Kerr: “It’s really up to Steph and Dray to continue this pattern”
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Here’s Steve Kerr, when asked about Draymond Green’s recent run of good play, which Kerr pointed out tallied 19 assists with only 2 turnovers over the last two games:
He’s just making solid decisions and not trying to do anything too much. We have good spacing. Steph, same thing. He had one turnover tonight, so when those two guys in particular are just making simple decisions, they’re still able to create plenty of offense for us without taking risks that turn into threes and dunks at the other end. It’s up to those two guys. Jimmy always takes care of the ball and it’s really up to Steph and Dray to continue this pattern of allowing us to win games just through our execution and our defense.
To the diehards of our Watch Party livestreams, this comes as music to our ears and yet we wonder: What took so long?
It seems like for the past couple years we’ve been lamenting every “TTBTTOT” (an acronym for a turnover of the “Throwing The Ball To The Other Team” variety, pronounced “tee-bee-tot”).
“Uh oh, the bakery is open,” is a familiar refrain from our regulars in the chat like Bruce or Pinky — referring to the food version of the word “turnover”, of which the flavor of apple is common, for example — whenever there’s two consecutive give-aways as we watch the Warriors play.
And largely these turnovers have been committed by one Wardell Stephen Curry and Green.
By the way, we’ve noticed Steve taking more timeouts when these happen. I distinctly remember this was not the case when Klay Thompson was still on the team, but it’s understandable why.
The narrative coming from the Golden State locker room has evolved. It started with Kerr saying the two are a bit “wild”, which even Draymond admitted on his podcast about a month ago when he said Steph’s best play is when he loses the ball, then picks it up and splashes a three.
That, of course, is pretty much understood these days as a key element of the so-called “organized chaos”, although we should also credit the beautiful two-man game consisting of pick-and-rolls mixed in with perfectly timed drop-passes by Dray.
And then just last week, Steve said on the podium that he doesn’t even mention turnovers anymore, a few weeks after declaring with statistical win-loss proof at the 20-game mark, that they are only victorious when they tally fewer turnovers than opposition, and vice-versa.
And now, we’re getting a second wind of Kerr referencing OKC and the Spurs as unrealistic reaches, that the Warriors had to dial expectations back as just having a shot in the postseason tournament. All of this to re-emphasize the need to drastically reduce the turnover count.
And so I — we, on the livestreams — wonder what took so long to get here.
I’ll chalk it up to the brutal schedule early this season, which have a deeper effect on older vets, the injuries and then the illness Curry had, as well as the slow returns of De’Anthony Melton and Al Horford, both of whom can be envisioned as starters in a playoff series.
And so through all the ridiculous social media narratives and hate of guys like Brandin Podziemski and Jonathan Kuminga during this time — oh, and Steve himself, per usual and no doubt — it was Steph and Dray all along.
For Kerr to be saying this on the podium and his weekly interview on 95.7 The Game, that means he finally has complete buy-in from Steph and Dray. Steve now has that unspoken license to tell the world, which actually benefits the team anyways — less pressure from outside forces.
Isn’t this also proof that social media loves to bully particularly weakened targets?
I hope you get a chance to join our livestreams. I really can’t take credit for the groupthink that almost always ends up right. We know our team well. Really well. We take a thought, expound on it, look at it through different prisms, and we stay high-vibrational. It’s an awesome way to be a fan of the Warriors and it redefines fandom. Think Brussels, Einstein, Bohr. Think Agora, Plato, Socrates.
Aside from Bruce and Pinky, it’s Dean “of Positivity” Chambers — who was so erudite and thoughtful that I eventually brought him on the lives and he’s shared the screen with guys like Coach Nick of BBALLBREAKDOWN (in the Love Your Dubs Summit earlier) — Kimbo, Sister Agnes, Dean A., Cholo, Norberto, Robby, Amy, Nicky, the list goes on and on and I apologize in advance; I know for sure I forgot someone.
And yet, the GSW roster in its present form still seems too small, especially now with Kuminga mothballed.
