My co-host Dean “of Positivity” Chambers and I have been going back-and-forth so much on Jimmy Butler over the past couple weeks that the latest viral news on “Jimi”, as the my hard-rock inspired colleague likes to call him, seems like really old news for us and our audience on the channel.
Now, a few things before we bury the lede: if you ever get a trade scenario handed to you, the first thing you should ask is, Why would [insert team name of Warriors’ trade partner here] ever do that?
So I don’t think Pat Riley would ever trade Butler to the Warriors without Jonathan Kuminga in the package unless it’s a desperate 11th-hour deal (i.e., on the trade deadline of February 6th) whereby Miami just doesn’t have a better offer — Butler has a player option he can take at over $52 million for 2025-26 and I’m sure he’d just take it this summer and wait for a deal to happen at that point, whenever that is.
It’s outside the scope of this rant, but I don’t think Jimmy would get over $50 million on the open market, so the thought of Riley getting fleeced on a trade for Butler because the Heat would lose him for nothing with Butler opting out, I just don’t see that happening.
So let’s give Riley some credit. I really do not think he will accept a deal with the Warriors unless it includes Kuminga. To think Golden State could acquire Butler without giving up JK, that is far-fetched.
And secondly in this Kuminga debate, Chambers is, actually, advocating a trade for “Jimi” because of what appears to be a quickly shortening window for one Wardell Stephen Curry, as well as the team currently lingering around .500. So yeah, Dean would want Butler for Kuminga (and Andrew Wiggins, as Wiggs’ contract is needed if we’re assuming Steph nor Draymond Green will be dealt). And do this sooner than later to integrate Butler asap.
But also, the core of Dean’s thesis is that Jimmy brings a level of toughness that would elevate the team — after all, he did lead the Heat to two Finals appearances and has been named All-Defense five times.
We talked about this as nauseum on this livestream, which now feels like ancient history:
Meanwhile, I’ve said repeatedly that the Warriors should at least wait a couple more weeks, closer to the deadline, to see if the team is still languishing around .500 by then. So, I’ll check back in on this at the beginning of February. But I’m really high on JK right now. I mean, I have been, ever since last Christmas, although early this season I had become quite frustrated with his lack of cutting hard.
Which brings us to the real topic of this article: aside from all the downhill action and the more frequent “inverted screen” sets for JK, I’ve noticed something. Jonathan is getting to the nail or the rim and kicking out to awaiting shooters! 😱
Like, wow. Like, I did not expect this at all. My only hope up until this point was for him to actually start making those mid-range pull-ups — which, unlike Steve Kerr, I didn’t have a problem with because I saw that throughout the careers of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Kawhi Leonard. Of course, throughout this time I’ve never had a young analytics staffer continually whisper, “Three is 50% more than two,” in my ears.
I mean, JK still isn’t making those midrange Js as of late, anyways, but that’s okay. Those are now turning into assists. Two weeks ago, I was like, “JK, man, just get to your spot!” Now his spot is being used to dish. Okay!
Kerr put it best last night on the radio (full transcript below):
He looks like a different guy to me, honestly, these last 5 games. I think a light switch has gone on and it’s, you can see it in the rebounding. I think he’s averaging about eight rebounds over that stretch. The ball movement, I thought his passing in the second quarter really unlocked the game. He was penetrating, getting to space and then moving it. And then we just started to move the ball from there. He’s one of the guys along with Steph who can break down the defense, but I think in the past, he’s looked at scoring once he’s broken the defense down and pulling up and shooting maybe some mid-range shots we don’t need in the middle of the shot clock. The last few games, he’s really looking to attack and get the ball moving, which helps our overall offense. So I love what JK is doing. He’s playing hard. There’s an awareness of what’s happening. He looks fantastic. I’m really excited. I think he’s breaking through.
Notice how the praise of rebounding is congruent with “cutting hard”.
And then Draymond was on the podium after the win over the Sixers and raved about JK. So… do you really think Dray would ever green-light a trade involving him, now?
I guess ultimately the choice is really a collaboration between Mike Dunleavy, Jr. and Joe Lacob and not necessarily Dray, but those two are gonna get an earful if they ship out JK anytime soon.
Note, the full videos and transcripts are below including the radio hit by Kerr, Curry, Green, and Schroder and then one more pregame with Steve all in reverse chronological order below:
…he’s kicking out to find open shooters, got Buddy a wide-open three. Buddy hadn’t seen the ball going through the rim in a while. He got him a wide-open three off a great pass on the baseline. And that’s the type of stuff when you become a superstar in this league, which I have zero doubt that he’s going to become. Those are the types of things that make guys then want to run through a wall for you…
Speaking of trade scenarios, one last thing on the Nikola Vucevic rumors: Eric Guilleminault of NBADraft.net hopped on our live after the Cavs loss and we discussed how a Vucevic deal might get done. Then Dean also joined and we talked about Vooch, Butler and more. So yeah, we talk about everything on every game livestream and live chat in between, so please come and join us some time (see timestamps):
KERR ON 95.7 YESTERDAY (NO VIDEO)
Mark Grandi: Marc Grandi, Dan Dibley with you in for Mark Willard today. First of all, Happy New Year. Thanks for the time as always and a hell of a win for your team last night.
Steve Kerr: Yeah, thank you. Happy New Year to you guys, too. Yeah, good to be on. And I do enjoy coming on after we win. So, thanks for the timing on this week’s interview.
Mark Grandi: Yeah, we appreciate it as well. I know you talked about it a little bit last night, but I mean, that felt like emotionally cleansing. Your team desperately needed that, the win, of course, but also that kind of shooting night, 61 percent from the field. How needed was that for you and the guys last night, Steve?
Steve Kerr: Yeah, we needed it. I mean, we just, there’s no secret. We have not made shots, really, the entire month of December, so just one of those weird things that can happen occasionally to a team where you get into a team wide slump. And we’ve played so many close games this year, I think more than any team in the league, and obviously, shots have to go in, but you also don’t want to feel like the guys are pressing and you don’t want to put too much pressure on anybody. So we’re just trying to let it all play out and let it happen. But our guys are good shooters. We know we can do what we did last night more often, and I’m excited to see it happen.
Mark Grandi: What was the locker room like, Steve, on a scale of relief to jubilation?
