Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr admitted that the team was never able to rebuild trust after Draymond Green and Jordan Poole incident, that happened in the preseason. Kerr feels the most significant reason they were knocked out after a 4-2 loss against Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals was the lack of trust among each other.
The Dubs had a horrible 11-30 record on the road and could not get going while playing away from the Chase Center. Furthermore, Kerr believes their inability to defend without fouling led to their downfall against the Lakers.
Steph Curry’s team could not bring their best to the court in the West semifinals and they lacked the collective effort.
“Anytime some trust is lost, then it makes the process much more difficult, and there was some trust lost,” Kerr said at his exit interview on Tuesday. “That’s as blunt as I can be. We have to get back to what has made us really successful, which is a really trusting environment and a group that relies on one another and makes each other better.”
Kerr also admitted the altercation between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole impacted the team in a wrong way and they could not get on the right track after that.
“There’s no hiding from it — the incident with Draymond and Jordan at the beginning of the year played a role in that,” Kerr said. “It’s hard for that not to impact a team.”
The team’s head coach added that the team has to find a way to build a new relationship between the experienced players and young upcoming players in order to get the best out of themselves.
“I think those relationships within the organization have to be forged, and it doesn’t happen overnight,” Kerr said. “It’s like any other human relationship; it just takes time. We have to continue to allow these relationships to grow, but we need to purposely forge them, too, through not only the experience of what we’re going through but through communicating what everybody is feeling.”
GSW will look to make a solid comeback in the next season.