It’s a story that has been buried a bit by the on-court action, especially given Golden State’s success through the opening rounds of the NBA Playoffs, but Steve Kerr hasn’t been on the sidelines since game 2 of the Portland series in the first round.
But Kerr is still feeling the effects of various spinal procedures, meaning Mike Brown has been doing the coaching throughout the majority of the postseason. Similar issues kept Kerr off the sidelines for the opening portions of the 2015/2016 season as well.
However, for the first time since that Portland series, Kerr will reportedly be at Oracle Arena for a game:
Hearing from sources that Steve Kerr plans to be at Oracle Arena for Gm 1 of #Warriors vs #Spurs.
— Monte Poole (@MontePooleNBCS) May 14, 2017
That’s great news for him. CBS Sports notes that it might be the result of a recent procedure:
Warriors coach Steve Kerr appears to be feeling better after he underwent a spinal cord leak procedure last week in an attempt to alleviate complications stemming from a 2015 back surgery.
Kerr attended practice with the Warriors on Saturday, and now it look as if he will be in the building for Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against the Spurs on Sunday.
Obviously Kerr won’t yet be coaching the team, and it’s possible he doesn’t return to the bench this postseason. (Or, sadly, ever again; his symptoms are such that it’s not an impossibility that his coaching career is over.) But, it’s also possible that Kerr does indeed return to this season, and these developments are the early signs that’s going to happen.
Mike Brown is a capable lead assistant, but it’s hard to think it’s anything other than a downgrade from Kerr. The Warriors are so talented that arguable just about anyone could lead them to a title, but going up against Gregg Popovich and then LeBron James, they’d be better served having all their weapons, even on the coaching staff.