Steve Kerr: I think it’s more relief. I mean, this team, these guys in the locker room, have accomplished a lot. I mean, four or five of them won a championship two years ago, so they’re not going to go too crazy over a regular season win. Definitely there’s relief coming on the heels of a pretty long shooting slump and a lot of losses. So it was really good to get back on the winning track.
Mark Grandi: Coach Kerr with us here on Willard Dibbs, the Game. Steve, one thing I noticed last night, it was the first bucket of the game. Steph Curry pump fake, fly by and made a 3, and he celebrated making that 3 that made it 3-0, the very first bucket of the game. Like, I don’t know, it felt like he was maybe, he just broke a record or something and he did, interestingly enough, set a record later on in the game, but it felt like he was trying to manufacture a little bit of joy, a word that has been used to describe your basketball teams, really your entire tenure. Was that something you guys talked about, or something Steph just did on his own to try to jumpstart this team?
Steve Kerr: No, it was just what Steph did on his own. He told a couple of the coaches before the game that, he was going to have fun no matter what, tonight. I think he’s been feeling a lot of the strain that comes with being the leader of the team and having–but having our struggles as a group. I think he really wanted to show the rest of the guys, like, “Let’s go out and let it rip and have some fun tonight.” So I think he was just sort of sending that message in a good way and the guys loved it on the bench. They got a good laugh out of it.
Dan Dibley: And he was one three-pointer away from history and I guess he didn’t know about the odd record that’s held by Ben Gordon, Jalen Brunson, Latrell Sprewell, who are the only players to go 9-for-9. He blamed Raymond Ridder. Is it proper to blame Raymond for not alerting him to another record he could have achieved?
Steve Kerr: It is always proper to blame Raymond for anything, deserved or not. I just think it’s the right thing to do.
Dan Dibley: That’s perfect, Steve. We’re going to go ahead and cut that and keep it. Mark Grandi and I have been talking all day today and Mark and I are a couple of the bigger Jonathan Kuminga fans here at the station and I’m just struck by how he’s been playing over the last three or 4 weeks. Can you describe some of the things that he’s been doing really well and is it an outgrowth of the confidence that he’s starting to feel, playing more minutes with this team?
Steve Kerr: He looks like a different guy to me, honestly, these last 5 games. I think a light switch has gone on and it’s, you can see it in the rebounding. I think he’s averaging about eight rebounds over that stretch. The ball movement, I thought his passing in the second quarter really unlocked the game. He was penetrating, getting to space and then moving it. And then we just started to move the ball from there. He’s one of the guys along with Steph who can break down the defense, but I think in the past, he’s looked at scoring once he’s broken the defense down and pulling up and shooting maybe some mid-range shots we don’t need in the middle of the shot clock. The last few games, he’s really looking to attack and get the ball moving, which helps our overall offense. So I love what JK is doing. He’s playing hard. There’s an awareness of what’s happening. He looks fantastic. I’m really excited. I think he’s breaking through.
Mark Grandi: Coach, there’s one play specifically that stood out to me and he, obviously, had a game full of really good decisions, 20 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, but it was late in the first quarter. He caught the ball on the right wing in motion towards the rim, gets past his defender with two dribbles, Joel Embiid slides over to cut him off on the attack to the rim and instead of, as you’re talking about, trying to maybe take a tough fadeaway midrange or finish around a really big and an athletic defender, he passes to an open shooter in the corner. Happened to be Schroder, who made two threes prior, and Schroder makes that one as well. Are those the kinds of plays that you’re looking at seeing from him? I mean, I feel like so many of us fans and in the media just focus on the points that he scores, but it’s gotta be so much more on every time the ball is in his hands, just making the right decision. And it feels like he’s making that right decision more often.
Steve Kerr: Yeah, because it’s the right decisions that really lead to success. Every team in the NBA is going to score 100 points a night. And so points are points. It’s what happens in the flow of the game and what leads to team success. That is the most important thing. And so what I’m seeing with JK is an awareness that when he breaks the defense down and he moves it, it’s powerful. It gets other guys going. They get to develop a rhythm for the offense. It’s really tough to stop over the course of the game. And that’s what we’re seeing. So that play you mentioned is a good example and I can give you six or seven more. That’s what’s exciting is that he’s seeing the pictures now, really a lot more clearly than he has in the past. And that’s exciting.
Dan Dibley: And 41 assists for the team, a season-high 41 assists on 53 made baskets, that was a almost basketball porn as a Warrior fan, Steve, to just watch that. That level of of ball movement and you only played nine until you got into garbage time. Are you starting to zero in a little bit more on the idea of a nine-or ten-man rotation going forward?
Steve Kerr: Well, we have limited minutes for some of our guys. Obviously, Loon and Kyle Anderson have been out of the rotation the last week and I hate it. Both guys are so important to us. They’re total pros, great players. But we had to do it. I mean, we just had to, I think, just streamline the rotation and try to get guys more rhythm, more momentum. We’ve been shooting so poorly that it just seems like we’ve gotta do everything we can to give the guys who are on the floor the best chance to find their rhythm. So that means we are streamlining the rotation a little bit. It’s still not simple. We’re gonna get Gary Payton back. We’ll get Brandin Podziemski back. It’s not an automatic thing from night to night, but we are attempting to cut it down.
Mark Grandi: Warriors coach Steve Kerr with us here on Willard and Dibs on 95.7 The Game. Coach, it feels like one of the other things that has been a challenge for you–talking about rotations–one of those rotations or groupings of players that you’re playing has been Draymond Green at the 5 and it feels like, at least as an outsider looking in, that a couple of your best groups feature Draymond at the 5 and Kuminga at the 4, but I know you have a hesitancy to play Draymond at the 5 too often, at least early in the season. So how do you find the balance between playing a unit that, obviously, is working, but not riding Draymond a little too hard and maybe not having him as effective, come March and April.
Steve Kerr: Well, that’s what we’re attempting to do. And that’s why we start Trayce at the 5 and Draymond at the 4, so we can buy some minutes with those two together. And then we’re rotating from there. So, and I think right now we’re probably playing Draymond about 15 minutes at the center spot which seems about right. We don’t want to overdo it, but we also needed to do it and take advantage of what that lineup gives us, especially with JK at the 4.
Dan Dibley: And you look at what Trayce has done playing the 5. How have you measured his development, especially over the last couple of two, three weeks, because watching it from the couch and occasionally in the arena, it seems like he’s another guy who’s really starting to unlock his complete potential.