But that’s another topic which I will come back to a lot on here and especially on our YouTube channel coming up, starting here:
All transcripts from Bucks-Warriors are below, including multiple references told moms, spurred by Kerr in pregame (no transcripts for those) and follow-up by the wonderfully effervescent Nick Friedell of The Athletic on the “mom” stuff.
I don’t have that article handy, but be sure to check out our Discord server for the real daily pipeline of Dubs content. The VIP version, to which a link appears not uncommonly in the free version, has bonus features like an instant real-time feed separated by both Warriors breaking news as well as the entire NBA.
The VIP version also has everything searchable by keyword and you can immediately jump to all videos — kind of a nice feature on any given night because of our real-time feeds from reporters who have a penchant for posting videos from the NBA arena they’re reporting from.
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PAID SUBSCRIBERS: Scroll all the way down past the last transcript to see what Mary Babers said to me the other night when it turned out I was the first one to let her know what Dray said on the podium! 😂
00:00 One of the comments Steph made tonight is he feels like the focus is really good, just collectively right now. I’m just curious, do you agree and where are you seeing that?
00:11 DRAYMOND GREEN, POSTGAME MIL-GSW: Yeah, I definitely agree. You’re just starting to see it on both ends. We’re starting to connect the game. Our turnovers are starting to be a thing, a good thing, not necessarily a bad thing. A good thing. We’re rebounding the ball pretty well, so just, those are focus things. You give up box outs, you turn the ball over, careless passes, those are all focus things and I think we’re doing a much better job of focusing on the task at hand, understanding the game plan, and executing it.
00:47 Steve also said you felt you specifically had been part of that. How much more focused did you feel, maybe necessarily, than you were?
00:55 I feel — just taking less chances. Coach came to me. It was just like, yo, we’re gonna keep putting the ball in your hand. You have a responsibility to take care of it and we’re not the team that we used to be where you could take those chances. The league has changed. Teams feast off those turnovers and so we just try to take less chances than I was taking. And I heard it, took it to heart, but overall, just trying to focus in on everything, not just the turnovers, just myself, this team, what’s going well, what’s not going well, trying to figure out things to be the player that I can be for this team, the leader that I can be for this team. It’s definitely a concerted effort.
01:43 Draymond, you and Steph and Jimmy have all kind of talked up your teammates for most of the season that they can be good for you guys. When you get a night like tonight where Melt comes through and Al comes through, what does that mean to have those two guys step up and maybe any of those guys on a random night?
02:00 Those two guys in particular have been out and those are two guys that connects our lineups. And so with Al missing the amount of games that he’s missed, but then also being on the restrictions that he was on, excuse me, Melt, 25 minutes tonight, starting to see that climb. He’s starting to get his legs underneath him. Gui Santos was huge, by the way. He had two points again and dominating games with his effort and his brain, it’s been huge. So it’s always great to have those guys stepping up because, like we’ve said all year, we need those guys to win. It’s not just gonna be an effort of us three doing it and that’s the answer. That’s never been the answer. When you look at teams that think that’s the answer, they’ve been wrong every time. We depend on our guys. We trust our guys and they’ve been coming through.
02:59 Draymond, how much personal pride in Year 14 do you still take in these kind of matchups against someone like Giannis?
03:03 I take a lot of pride in them because it’s an honor. It’s an honor to play against great players in this league. Giannis is one of the all-time greats in this league and at my position. And so anytime you have the opportunity for myself, I love that challenge. Sometimes you gonna get absolutely annihilated and it’s okay. Sometimes I’ll get the better of him. Sometimes he’ll get the better of me, but most importantly there’s a respect. There’s an appreciation for the competition that’s brought to the floor, so it’s an honor. I don’t take those matchups lightly. I don’t — I’m in 14th year. I don’t think I’m at the end, but you never know when this thing change or when that’s it. And so anytime I get an opportunity to match up against the greats like Giannis, it’s always an honor and I cherish the opportunities.
04:06 Draymond, following up Monte (Poole)’s question, specifically on Melt, you mentioned connecting the game, but even last year when he only played a handful of games with you, it seemed like you guys knew he fit with the way you played.
