Warriors Coach Steve Kerr Believes Draymond Green-Jordan Poole Fight Damaged Their Season

According to Steve Kerr, Draymond Green’s violent altercation with Jordan Poole seriously hurt the Warriors’ season since the practice punch “broke trust” and “compromised things.”

Warriors Coach Steve Kerr Believes Draymond Green-Jordan Poole Fight Damaged Their Season

The head coach of Golden State was honest with the media during the team’s departure interviews on Tuesday, and he thought that the team’s lack of cohesion following the brawl in October had made the season difficult for everyone.

“There’s no hiding from it — the incident with Draymond and Jordan at the beginning of the year played a role in that,” Kerr said. “It’s hard for that not to impact a team….Anytime some trust is lost, then it makes the process much more difficult, and there was some trust lost.” However, Kerr also said that the team was not a contender without Green, who is facing a player option year.

Despite what happened at the start of the season, Kerr believes Green, who has a $27 million player option for next year, is essential to the team’s success going ahead. The 4-time champion would need to improve his relationships with the other players, but Kerr still wants Green back.

Since being chosen in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft, Greene has spent nine seasons with Golden State.

“Look, if Draymond is not back, we’re not a championship contender,” Kerr said who hasn’t spoken to the volatile forward since the season ended, but expects to soon. “We know that. He’s that important to winning and to who we are. I absolutely want him back.”

“He knows that he also compromised things by what happened back in October,” Kerr added. “So part of him coming back next year has to be about rebuilding some of that trust and respect that he’s earned here for a long period of time.”

During Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, Green discussed his fall from grace with the club following the altercation with Poole with Stephen A. Smith. “We’re not playing right now because when you speak about the fouling, when you think about all of the slippage that we had as a team on the road, not being able to come together,” Green said.

However, he continued, taking personal responsibility. “None of those things happen if that doesn’t happen, because the voice that I am and the departments that I lead this team in, there was a ton of slippage due to me sitting back, me not saying anything, me trying to allow that situation to play itself out and give it time  to heal.”

 

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