Steve Kerr: I think he is. I mean, he’s really running the floor well. He’s gaining confidence going against Joel Embiid last night and one of the best in the game. He held his own. He made a couple of great plays against Joel and he’s really doing a good job of providing the things we need, the lob threat, the rebounding, the shot blocking. So Trayce is really coming around and it’s exciting.
Mark Grandi: Another player, Steve, who had a nice game last night after somewhat of a shooting slump is Dennis Schroder, who you acquired, of course, from the Nets in a trade in December. Some somewhat similar to Steph Curry celebrating after he makes his first three of the game, I’m sure it felt nice for a Dennis Schroder to have that first quarter that he had last night. I know you like a lot of the other things that he does, but how nice was it to see him, and I’m sure how nice was it for him to see some shots from the outside go in last night?
Steve Kerr: Yeah, I mean, it was great for Dennis and for us. I mean, he shot 40 percent from three in Brooklyn this year when we traded for him. So he’s never been a three-point marksman, but he’s always been solid, I think maybe 35% for his career. So that’s what you would expect for the season. But the main reason we got him is the defense on-ball. You saw that with him guarding Tyrese Maxey last night. He guarded James Harden last week against the Clippers. He’s going to be on the opposing team’s best ball-handler. And that’s a huge benefit for us. I thought his defense last night was terrific, just like it was last week against Phoenix. Night after night, you can count on his defense, his ball-handling. He’s a winning player. He just makes a lot of really important plays. And when he starts shooting the ball like he did last night, it only adds to his effectiveness.
Dan Dibley: And crucial to have that on-ball defense, especially with Gary. I need to ask about Buddy Hield, Coach, because first eight games of the year, he’s averaging 21 a night and over the last dozen or so, he’s not shooting it and he’s just getting eight points a game. How do you explain the funk that Buddy’s fallen into and what can you do to help bring him out of it?
Steve Kerr: Well, I think as a former shooter myself, they’re just spells in the season where things just don’t feel right, like a hitter in baseball just not seeing the–seeing the ball wrong. And Buddy, similar to what I was as a player, he’s not going to get to the line a whole lot. He’s not going to get a lot of easy baskets. It’s a–he’s a jump-shooter. And, yeah, I think it’s, he’s just in a little bit of a tough spell. But for the season, he’s still at 39 percent from three. So this guy is, he’s one of the great shooters that the league has seen in the last decade and the numbers bear it out. I always trust the track record of a player like Buddy, who’s been in the league for a long time. And I know he’ll bounce back.
Mark Grandi: Warriors coach Steve Kerr with us here on Willard and Dibs on 95.7 The Game. Coach, the telecast last night highlighted a moment in the second half when Steph was on fire, that you sent Dennis Schroder in to come in for him, to sub in for Stephen Curry. Apparently Steph refused and then he made another bucket. Is that what happened? Can you talk us through what happened?
Steve Kerr: No, he didn’t refuse, but Dennis was supposed to check in at the next dead ball. There’s a dead ball and Steph just made a couple of threes and Dennis turned me and he said, “Let’s leave him out there. One more play.” And I said, “All right, but if he misses, it’s your fault.” So Steph got the ball and he made the shot. And Dennis and I slapped five. I said, “Good choice.” And then there was a timeout. I think Philly took a timeout right then. And at that point I basically asked Steph, I said, “What do you think?” I had one of the coaches ask him, actually. And, “You want to stay?” And he said, “No, I’m ready to come out.” He was pretty tired. So that’s something that happens during the course of the game. Frequently, if I’m subbing a guy out and he’s just made a shot, whether it’s Steph or anybody else, the guy subbing in for him, he’ll kind of look at me and say, “What do you want to do?” And then sometimes we’ll let a guy go, because obviously you make one or two, you’re feeling hot. You let it ride a little bit.
Mark Grandi: Gotcha, so it was Dennis who didn’t want that to happen. Has Steph ever–when you’ve set up a sub, has Steph ever said, “No, let me stay in for another stoppage?”
Steve Kerr: Yes, many times, many times. So it’s–and I’m all for it. I mean, if he’s feeling it, I gotta ride with it.
Dan Dibley: In the game last night, you made it so you didn’t have to play Steph or Draymond over the last seven-and-change and I’m just looking at the schedule starting Saturday, Steve, five games in seven nights. Does last night’s limited minutes change your possible load management approach going forward and have you as a staff kind of charted a course for the next five games that you have, all coming up?
Steve Kerr: Yeah, Steph’s gonna be out tomorrow. He’s–with the back to back and with the tendonitis and his knees, our training staff made the decision a couple of weeks ago that we would limit his vulnerability in the back-to-back. So he’ll miss tomorrow and he’ll be back Sunday for Sacramento and then we’ll just go from there. But we have to manage the tendonitis and as best we can. And just try to win games while we’re at it.
Mark Grandi: Okay, so no Steph tomorrow. I know in your most recent back-to-back, in LA versus the Clippers and then at home against Phoenix, both Steph and Draymond didn’t play in LA versus the Clippers. Is the expectation that Draymond might play on both sides of the back-to-back coming up Saturday and Sunday?
Steve Kerr: Yeah, he should play both. He missed that game in LA with a back injury. And, but he’s healthy. He’s feeling good. So he’s good to go for tomorrow night.
Dan Dibley: While we’re here in the blue tent, Steve, to keep with the medical part of it, GP2 and Podz, anything you can update us as far as their upcoming availability?
Steve Kerr: They’re both out tomorrow as well and just day-to-day beyond that.
Mark Grandi: I know it’s difficult to try to figure out how rotations look and I know we were talking about this earlier, but with those two guys, do you anticipate both of them, Podziemski and GP2, immediately inserted and are getting regular minutes again every game?
Steve Kerr: Well, I’ve learned not to answer questions that I don’t have to until they actually are relevant. So those questions remain to be answered based on who’s available and what our health situation looks like. But they’re both really important players for us. And they’re both going to play important roles. It’s just, we just have to wait and see what the circumstances are when they return.
Dan Dibley: Well, staying in that same rotational space, Moses Moody has been a guy who over the last three or four games has been nothing short of spectacular. How much are you impressed from what Moses continues to do in this somewhat of an on again, off again role?
Steve Kerr: Well, it’s good to get him back in the rotation and we’re going to keep him there. He’s shooting the ball well the last couple of games and coming off that injury, it took him a few games to find his rhythm, but it looks like he’s found that rhythm and we’ll keep him going for sure.