04:19 1000%.
04:20 Why? What about his game meshes with--
04:23 He’s a secondary ball-handler, which is great for us. He is a point of attack defender, just understands the game. He’s always in the right spot. He obviously can knock the shots down. The shots haven’t been going early as he’s been working his way back and getting his legs underneath him and you’re starting to see now he got his legs back, you see the — he can have somebody at the top of the key and just blew by him and got a layup today, right? You’re starting to see him look like Melt. When you’ve done it as many times as we’ve done it, you know what it looks like, so you can see right away. Last year, what did he play, five games? What was it last year? Two years ago? Last — two years ago. Last year? Jesus. Whew. God. Six games? And you could see it right then, just the way things worked when he was on the floor. And then on the flip side, when he went out, we went to shit, so you can see it. Sorry NBA, I’m just honest, sorry.
05:33 We appreciate that. Draymond, going back to your defense, obviously in the last 10 years or even all-time, you’re one of the greatest defenders--
05:41 Thank you.
05:41 But talking about right now, do you still feel you’re one of the Top 10 in the league at defending?
05:47 I think that’d be an understatement. Top 10 seems a little low, but the Top 10 gets me on an All-Defensive Team, so I’ll take that. But yeah, I think I can still compete at the highest of levels, I believe. I think my knowledge and understanding of the game helps me out quite a bit. I can be a step ahead of guys most of the time, so yeah, Top Five, one, two, maybe three or two, possibly one. No, I’m just playing.
06:31 Draymond, Steve was saying before the game, his mom was really upset with him after getting tossed the other night. When — what moment in your basketball career has your mom been the most upset with you when you are focused?
06:55 “No one can beat us,” she text me today. She text me Monday, “Remember what you love and stop abusing it.” She texted me Saturday, “Have a great game. Stay focused, love you.” And then as I got ejected, she texted me, “What happened?” And I text back, “No response.” So it’s still a common thing, every game she’s on me about not getting thrown outta games and being locked in and focused and bringing what I can bring to the basketball court without all the nonsense. So I get it. I’m happy she got at Steve. That’s great.
07:42 Is there one you remember through the years more than any other?
07:46 No, because my mom’s pretty intense. She’s — have you ever seen her on the Internet? She can be a lot. Like, she told me the other day, we need to have a heart-to-heart. I’ve been avoiding her ever since, so — I get it. I am very much so still afraid of my mom. I don’t know if that’ll ever change. I’m still ducking that heart-to-heart. I’m trying to play a few more good games before we have it. Then the conversation might change a little bit. I’m terrified of my mom, still to this day.
08:34 We — based on that last conversation about Top 10 defensive player, we’ve talked a little bit in the past about how much more goes into defense than statistics, but what defensive statistics do you like?
08:49 If I’m honest with you, I don’t really know many of them. I know I don’t get off into them. I kind of judge off the eye test because numbers, we got a lot of numbers in this league. Some of them can be a bit deceiving. Some of the worst defenders in history led to league in steals. It’s just the nature of the game that we play, so I don’t know many of the defensive statistics because I just don’t really get off into them. I know who’s a good defender. I know who’s a bad defender. I know how to exploit a defender. I know we should probably get that guy outta this action, but I don’t really — I don’t — the stats just don’t always tell the story, so I don’t get caught up in them. I watch and you could have a guy who’s off the charts in the stats and Steph like, “Yo, we gonna put this dude in every action, right?” And exploit it and, “Yo, but this dude off the charts on these stats,” and so I don’t really get off into them and I don’t know many of them, other than my good old eye.
00:00 STEVE KERR, POSTGAME MIL-GSW: Thank you, yeah.
00:02 Steve, how much did Al’s presence mean to you? He did a little bit of everything and just how important was that in this game?
00:10 It was great. Al was great. It’s — we’re starting to get to the point where we’ve been able to bump his minutes up and he looks healthy, feeling good, so to play him 19 minutes tonight gave us a really good rotation and yeah, he was terrific. He did everything, rebounded, passed, blocked a couple shots. Fun to watch Al play.
