Kerr calls questions about Steph’s leadership ‘absolutely ridiculous’ originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Steve Kerr isn’t entertaining any notions that put Steph Curry’s leadership capabilities into question.
Following Draymond Green’s first-quarter ejection in the Warriors’ 101-93 win over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday, ESPN’s Jay Williams claimed he received text messages from “high-level people” in the NBA who were casting doubts about Curry’s leadership after his teammate’s latest on-court incident.
During an interview with 95.7 The Game’s “Willard & Dibs” on Thursday, Kerr immediately wrote off any comments about Curry’s leadership, explaining that the star point guard did just about everything in his power to remedy the situation before Green deservedly got tossed from Wednesday’s contest.
“Draymond is a grown man; he knows he has to handle his business. Any mention of Steph being culpable is just ridiculous,” Kerr explained. “The way Steph has carried our franchise, represented our franchise for 15 years, it’s absolutely ridiculous. He was the first one out there, you saw it. He was the first one out there trying to talk Draymond off, and handled it the right way. The reason Draymond got kicked out is because as he was walking back to the bench he muttered an expletive that the refs heard and so he deserved it. But that’s not Steph’s fault, that’s Draymond’s fault and Steph was trying to do everything he could to get him [Green] out of there.”
On Thursday, Green effectively echoed Kerr’s comments, taking ownership of his ejection while speaking about the incident on his podcast, “The Draymond Green Show.”
“It just can’t happen,” Green shared. “I said what I said. I deserved to be kicked out at that point. If I’m all the way honest with y’all, kind of was trying to turn my body and angle it to go to the bench, but I said what I said a little too soon before angling my body. … But, yeah, it just can’t happen.”
Wednesday’s ejection was Green’s fourth of the 2023-24 NBA season, adding to a list of incidents that included an indefinite suspension for striking Suns center Jusuf Nurkić in the head in a December clash with Phoenix.
Curry and Green have been teammates for 12 seasons, with Kerr serving as the coach for 10 of them. The trio have won at the highest level, logging four NBA titles and six Finals appearances in what will go down as one of the greatest dynasties the league has ever seen.
The Warriors have struggled mightily without Green on the floor this season, posting an 11-24 record when the All-NBA forward doesn’t suit up, further highlighting how vital his availability is if Golden State is to make a run with the playoffs right around the corner.
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