Mark Grandi: Hey Coach, on a lighter note, I don’t know, I’m sure you heard big news for your basketball program, your college basketball program, the Arizona Wildcats got a big commitment from Bryce James, LeBron’s son. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen him play basketball before. He’s not an NBA player, so you can talk about him. What do you know about Bryce James, the newest Arizona Wildcat?
Steve Kerr: Never seen him play, but pretty good genes, I would say. Pretty good genes. So it sounds like a good choice by my alma mater for sure.
00:00 Coach, I mean, getting back to Curry, it was also one of those nights, too, where it looked like he was just making — he was kind of in a zone tonight because there were a couple of times he made some shots where even, I think, he seemed surprised by the result.
00:11 NICK NURSE: He had a couple of those, I think, but geez, he certainly made a lot of spectacular shots. I think the bank, the one he banked in, obviously, probably surprises anybody. And then he pulled one from about 40 feet. I think it might’ve been his last one, but it was one of the last ones and he made that one too. So yeah, I mean, listen, you let him shoot it in any way, he’s got a chance of making it go in. He can make them guarded, he can make them from anywhere on the court and he can make them in a variety of ways.
00:42 Steph, you’re the first in NBA history to go 8-for-8 from three and have 10 assists in a game. And I think the 8-for-8 is the most made threes you’ve had yourself, your personal high. What was tonight like for you, especially with your thumb? And, like, where did even the bank three, did you just know it was going to be your night?
01:05 STEPH CURRY: First off, thanks for making up a stat that I could be the first. That’s pretty cool. I didn’t really think nothing of it. Sometimes when you have like a little injury or something that’s random, it kind of forces you to focus a little bit and just be free. Just happy I got to play because I was kind of unsure going into the day, but I didn’t get many attempts up in the first half, but all four of them were really good, in-rhythm shots. And then from there, you’re kind of just flowing off of the joy of things going our way and having a day where Dennis hit three in the first half. JK came in, hit some big shots, Moses. Like, everybody was kind of just feeling the rhythm of the night. And those last or last three, the glass one, just that is your night and you just got to laugh and have some fun with it.
02:07 Last game, you said that you guys were average, but tonight it was completely different. And you didn’t lose the lead. What do you think the adjustments were to make things so easy?
02:20 Make shots. I think, I mean, when you make shots, everybody feels good. It helps your defense because you stay engaged. And we’ve had a long run where shots just weren’t falling. I think this is the first time we’ve shot over 50 percent in a long time. So it’s, yeah, I mean, that helps and you just wanna to maintain confidence. I know what I said last game and I meant it because we are — you are what your record says you are. And we have been playing below-average basketball for a long time. Obviously, I take accountability for a lot of that. And at the end of the day, you just wanna play free and have fun. I celebrated my first three just to try to infuse some joy into the game. So we have to try to maintain that even if, yeah, shots don’t fall for a certain stretch of a game. Just stay locked in.
03:16 Steph, how difficult was it to go 8-for-8 from three and only take eight threes?
03:21 That was the weird part because, like I said, I shot four of them in the first half, I think. And their defense, they were trying to force everything into the paint, switching. But we’re moving the ball all over the place, so eventually you’re gonna get looks. You can’t just — you just gotta stay patient. It’s easy when you are making all of them, but it’s one of those games, too, where I didn’t necessary feel like I need to force anything. And only thing I would have wished, I would have forced, if Raymond (Ridder) would have yelled that I think nine is the record for most made — I would have forced one after that, but I didn’t know.
03:59 Steph, Philly obviously came out tonight to try to shut you down. But as the first quarter, you kind of alluded to it as other guys are starting to hit shots for you guys. How much did that change and open up the court for you?
04:13 Well — opening up the court, it just makes you think about every option that we have out there. Like, obviously, 42 assists is indicative of good ball movement or good organization, taking care of the possessions, finding the open guy and no matter who gets it, they can finish the possession with a shot. So my game was indicative of how we all played and it was a beautiful brand of basketball. And it seemed like everybody who stepped foot on the floor had conviction about what they were trying to do. And we need to maintain it.
04:55 Steph, how would you sort of describe Draymond’s season to this point and the impact he’s had? I mean, we’ve seen it for years, but had some turbulence last season, obviously was out for stretches. And this year it seems like tonight, I mean, he kind of gets lost in the shadows, but 15-7-and-6. And he seems sort of renewed vigor on defense, too. I’m just curious how you would sort of characterize what he means to this team in trying to get you guys going.
05:29 I think since the second half of last year and this whole year we’ve had our team kind of down spurts and it’s been frustrating at times, but I think he’s just made it about basketball. And for him, he made that commitment last year and I think he’s lived up to it, to your point. Some nights it won’t show up in the stat sheet, sometimes it will. His defensive effort and his leadership on that end of the floor has been great taking on the challenge, putting his body on the line. I know there’s a whole lot of talk about what position he plays and all that other stuff, like, he makes winning plays and when the offense is there too, it’s an added bonus. So you want him taking the shots that he, when he’s open, knocking them down like he’s been doing. It gives us such a big boost when he’s confident from, especially from three. But then defensively, you don’t wanna take it for granted, to your point. He’s a master on that end of the floor and he’s continued to show it.
06:35 How consequential was pace and tempo tonight? And just what went into sustaining that for the course of four quarters?
06:42 Just, I mean, last game against Cleveland, we had it in the first half and then when shots stopped falling, it’s human nature. You kind of get a little defeated and that affects your first three steps, either direction. It affects the trust to move the ball tonight. We were awarded with that effort early because guys were knocking down shots. It was just contagious and for us, the way that we play and the way that we’re going to be successful, it has to be that for that style for as long as you can sustain it. We talk about it in practice, we talk about it in timeouts, pregame, like whatever. The execution hasn’t always been there.
07:32 I remember the conversation in Phoenix after the loss, about the 13-man rotation, and you even saying the need to trim it a little bit. It’s nine tonight. It’s kind of being pretty consistently trimmed now down. I mean, how much do you think that is helping?