00:36 Steve, what did you think of the way your bench, specifically Al and Melt, did tonight?
00:41 Yeah, I thought they were both great. The bench came in, did a really good job. Coach Stackhouse made a couple good adjustments defensively in that first half, which helped us change the game a little bit and those guys defensively were really good, so yeah, it was a good, solid game. We handled the ball well and competed and got it done.
01:06 Steph, he was praising Melton earlier and called him kind of your prototypical starting two-guard. He’s up to 25 minutes tonight. I’m not necessarily expecting lineup announcements, but do you think he’s to the point he can start to play starting type minutes?
01:25 He’s been out basically for the most part of two years, so we’re gonna keep doing what we’re doing, bring him off the bench, keep his minutes climbing. As soon as Rick (Celebrini) tells me he can play 30 minutes, then there’s gonna be nights where he plays 30 minutes. He’s a hell of a player and so obviously I like our starting lineup right now. We’re in a good groove. We’re playing pretty well, overall. We’re solid and Melt gives us a great option off the bench and, as you’ve seen, he’s closed most of the games here the last couple weeks.
01:58 Steve, what led to tonight being such a better shooting night with the efficiency?
02:04 I don’t know. Sometimes the ball goes in, sometimes it doesn’t. There’s — it’s a cliche, but it’s true. It’s just, yeah, we got good shots the other night. We got good shots tonight. They went in.
02:22 Steve, you said Stack helped you make some adjustments. What if you — what were some of those adjustments there?
02:27 I’m not gonna tell.
02:29 Can you give us at least a little clue?
02:30 We don’t give those secrets away, yeah.
02:32 All right, yeah.
02:34 Hey Steve, to your right. We talked a little bit before the game about this eight-game home stand and the opportunity it presents. How big is it to get this first one, especially — I know you guys were frustrated after the Clippers game. How big is it to just start this thing with a win?
02:48 Yeah, very important. Eight straight at home. The schedule is finally turning for us in our direction and so we want to take advantage of it and have a great home stand and make a push and get some separation from that .500 mark that we’ve been hovering around all year.
03:08 What are you seeing with regards to the ball security the last couple games, turnovers being down?
03:12 There’s great decision making. Draymond, I think, the last two games, I wanna say 19 turn — 19 assists and two turnovers. He’s just making solid decisions and not trying to do anything too much. We have good spacing. Steph, same thing. He had one turnover tonight, so when those two guys in particular are just making simple decisions, they’re still able to create plenty of offense for us without taking risks that turn into threes and dunks at the other end. It’s up to those two guys. Jimmy always takes care of the ball and it’s really up to Steph and Dray to continue this pattern of allowing us to win games just through our execution and our defense.
04:07 On it being a make-or-miss league from three, you guys take more threes than anyone in the league. I think you’re at 15th in percentage, overall. How would you evaluate the shot profile, the shot quality that you guys have gotten this year and do you think that percentage could have some positive regression?
04:24 I do think — I think positive regression is an oxymoron, is it not? I believe it’s called progressive progression, maybe. I don’t know. I do think that our shooting will improve because we have good shooters. Like, Melt’s a perfect example. Tonight he goes 5-for-9. He’s finally getting into the groove after coming off the injury. Al, same thing. So I believe we’re a much better shooting team than we’ve shown this year, so far. And if we can stay healthy and keep this rhythm going, then I think those numbers will go up, but I like the shots we’re getting. I think what we’re doing makes sense. We’re playing through Jimmy and Steph, which we’re always gonna do and those two guys create a lot of shots for people. And I have a lot of faith that we’ll continue to get better.
05:12 I guess to follow on that, Moses with three threes tonight. Just what have you seen from him in the last few weeks? I know that the shot has been down a little bit, but what have you seen just in general within the last few weeks?
