The Golden State Warriors just suffered through an NBA season they’d rather forget, and there are many questions floating around the team right now. Will Steph Curry ever be fully healthy again? Will the team finally commit to big trades? Will they have a new head coach next year? That final question raises another: if he retires as Golden State’s coach, what will Steve Kerr’s legacy be? How will he be seen as part of the team’s history and in the pantheon of NBA coaching royalty?
Kerr was already an NBA icon due to his years on the court, but his time leading the Warriors has been noteworthy as well. He has brought the franchise to new heights and helped create a dynasty, yet there are still questions about just how vital he was to the team’s success.
Steve Kerr’s Legacy: Brilliant Basketball Mind or Right Place, Right Time?
When Kerr joined the Warriors at the start of the 2014-15 season, the team was close, but not close enough. Curry was clearly someone special, but not yet the MVP and future Hall of Famer he’d become. Other players, such as Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, were finding their footing. Meanwhile, stars like Andre Iguodala, Leandro Barbosa, and Andrew Bogut were all hoping to make some noise in the league as their retirements drew closer.
It didn’t take long for Kerr to push his team to the top of the standings. By the end of his first season with Golden State, the team had claimed an NBA championship. Over the next several years, they’d return to the Finals five times, claiming three more rings. During that period, Curry became a sports icon who quite literally changed the way the game of basketball was played, and Kerr was constantly cited as the guiding force who put all the pieces together and made history.
Kerr has repeatedly stated that his success as a head coach has hinged on Curry. He has stated that Curry is the engine behind this dynasty, not him. The team rises and falls because of their number one star. Many fans agree, believing that just about anyone could have led the team because Curry’s talents were so off-the-charts amazing.
In fact, some people have stated that the Warriors were premature when they fired their previous head coach, Mark Jackson. In his last year as head coach, Jackson helped the Warriors secure a 51-31 record and brought them to the playoffs. The team’s ownership still wanted a change, and so they gave him the boot. Some people believe he could have been the one earning four championship rings, had he just been given more time.
There is a chance that Kerr is always seen as someone who didn’t actually produce the success of Golden State, but just fit into a slot and didn’t get in the team’s way. Jackson or someone else could have seen the same results; Kerr was just lucky enough to be hired when the Curry rocketship took off.
Kerr has his fair share of true believers, however. These are people who feel that he was the missing puzzle piece the Warriors needed. They claim that the team could not have become a force of nature without his wisdom and belief in certain key players, such as Shaun Livingston, Harrison Barnes, and more. Did he come to the team at the perfect time, right as Curry was ascending and becoming the unstoppable offensive threat he is? Even Kerr’s supporters agree that’s true, but they believe that Kerr gave Curry the sort of support that he needed.
Kerr’s legacy will be impacted by what happens next. According to some reports, he might retire and enter the broadcasting world. If that’s the case, he may be viewed as a hired gun, someone who helped herald in an era that was inevitable due to Curry’s sensational talent. Kerr could also choose to come back to the Warriors for another run, potentially getting them back on track and helping Curry take one last run at a championship.
When a player like Curry comes along, he eclipses everyone he plays with. Kerr is a talented coach, someone who knows the game and how to manage his players. There is no doubt, however, that his name will always be deeply linked to Curry. Even if he won another championship with another team, Kerr will forever be remembered as Steph Curry’s coach. That will be the biggest part of his legacy, and he should be thankful for that.