07:48 I mean, asking a lot of the guys over the course of the season, it’s great when you’re winning and it’s tough when you’re not, because it’s the way this league works, obviously. And kind of the predictability of knowing when you’re going to be in, who you’re going to be out there with, that does matter. Guys having an understanding of where their possible shots are going to come from, and starting to get a rhythm. We’ve talked about it, obviously, as of late. I know BP’s out and he’s part of that 9, 10 rotation, whatever. We’ve — It is — and you even got Kyle and Loon, who have played significant roles for us at certain parts of the season, not get minutes. So again, it’s tough because that’s the challenge of this team. But I think narrowing the roles and the rotation just helps everybody because you start to build a little bit of chemistry. It’s not an easy thing and will continue to be a challenge for us until it’s not. But it’s one of those things about our identity as a team that we have to keep addressing and staying locked in.
09:06 Hey, Steph, I spoke to a 101-year-old woman this evening. She said she was gonna be your lucky charm tonight and I think they rolled her out at halftime. You had a chance to have an exchange with her. What was that all about?
09:19 That’s a strong way to put it right there. They were — Yeah, I just appreciate her, her support of our team. The fact that she says she’s over a century old and still DubNation through and through. So I shook her hand and took a picture and I haven’t missed since.
09:44 If I could ask a follow up to the Draymond question, you mentioned the conversation about which position he plays and he obviously starts out at 4 with Trayce, which gives you a big defensive presence. And it seems like, right away, the next change is JK coming in and then Draymond goes to the 5 and that lineup’s been effective, for the most part. How does it feel different when it’s JK and him or — versus him and Trayce. How does it change the dynamics?
10:08 I guess we have certain play calls that are catered to when Draymond’s at the 5. And Trayce is at the 5, we have — or anybody else at the 5 and, defensively, you give up size, obviously, but you gain speed and a little bit athleticism. So you try to cater to that a little bit. I think at the end of the day for us, it usually shows up on offense. If we’re not organized with Trayce and Draymond at the 4. Trayce at the 5, Draymond at the 4. It can get bad, ugly really quick because we don’t have an intentionality of what we’re trying to do on offense and teams know that. But we’ve gotten better at that as of late at the fight. When Draymond’s at the 5, the chaos and kind of roll a little bit easier because he’s making plays and there’s usually a little bit more space out there. So it’s just one of those subtle adjustments you have to make on the fly. No matter or depending on who, explaining what role.
00:00 How bad did y’all need, like, this type of offensive night?
00:07 DRAYMOND GREEN: Really bad, just to see the ball go in. We started off the year as a great shooting team and then it just went to hell, so it’s good to get a night like tonight.
00:17 Draymond, offensively, defensively, did it just feel like a tone was set from the beginning that you guys can just feed off of?
00:22 Absolutely. I think we came out defensively, getting stops, pushing the tempo, got some easy looks. You play off your defense to start the game and start to get easy ones. It makes the rim look a lot different as you start to take the tougher ones. So I think it was good for us setting the tone defensively and pushing the ball, offensively.
00:45 We know how, like, kind of full the rotation was to start the year and kind of, like, ever-changing for a while. He’s clearly — Steve’s gone to a trimmed, more nine-man rotation. Is that helping? Just kind of, it seems like you guys know what’s coming on a nightly basis a little bit more.
01:01 Yeah, it definitely helps. So just to get in that routine, find the flow, know where your minutes are coming. When you know where your minutes are coming at, you know where your shots are coming from. You’ll end up out there with the same group of guys, you can build some familiarity. So I think it definitely helps, but we won one game, so it ain’t (f-ing) changed nothing. Like, we still gotta try to win some games and figure it out.
01:29 Draymond, you’ve seen Steph do a lot of incredible things. Tonight’s the most made three-pointers without a miss that he’s ever had, 8-for-8. And he’s the first player in NBA history to make 8-for-8 threes and ten assists. What did you — what was it like watching him tonight?
01:42 It was great, especially being that he barely practiced yesterday, kind of walk-around practice, doing everything with his left hand. We did a conditioning drill, full-court layups at the end, but instead of conditioning, he did all of them with his left hand, even on the right side. So to see him come out and have the game that he had, just kind of sums up Steph.
02:07 Schroder kind of finally had a little bit of an offensive night tonight, but I’m just curious your overall, I guess, take on his fit so far and what he’s giving you overall.
2:17 He brings a different mentality, a different aggressiveness and yet what we needed I think the last piece is his offense. We need that also. And he’s starting to get more aggressive, which we like. It takes some time to come in middle of the season and try to find your way, especially on a team that’s struggling. And I think he’s starting to do that. He’s starting to figure out where to find his shots. Like I said, he’s being more aggressive, but also what he brings to us on the defensive end is huge, with the way he gets into the ball for the opposing team, best ball-handler. It changes a lot of things for us. So he’s starting to come along and it’s great because we need him to be really good for us to be good.
03:12 That was me. Draymond, you guys got off to a great start. The ball movement was excellent, but I think the key thing is you did not lose the lead. So what adjustments did you make in that?
03:22 We didn’t. We’ve gotten up in some games and we relaxed. We started turning the ball over, getting loose with the ball. Teams, they start their run and it’s hard to break a team in the NBA that’s on the run. And so I think we did a better job of that. It’s just staying consistent, driving, the layups. They’re taking a layup, if not, kicking it out to shooters But I think everybody who came in the game, no matter what the lineup was, responded every time they tried to throw a punch and that was huge for us.
03:52 Draymond, what are you seeing in JK, not so much his scoring, but just the way it seemed like he passed the ball more eagerly tonight and it came back to him and it’s like he didn’t splash — what’s the word I’m looking for? Excitedly scored 20 right off the bat. It just sort of built. I’m curious how you see the way he’s going about it, how that’s changed.
4:13 He’s — you can just tell he’s getting comfortable. He knows now, “Oh, I’m going to get the ball.” I’m going to have my opportunities to score. So now I just don’t have to show you that I can score because if I pass the ball four possessions in a row, the fifth possession, what he’s now starting to understand, the fifth possession, I’m still getting the ball back. When I’m on the court, the ball is coming to me and with that, it’s coming a — it’s building a sense of purpose for him. But like I said, even more so than just the sense of purpose, it’s just raised his comfort level. He — and so when that happens and you feel like, “Ah, I don’t have to make it happen for me to stay in the game or get my minutes.” Then you just can’t allow the game to come to you and for him. He’s special. So you allow the game to come to you. You’re going to do special things, but even more importantly then you start making everyone else better off of what you’re good at and I think that’s what he’s doing. He’s driving, he’s collapsing defense and if the finish is there, he’s going for it. If not, he’s kicking out to find open shooters, got Buddy a wide-open three. Buddy hadn’t seen the ball going through the rim in a while. He got him a wide-open three off a great pass on the baseline. And that’s the type of stuff when you become a superstar in this league, which I have zero doubt that he’s going to become. Those are the types of things that make guys then want to run through a wall for you. That’s just a guy on your team that you’re the superstar leading. And he’s learning that. He’s picking it up and it’s really coming together for him.