05:22 What I love about Moses is he’s the same guy every day, comes to work, puts in the work, and he doesn’t get too high, too low and he understands that over 82 games, there’s spells in the season where shots don’t go and you lose your rhythm a little bit and you don’t panic. You just keep shooting and that’s what Moses does. He’s a real pro. And he’s one of — he belongs in that category, too, with Melt and Al. I have no doubt that Mo will find his groove as well.
05:54 Steph said he likes the focus everybody’s coming with right now. Would you agree?
06:00 Yeah, totally agree. I think we’ve won 7 out of 10 and there are a couple in there that we very easily could have won. It just feels like we’re much more consistent now and solid than we were earlier. It felt like we were up and down quite a bit. I like the focus. I thought Draymond’s energy has been so good the last couple games and, obviously, all the stuff that happened a couple weeks ago, he’s in a great place. I just think our team is settling in and ready for a move. Thanks.
—
06:39 You’ve had so many matchups with Giannis with the Bucks over the years. How much do you get up for a game like this?
06:48 AL HORFORD: They’re always exciting, just fun. He’s obviously one of the best players of our game for a lot of years and any anytime you get to compete with the top guys, always special.
07:02 What is your comfortability level at this point physically and then also just acclimating yourself with the team?
07:10 It continues to get better. I’m still just finding myself and, most importantly, I’m feeling healthy again, which is good. And hopefully I’ll be able to continue to play more and more.
07:31 Al, tonight you came off the bench and danced along the stat sheet there. Is a game like this more like what you expected when you came to this team?
07:42 My impact, I feel like it’s on anything that I have to do with winning and making winning plays. And whether it’s rebounding, whether it’s assists, obviously I know I can shoot the ball, so being able to be a floor spacer for the group and shoot, so just impacting in different ways, but this was a game that a lot of it that came together which was nice. And for me, it’s how do I continue to have this type of games moving forward to help our team?
08:17 You saw Melt get off, go off tonight and get 22 points. He’s been looking for his shot, but he seems like he’s found it a little bit. What was it like to see him?
08:25 Yeah, it was just good for him shooting it with confidence and, even after a couple misses, he was right there shooting it again and being aggressive and getting to his spots when he needed to. Defensively, he brings a lot to us as well. It was just nice to see him break out and do his thing.
08:44 What have you noticed procedurally that’s working offensively the last X amount of games? I think you said you guys are 7-3 in the last 10. What’s working procedurally on offense?
08:56 I feel like it has to do with we’re turning the ball over less, which that’s the first thing there. And I think that has to do with our spacing is much better and we’re getting to — we’re getting organized quicker. I feel when we get in trouble is when we don’t — we’re playing fast and we don’t know what to do and we don’t get to our positions and things like that. And I feel like our guys are doing a better job of getting to space as quickly and that way we can operate and move it a little bit. So I think that has a lot to do with that, the spacing and getting organized.
09:34 Hi, Al. Steve praised Draymond’s focus since that rough stretch of a few games and Steph also talked about the focus of the group. What do you observe both with Draymond and the whole unit in terms of just everybody being on the same page?
09:53 Yeah, you could definitely — Draymond does so much for the team and the ball’s in his hands a lot and he’s making passes that are very difficult passes, in reading the game in real time and really fast. And there’s a lot that goes into that and I just think that when Coach is saying that it’s just for him to have a little bit more of awareness of making sure that he takes care of the ball. And he addressed it and he’s doing a better job with that, but also I think we’re helping him, too, with my point is, guys are getting to space and it’s not all so clogged up and everything.
10:33 You mentioned earlier finally feeling healthy, getting a rhythm. How difficult was the injury issue you went through?
10:40 Just very challenging because when you have a soft tissue or there’s other aches and things going on, you can kinda. work through that, but the nerve thing, it’s very tricky. I’ve never experienced that before and just it was challenging. It was challenging. And now the fact that we’ve worked really hard, our performance group has worked really hard to get me to this position, and now I’m able to play more minutes and feel very confident with my body. So I’m just very happy with that.
11:21 How did you — how did it start affecting you? How’d you, I guess, start to feel the nerve issue?
