As Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr completed his first pregame media session of the season – prior to a 122-110 victory over the Indiana Pacers – he offered some advice to a reporter suffering from the same problems that had sidelined him for so long.
"How's your back?" Kerr said. "Keep doing your rehab."
Kerr returned to the bench for the first time this season Friday night after being sidelined following two offseason back surgeries. He first had surgery to repair a ruptured disc in late July and had follow-up surgery in early September. Kerr decided to take a leave of absence on Oct. 1 and was also hampered by pounding headaches.
Kerr was briefly on the Oracle Arena floor to receive his NBA championship ring on opening night against the New Orleans Pelicans on Oct. 27. But when he returned to the sideline, it was the first time he coached since Game 6 of the 2015 NBA Finals when the Warriors won their NBA championship in Cleveland. After failing to reach his goal to return at the start of the year, Kerr returned on the 44th game of the season – after the Warriors had already won 39 of those 43 previous games.
"I've been waiting for this for a very long time," Kerr said.
Kerr told his coaching staff he was returning a night earlier. He told his players during Friday morning's shootaround. He acknowledged that he had butterflies as he arrived to Oracle Arena for the game. With the words "Welcome Back" on the overhead scoreboard, the fans gave Kerr a lengthy standing ovation when he was introduced before tip-off.
"It feels like the first game of the season, which it is for me," Kerr said before the game. "But fortunately our team is in a pretty good groove and hopefully can keep going and keep playing the way we have the past few outings."
The Warriors went an NBA-best 39-4 under interim head coach Luke Walton, who returned to his lead assistant role on Friday, for the second-best start in NBA history. Walton was named the Western Conference Coach of the Month for November and also guided the Warriors to a record 24-0 start, the best opening to a season for any American professional sports team. Walton's near-perfect coaching stint has led to the expectation he will be a top head-coaching candidate next offseason.
Kerr described Walton's coaching performance as "phenomenal" and said he planned to keep some successful offensive plays Walton added during his absence.
"He's done a great job just managing the team and really doing a good job during timeouts and calling the right plays," Kerr said. "We have a great talent on continuity, but we didn't skip a beat. We actually got better and that's not only Luke, but the entire staff.
"Luke was the right guy to guide the ship and he's got the temperament. He easily will be a head coach before long and on a more permanent basis. I'm hoping to keep him around longer."
Kerr became a little emotional when he talked about the support his wife, Margot, the Warriors' coaching staff and general manager Bob Myers provided him during his recovery. He said he had no concerns about being bumped on the sideline or the bright lights and loud noise of the NBA arenas being bothersome.
"My back has been fine for quite some time," Kerr said. "The symptoms that I've had have been more headaches and things like that. That part has died down and I'm feeling better. I'm not worried about anything bowling over me on the sidelines, so that's a non-issue. As far as the lights and the noise, I don't see that as an issue."
Kerr, however, was a bit surprised by the attention his return received.
"There were about five cameramen there for about five minutes right in my face," he said. "How long do you need that shot? Five seconds would have been enough.
"It was nice. Our fans were great, and with the game on national TV there was plenty of coverage. But in the end it’s just good to be back coaching and be back with the group.”
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