05:51 In terms of production, up and down the lineup, this might have been you guys’ best game of the season. From your vantage point, how much Steph’s always gonna get his — he’s gonna go nuts no matter what — but how much tonight did you see what you were getting from everybody else really open up the floor for Steph?
06:06 It opened it up a lot because they had to stop being as aggressive as they were on him to start the game, when everybody else is. He’s getting the ball out of the trap and we’re driving and getting layups and dunks. It loosens them up a bit and then he’s able to do what he do and so we all have to make sure that we stay that aggressive, with that mindset, so that we can make things easier for him. And we make things easier for him. He obviously make everything easier for everyone else.
06:38 When Steph is chasing that three-point record he did a lot of interviews and he explained that Reggie Miller was his childhood idol. He got to pass his childhood idol. Tonight, he got to go 8-for-8 in front of his childhood idol. Do you think that’s the — I don’t know if it’s a stretch, you tell me — like just a fun extra element for Steph to know Reggie’s calling this game?
06:55 I think anytime you have people in the gym that you respect, that could have motivated you in one way or the other, it gets you going. It is — it always wake you up. And that’s for the guys that have that thing. Everybody don’t have that thing where someone’s in the gym and it raises my level. It’s funny. I was just talking to Travis (Walton) the other day because my nephew TJ, he’s starting to come into his own in the basketball world. And I went to his game and when I went to the game, he just, “Go, go, go.” And I was telling Trav, like, it’s interesting for me to come watch him play because I can tell when I walk in the gym for him. It’s just like, “I need to go. I need to show you how good I am. And we were talking about, how do we help him learn how to channel that? Because that’s a great thing to have. It’s a great trait to have that not everyone has. When someone that I want to impress or that I respect walk in the gym, I’m going to raise my level. Most people don’t have that trait. When you have it, sometimes it can work against you though. And so it’s just something that we were discussing like, “Yo, but much rather him have the trait than not have it.” And Steph has that thing, whether it’s Reggie in the stands, I don’t know. Tonight or when he’s breaking a record or whether it’s me showing up at the gold medal game and he go crazy, he got that thing.
08:39 Hi Dennis, this was your — it’s just your eighth game with the team, but how do you feel like you’ve been settling in, kind of looking like you arrived at your best game so far with the Dubs?
08:50 DENNIS SCHRODER: Yeah, I mean, it was. The last 10 days, 12 days, been tough, but luckily we won the game today, played very well, shared the ball, played with force, and we stayed aggressive and the most important, we had fun and we just gotta get back to that. And, of course, I have to adjust to the team. And, yeah, it’s getting there.
09:19 Steve was kind of talking about that adjustment and offensively, for example, they want you to play fast, but at times fast without the ball, right? Run and don’t come back to the ball. What — how would you describe the adjustments you need to make to how they play and how that’s going?
09:36 Yeah, it’s different. I mean, the last couple of years what they’ve been doing, it’s been working and it’s great. And for me, it’s — I played with a lot of people in my career and I always can adjust and whatever they ask me to do, I’m always ready for it. But it’s gonna take a little bit of time.
10:04 What is the specific things about the way they play, maybe the Steph ecosystem in a lot of ways, that’s maybe different than your past stops?
10:11 Yeah, I mean hitting the post and then do split action, slipping out and then the second guy come off screens. I want to shoot a lot of threes. This year I’ve been shooting a lot of threes, but in my career, I never — always try to go to the basket and that’s probably the biggest adjustment. I’m playing fast, too, getting it out of the net or after rebound, Draymond pushing it or Kuminga or Steph and running without the ball or running with the ball. Yeah, I mean, those two things, I think, biggest things.
10:50 You guys looked like you were having fun tonight. What made your shot selection so easy?
10:56 Yeah. just playing with force downhill and then making the right play. I think that Steph always making the right play when two coming to him. He always hit the pocket and then Draymond in the pocket hitting Kuminga for dunks, or A.Wiggs for threes, myself. I think that’s always great to have a team like that who plays unselfish basketball. And we just gotta keep doing that and having fun with it, sharing the ball. It don’t matter who scores. I think when we have that mentality, it’s gonna be really hard to guard.
11:37 Dennis, you talked about playing with a lot of Hall-of-Famers recently. What’s it like being on this side of Steph hitting 8-for-8 threes?
11:44 Yeah, it’s insane. I mean, I used to be pissed when he hit a three playing against him and just greatness. I mean, I’ve seen a lot of people, but him, how he works every single day, how fast he going through his reps, it’s just incredible to see. He’s 36, about to turn 37. I mean, I seen Bron when he was 38, 39. I mean, those are the best players ever and to play with them, to share the court with them, I never take it for granted and I always try to learn and even though I’m 31, I still try to learn, and pick his thoughts. And then Draymond Green, another Hall-of-Famer, A.Wiggs, everybody who I’m playing with just try to get better every single day, but especially those two. To see them every single day, it’s inspiring, but it’s great to see and it’s great to have him on my side now.
00:00 How much did it feel like you particularly offensively kind of needed this type of game?
00:06 STEVE KERR: Needed it badly. It’s been a long time since we even shot 50 percent from the field, so to shoot over 60, felt like the floodgates kind of opened up for us. So, great night for the whole team. It was a really well-executed offensive game. And then we caught them on the back to back, which helped, but our defense was solid and great start to the game and there weren’t any let-ups. So it was a really good night for us.
00:39 Pace. I mean, it seemed like it was great all night. Just what did that open up for you guys tonight?
00:43 Well, it sets up everything when we push the ball, made or missed. We just have more time with the shot clock. You put a lot of pressure on the defense and you get into the offense faster. You just race the ball up the floor, good things happen in general. So I thought that was a big key tonight.
01:08 Steve, I think at one point you had like 31 makes and 25 assists on those makes and you had 42 assists and 53 baskets. What — when’s the last time you felt you saw the ball move like it did tonight?