11:29 It was — it’s been a while now, but it was — can’t recall the game — but it was in November, I think it was 22nd, so somewhere around there. But that’s when I initially had the injury and then against Philadelphia, I still didn’t feel quite right and then I aggravated it again and that’s when the performance staff was like, “Hey, we have to make sure that we’re careful and we take care of this.” I stuck with that plan and we’re getting really good results.
00:00 How much, if at all, did the matchup earlier this year in Milwaukee play into the way you guys played tonight?
00:11 STEPH CURRY, POSTGAME MIL-GSW: Not much because Giannis didn’t play, but just the sense of urgency on early in the game, getting to their shooters and just trying to make it tough with them. Obviously, Ryan (Rollins) had a great game last time Giannis was out and dominated the whole game, but it was more the recipe for how we’re supposed to win games compared to the Clipper game. We made more shots, but it was the same kind of vibe, good defense, low turnovers, trying to keep them off the offensive glass. And you’d hope that would add up to a win.
00:48 You made a ton more shots this game than against the Clippers. I think you’re like league average three pointers, as a team this year. Do you feel like you’re better than that?
01:00 You’re only as good as the shots that go in. I’d to have the confidence and the belief that we are, but it’s trying to create good shots, consistent good looks for good shooters. You stick with that, you’d hope that would build over the course of a stretch of games, but I’d like to have the belief. Yeah, but you got to go knock down shots.
01:22 Steph, how welcome was it to see Melton go off for 22 and for what Al gave you guys off the bench?
01:30 Yeah, those two guys weren’t available much or at all early in the year and they’re both trying to find their legs, their rhythm. And you, but you can see how much of a difference they can make off the bench. And I think those two guys like surrounding Jimmy with those two and you pick the next two, like it’s a good recipe for shooting, high IQ guys and then defensively, they both know what to do on that end.
02:03 How much have you like mapped out this eight game home stand, looked at it in its full capacity? Are you just trying to go one game at a time?
02:11 I’m gonna be real with you. I don’t even know who we play next.
02:14 Kings on Friday.
02:15 Yeah, I had no — I honestly have no clue. We had a rough flight back from LA and that whole situation, so all energy was just trying to get through to tonight, but I know we played pretty much every other day. But the opponents, I really, I would’ve failed that quiz.
02:33 How rough was the fight you guys got in the air too and had to turn around, right?
02:36 Yeah. We got home safe, so nobody’s really complaining about it, but it was not ideal down there. And on the way back.
02:47 Steph, that’s two games in a row now where you guys have had under double digit turnovers. I was wondering what has been the biggest difference these last two games when it comes to keeping those turnovers low?
03:00 I think everybody individually would have to speak to what their focus is. I think for me and Draymond, especially with the way that we play, it’s just being sure about your passes and we’re gonna take some risks. I’m gonna throw a behind the back pass. I’m gonna throw a full court pass, but it’s throughout the meat of the game. It’s trying to just play under control and just as Coach Kerr would say, hit singles, let everything work itself out with good decision making, fundamental basketball mixed with our tendency to have a little chaos.
03:42 Steph, it felt like towards the end there, that last shot had a chance to do a celebration we haven’t seen in a while. The Night-night. Do you feel like that’s a sign that maybe some funds beginning to return to a stretch of the season where you guys are starting to put together a good stretch of basketball?
04:00 You want to. The more you win, the more everybody feels good. The more momentum you pick up, the vibes are immaculate, as they say. Draymond actually hit me with it before I even had a chance to, so I was just shadowing him, but yeah, you want to feel good about yourself and sometimes you might have to force it a little bit, get yourself going, make sure you’re having fun through some of the ups and downs that we’ve had this year.
04:26 Steph, following up the earlier question on De’Anthony, why is he such a good fit here? Obviously he’s a good player, but last year, even in the short small sample size, you and Steve and others were pretty emphatic that he made sense on this team. What about his game sort of meshes do you think, with the way you play?
