Steve Kerr Had Decided To Quit Coaching Before Warriors Front Office Convinced Him To Continue

Steve Kerr, the head coach of the Golden State Warriors, has now revealed just how close he was to walking away from the job entirely.

Speaking on the Jim Colbert Show, Kerr said that he had privately decided to leave the Golden State Warriors just before the 2025-26 regular season ended.

“I had decided I was leaving with a week or two left in the regular season. I just thought, it’s just time. I just could feel it. And so I, you know, I didn’t say anything to anybody, but I just thought, yeah, this is it. Just felt like it.”

“And then when the season ended, we all felt like we owed it to ourselves to give it a couple of weeks and let everything, let the emotions die down, and then hash it out and see where we were and where the team was.”

“And I’m glad we did that because over the next couple of weeks, we had three different meetings with Joe and Kirk Lacob and Mike Dunleavy. And the four of us talked about the team and everything going forward.”

“And I think we just came to a really good conclusion, an agreement that we should keep it going. And I’m so glad that that happened because I’m really fired up for this season. I couldn’t be more excited. I’m re-energized, rejuvenated, excited about the potential that this team has. Everybody’s counting us out, and that’s fine. You know, it’s not a bad place to be. Just let everybody say what they want to say. But I’m pretty confident that we can have a really good season.”

“And our coaching staff has been preparing all summer, and young guys in the gym every day, like, working. So it’s exciting to be back.”

It wasn’t difficult to understand why Kerr might have reached that point. The Warriors’ season ended on a disappointing note, which ensured the squad had little chance of making any meaningful postseason run.

The Warriors were eliminated in the play-in tournament, while Jimmy Butler’s ACL injury left a lot of uncertainty surrounding the aging roster.

Kerr’s own future became increasingly uncertain, with reports linking Kerr to a potential move to ESPN. But instead of immediately making a decision after losing, Kerr and the Warriors allowed some time for emotions to settle, and then they met. And the following conversations ultimately changed everything.

The Warriors subsequently signed Kerr to a two-year extension, which put a complete end to any speculation surrounding his future. And after signing the extension, Kerr said his enthusiasm has returned.

Whether this kind of optimism could translate to on-court results immediately remains a major question. The Warriors failed to land any superstar addition that they were desperately searching for this offseason, and they’re running it back largely with the same roster.

Butler is expected to remain sidelined until around January as he recovers from an ACL injury, but they still have Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.

The Warriors aren’t entering this year as championship favorites. They’re not even playoff guarantees, and their aging roster still has major concerns. But Kerr appears to be embracing the challenge of being underdogs, and that is quite a change of mindset from where Kerr was just a few months ago.

He entered the final weeks of last season thinking his Warriors coaching career had ended, and three meetings with the Golden State Warriors front office convinced him to change his mind.

And now, after more than a decade, four championships, and an NBA dynasty together, Kerr and the Warriors are giving it one more shot.