01:21 Yeah, it’s been a while, but I think it’s all connected. The game is always connected and when we defend and we get stops, it’s easier to run and when we push the pace after makes, that makes a big difference. I thought Draymond really did a great job of that, just maintaining the pace throughout and urging our guys to run the wings and get down the floor.
01:48 If there’s one thing you want to tell your team from tonight that could unlock your offense again, do you — would you say you think it’s the defense?
01:57 I don’t think there’s one thing. I think it’s just a combination of everything you saw tonight, aggressive defense and running the floor, pushing the ball, made or missed, and sharing the ball. So that’s the formula. I do think that we can start to develop a rhythm and I like this rotation. Dennis is a fantastic on-ball defender. And so to be able to have him, guard a guy like Maxey right from the start is a huge plus for us. And I thought he set a tone with his defense. He also really pushed the ball around the floor. And so he’s a fast player, point guard. I think we’re really asking him to play even faster and if he doesn’t have the ball, to just run up the floor instead of coming back and getting it. So I think it’s a little bit of an adjustment for him, like, it would be for anybody coming into a new team the middle of the year and not having a training camp. So it looks like he’s starting to get more comfortable with what we’re trying to do. And like I said, just the defense that he brings on the perimeter to me is game changing. And I think it’s going to allow us to match up with teams a lot better.
03:16 Steph passed Michael Jordan for the most 30-point games after 35-year-olds, among guards. What makes it so tough to perform like this at this stage of a career as a guard?
03:31 Well, I think maybe Steph’s most underrated quality is just his endurance and his incredible fitness level. He’s worked so hard over the years. You look at pictures of him from his first few years in the league and he doesn’t even look like the same guy. He’s just built up his body, but also worked on his skill throughout those years where he’s learning how to play through fatigue, not just about getting stronger and building more endurance, but maintaining and improving a skill level throughout with people draped all over him. Pretty incredible. So that was a great stat. There was a lot going on there, but if you have any others, let me know.
04:19 Well, during the third quarter, were you trying to take him out?
04:22 Yeah, was I trying to take him out when they —
04:26 Sub him?
04:26 Oh, yeah, I was going to take him out. And then Dennis said, you want me to give him one more shot? And I said yeah. So Dennis stayed at the scorers table. And I told Dennis, if he misses, it’s your fault. This was your suggestion. So fortunately he made it. And then I asked — we asked Steph during the time out if he wanted to stay in and he said, “No, let’s make the sub.”
04:52 Steve, you guys’ depth was talked about so much at the beginning of the year with going 12-, 13-, 14-deep, but is this almost more what you envision? You have — you’re kind of trimming down, but you had seven guys, double-digits, I think five 15-plus points, just multiple guys contributing on both sides of the ball tonight.
05:08 I mean, that’s always what you want, to have a set rotation and get really consistent efforts off the bench. And it’s obviously not going to happen every night, but I think it can happen pretty consistently. I haven’t mentioned JK. I think this was his fifth straight great game. Even last game when he didn’t shoot well, I loved his rebounding. I loved his effort. I just think Jonathan is continuing to breakthrough and understand exactly what his role is, what we need from him. He was brilliant again tonight. I also just want to point out, I mean, Kyle and Loon, we’re so lucky to have those guys on the team. They’re the most professional guys you could ask for as a coach, as a teammate. And they’re the odd men out right now. And the only way it works in the NBA is if the guys who are not playing are supportive of the other guys and aware of what’s happening and accepting of it without being happy about it. But being great teammates and those guys are amazing. We’re lucky to have ’em. And they’re helping everybody else right now. And staying ready for is when their time comes, which is, it’s gonna happen. They get in for the last seven minutes or clearly the two best players on the floor, like, no pouting. They just go out there and compete. That means a lot to a team. And so we’re lucky to have those guys. There was talk from you about wanting to kind of trim to a sharper rotation for a while. You, obviously, as you’re mentioning, have done it now.
06:49 Was there a moment, a point maybe a post game that you decided like it had to be now?
06:56 We were trying to get to it, but we had a lot of absences, injuries, illness, whatever. And then there were a lot of game situations that didn’t allow for it, for whatever reason. So, I do think it’s been a concerted effort the last four games and the indicator really is Loon and Kyle. I think they were DNP the last three games, if I’m not mistaken, at least two. But yeah, we’re really trying to get to a set rotation. If everybody’s healthy, then it’s still tricky because we got BP and Gary coming back and we got, again, a really deep roster and a lot of guys who can play. We also — we’ve talked about our shooting and the need to get more shooting on the floor. Great to see Moses the last couple of games knocking down shots, Lindy as well. So it’s not easy. And I’d love to stick with one rotation. But as soon as we’re down 10 in the third quarter and we need someone, I’m going to put that guy in. It’s just, it’s a hard balance to find.
08:09 Steve, Steph is the first player to go 8-for-8 or better on threes and record 10 assists in NBA history. You’ve seen him do —
08:18 How do you guys know this off the top of your head? It’s really impressive.
08:22 I have ESPN Stats in there.
08:23 Oh, you have a phone.
08:26 But this is the most he’s made — gone perfect, 8-for-8 from 3. So you’ve seen him do a lot of incredible things. What was it like watching him tonight?
08:34 It was just fun. I love the bank. It was I think that was his sixth one, if I’m not mistaken. And he deserves these nights, I mean, everything he does for us and endures. It’s so fun to see him do this and our fans and our coaches. We’re all proud of him. I don’t want to be spoiled watching him play night after night, but we need to cherish these nights. He’s not going to be around forever and he is one of the most beautiful basketball players who’s ever lived and we’re lucky to be watching him.
09:13 He has the most threes made on a Thursday.
09:15 Oh, I don’t care.
00:00 Steph popped up on the injury report with a thumb sprain. Did that happen during practice or anything? And how is he doing?
00:08 STEVE KERR, PREGAME PHI-GSW: I think it happened in the game the other night. so he’s probable for the game. His thumb is taped up, but he just warmed up and we think he’s gonna play.
00:24 And the status for Draymond tonight?
00:26 He’s good to go.
00:39 Hey, Sam (Amick).
00:40 Happy New Year.
00:41 Happy New Year.
00:42 Just curious your thoughts on the Sixers. You see a team that starts in the kind of turmoil they had and health was a big part of it. But it was health and then other stuff and they’ve kind of found their way. Big fella doesn’t play last night, obviously, going to be out there tonight. Just, are they anywhere near the level you think that you and a lot of folks thought they might be at this point? Just what are you seeing on tape out of this group right now?
