘Hey hey wait hold up guys, hold up! Let’s take a vote. What are we gonna do next February?’ That conversation never happened,” Kerr said while laughing.
He emphasized the team hasn’t even been invited yet, and said they’ll leave it up to the players to decide if and when they are.
The full interview with Kerr is available below. To listen to him talk about Durant’s impressive ability to overcome the intense pressure on him during the Finals, jump to the 10:40 mark.