04:47 He’s just versatile. Defensively he can guard on the ball point of attack. He plays passing lanes. He’s just smart, quick on his feet and got a crazy wingspan that can just, he can be a pest out there. And then offensively, he’s a solid knockdown shooter, catch and shoot, but he’s one of the few that has a pace to him when he puts the ball on the floor that he can create something. I think he got to the lane, had a nice little wide finish and in the paint tonight off of the four or five dribble sequence. And then he bailed us out of a possession in the fourth quarter with just creating some out of nothing. And his confidence is a — he knows he belongs, he’s a prototypical starting two guard. And he’s played on good teams, so he knows what that level is like and I’m happy that he is healthy and able to do it for us.
05:47 Hey Steph, right here please. Draymond popped up on the injury report with a sprained ankle. He was questionable, but it looked like he really wanted this Giannis matchup and he said afterward he doesn’t know how many more of these matchups he has. He wants to relish that. How do you see Draymond thinking about the time he has left and if that’s something you identify with too?
06:05 Yeah, it’s little things like that get you motivated. I know me, him and Jimmy have had conversations just about how much fun we still have playing at this level, chasing something meaningful. And whether it’s an individual matchup or a big game or like trying to pull yourself out of a period of averageness that we’re in right now, that’s what keeps us going. Draymond’s tough. He’s a dog. For him in a regular season type of situation with a guy like Giannis on the other side to show up the way he did, is unbelievable. It’s the heart of a champion, for lack of a better term.
06:49 Steph, Steve was saying before the game that his mom was really upset with him for the explosion the other night. I’m curious, in your career has your mom ever been really mad at something you have said or done on the floor?
07:05 100%. And then after the game that’s a hard phone call to pick up. You want to just ignore it, but you know you because you know what’s coming, for sure. So that’s what moms do, keep you honest.
07:17 What, when was she most upset in your pro career?
07:27 Probably the Houston series 2018 WCF) in the playoffs. I did the “This is my (f-ing) house” right into the camera, too. No plausible deniability there at all. At all.
07:44 Hey Steph, to your right. So this was the first of an eight game home stand, like we mentioned. How big was it to bounce back from a tough game Monday, get this one, and how big an opportunity is this eight game home stand? You guys have played well here just to get some momentum going.
08:02 Not trying to put it lightly. I mean it is huge, considering how the first 20 or so games were. There were crazy road heavy. We were all over the place, the density of games and the amount of travel and all that. Now you’re able to make up for that with this home stand. The temptation is to relax or just show up and just because you’re at home feeling like you’re gonna get a win, but thankfully we should be mature enough to know that we’re in this position because we haven’t shown a level of consistency and our record reflects that. So we can do something about it with this stretch of games and just take it one game at a time and do what we need to do.
08:47 Steph, to follow up Nick, Steve said his 91-year-old mother actually thought he was gonna hit the ref. Do you think it’s good that she’s still on him and did you think he, that was one of the more fired up times you’ve seen it?
09:02 Oh no. I’ve seen worse, for sure. I couldn’t tell you exactly when, but I know it’s been worse, but that’s a good mother son relationship that she’s watching every game and locked in cares as much as he does to, to call him out on it too. But we needed that fire. Mrs. Kerr, we forgive him, for sure.
09:28 Last one, Anthony (Slater).
09:30 Yeah. You mentioned earlier when talking about Draymond, you guys as a team collectively trying to pull yourself out of averageness. I’m just curious how you see his game right now in him, maybe trying to pull himself a little bit out of what was a rut in December.
09:45 Yeah, had two big threes in the fourth quarter. He took the Giannis matchup personally and matched his minutes up pretty much down the line. And then, I think the last two games, we lost one, won one, but maybe the game before that, I think he’s had three turnovers maybe combined or something like that, and his play making has been at the level that we know it can be. So just like I said, whatever the motivation is, whatever you can key in on to get through, not only because our record is what it is, but this time of year it’s always a little bit harder than others. It’s no man’s land in the season. And so we’re trying to understand, to the point of this home game, home stand and what opportunity we have in front of us. Everybody’s showing up with a level of focus that I like and we’re playing well. Just gotta keep it going.
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