01:10 I’m no longer in the analyst business. So, yeah, I just, we’re just trying to beat them tonight. They’re obviously getting healthy and playing better. I mean, I think they won five in a row before last night and very talented. So they’re starting to look like the team that I think people expected and we know we got our hands full tonight. So that’s the extent of my analysis.
01:39 You’ve kind of moved into maybe a firmer front-court rotation or tried to lately, obviously, with a lot of Kuminga off the bench, probably more Draymond small-ball. I just wonder because a lot of what you’ve done this year is kind of matchup-based. You’re facing Embiid tonight. How does that Impact the way you’ve wanted to script out your frontcourt rotation?
01:59 Yeah, I mean Loon definitely could find himself out there depending on how the game goes So we’ll just, we’ll see how it goes. We’ll start our usual, Trayce and Draymond at the 5 and the 4 and those guys will both guard Joel and if we need Loon, we’ll put him out there, too.
02:20 A couple of weeks now since bringing Dennis over, I guess just big picture, how would you contextualize what goes into incorporating or on-the-fly, adjusting stylistically, to a player and his strengths and kind of the domino effect that that can have on an offense?
02:35 Well we like the fact that Dennis is a pick-and-roll player. He can get Steph off the ball, so he relieves a lot of the ball-handling pressure from Steph and that means we’ve been running more pick-and-roll than we were before. I love that Dennis is a two-way player, he’s great defensively, gets into the ball, the ability to put him on, like, Maxey tonight, for example, it’s a huge benefit for us. So offensively, it’s really about just finding our rhythm with him. It’s hard in the middle of the season for a guy to go to a new team and not much practice time, be thrown into the fire. So it just takes a little time to find a rhythm for him and for us. So we’re in that process and every time we do practice, we’re working on that kind of stuff.
03:30 Hey, Steve back here. You coached Joel this summer in Paris and, obviously, there’s a difference between scouting somebody, but then finally getting to coach them yourself. What, if anything, did you learn about his game, getting to be with him every day?
03:45 He’s just got the softest hands and incredible touch. And big guys aren’t supposed to have all of that. So I really enjoyed coaching Joel. He was a big part of the group’s sacrifice. We had 12 Hall-of-Famers, or at least 10 or 11, I can tell you that. And Tyrese (Haliburton) has some work to do, Derrick White has some work to do. I think the other guys are all going to the Hall of Fame now. So it was an incredibly talented group, but the only way it was going to work is if everyone sacrificed and embraced that not every night was going to be their night. And I thought Joel handled that really well. There was a game where he didn’t get in and the whole group just committed to each other and I thought his play against Serbia in the semis was the key to that game. We had to have that to win the gold medal. And he was there for us at the biggest moment. So he was brilliant and enjoyed coaching him. I’m looking forward to seeing him tonight.
05:00 Steve, kind of following up Anthony (Slater)’s question about the front-court rotation, you’ve had some stretches, effective stretches, with Draymond at the 5 and Jonathan at the 4. We talked to Draymond about that, I guess, after the Suns game about playing 5 more and his attitude was, or his response was, I came, he came into the season not wanting to play a bunch there, but you gotta do what works. And that was sort of his view of it. How much can he play the 5? How conscious do you have to be of the wear-and-tear on him?
05:31 Yeah, there’s a reason I’ve started him at the 4 all year last year. I think we started him at the 5 for the second half of the season and it’s tough on him, night after night. And you can imagine if we started him at the 5 tonight and he’s gotta guard Joel time after time down in the block. That takes so much out of him. So I like him at the 4, but we have to get JK with him at times. And to me, the only way to do that is to put them at the 4 and the 5 together. So we’ll do that periodically during games when we see opportunities to do so. But for the most part, I want to keep Draymond at the 4 as often as possible.
06:12 Steve back here again. Sorry to go back to Joel, but during the beginning of the season, he was obviously still dealing with the knee stuff and I’m just wondering when he was with you with Team USA, how cognizant did you guys have to be with that injury just because it was a little bit shorter of him coming off the surgery and just, was that something that you had to sort of deal with and keep a look out for day to day?
06:35 Yeah, our training staff managed that. He had his personal trainer on the trip as well. And we managed that together throughout the trip. But I thought it took him a week or so to really start to find rhythm. We showed up in Vegas and he was clearly not in rhythm. And then, within a couple of weeks, he started to find his groove offensively and looked like himself. So it took him some time, but he got there and then managed it well, throughout.
07:15 Even though Kyle hasn’t been playing, what does he add from a leadership standpoint?
07:19 Kyle is awesome. I mean, the last couple of games he hasn’t gotten in. He’s leading the charge on the bench, cheering, talking to guys, giving them advice, counsel. I think internal leadership is so important in this league and I couldn’t speak more highly of Kyle as a just a pro, as a teammate, as someone who I love to coach and I want to play him more. He’s a high-IQ player and I would love to play him more, but as we’ve talked about many times this year, this has been a tricky puzzle to put together. And so he’s been the odd man out a few times and it’s kind of where he is right now. But we also know that things change at the drop of a hat. He could find his way back into the rotation quickly.
08:10 You guys have, like, the worst field goal percentage for about a month —
08:14 Thank you.
08:15 For about a month running right now, as you I’m sure you’re trying to diagnose and correct on a, on a daily basis as you’re assessing it, how much is it do you feel, like, schematically needs to be shifted? How much is it just, like, some of these veterans need to hit shots that historically they’ve —
08:31 Yeah, it’s sort of a little bit of everything. Our defense has suffered the last 15 games. We’re near the bottom of the league in three-point field goal percentage allowed. And so that impacts our offense. It’s tougher to play offense when you’re taking the ball out of the net, when you’re demoralized. I thought the other night against Cleveland, we had a great first quarter. We’re up by one at the end of the quarter. If we’d made shots, we’re up 10 but we didn’t make shots. So now all of a sudden, they get on a little run. We’re down eight, nine points and there’s a sense that we’re a little demoralized, then the pace slows down. That affects our shooting when we’re playing in the half-court instead of playing faster. Our pace overall during this last stretch that you talked about is much slower than the first part of the season when we were shooting well, so I think it’s all tied together and sometimes when things go poorly and you’re losing games, it can weigh on you mentally. And I think that’s happened for sure.
🫶💙💛