Steve Kerr's Warriors decision isn't just about whether he still wants to coach Stephen Curry, Draymond Green

Kerr's contract is up and he and the team need to figure some things out

The Golden State Warriors have won four championships in Steve Kerr's 12 years as coach, but it's unclear if he'll return for Year 13. Kerr's contract is up, and he's been transparent about the need to have a discussion with team owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy before negotiating a new one.

"This is a really interesting situation, and I'm very respectful of the organization and their place in the universe right now," Kerr told The New Yorker. "And I know how this stuff works. Most coaching runs just last a certain amount of time, and then it's best for everybody to move forward. And what we have to figure out is whether now is that time, because what complicates it is we still have Steph and Draymond."

Stephen Curry is signed through the end of the 2026-27 season and eligible for an extension this summer. Draymond Green is in the same position, assuming the Warriors pick up his $27.7 million player option. In a two-hour Q&A with the New Yorker in Kerr's office shortly after he conducted exit interviews, he said that he is still "fulfilled" by the job and "excited to come to the gym" when he wakes up in the morning. He also said he doesn't want to "abandon" Curry and Green.

But that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be back.

"If Steph and Draymond were retiring this year, I think this would be an easy decision: we all go out together and the organization takes their new path," Kerr said. "But it's not that easy because I think Steph's going to play another couple of years and I think we can still do some good things together. But these are all conversations that will happen in the next week or two and we'll figure it out. And whatever happens, it's going to end well. I know that, because it's too important not to."

All of this jibes with what Kerr said 10 days ago. Following Golden State's play-in loss against the Phoenix Suns, Kerr told reporters that he, Lacob and Dunleavy would "come to a collaborative decision on what's next." He won't coach another NBA team next season, he said, but he acknowledged that the Warriors might need "new blood and new ideas and all that." 

Kerr, 60, is expected to discuss stylistic tweaks and staffing when he sits down with Lacob and Dunleavy, according to ESPN. He said he needed to step away for a week or two before having the conversation, which means it could happen in the coming days if it hasn't already. In the final week of the season, Kerr told ESPN that there was about a 50-50 chance that he'd stay. If he decides that he wants to, then the team will want him to sign a multiyear deal, as it is not interested in a one-year farewell tour, per ESPN.

The Athletic reported on April 18 that there was a strong likelihood that Kerr would stick around. Two days later, Green said on his podcast that, while he hopes Kerr will be back and he doesn't know what will happen, he thinks the Kerr era is over: "It just feels like that. It felt like that was it." On April 23, The Athletic reported that "optimism inside the organization about Kerr's return has faded in recent weeks" and "staffers have begun to brace themselves for the possibility of change."

Maybe Kerr is closer to a decision than he's letting on. Given the circumstances, though, I'm inclined to believe he's genuinely torn. And in the sense that he should only sign another contract if he and the higher-ups are on the same page, I'm inclined to believe that the decision will be made collaboratively. Going into the offseason, the coaching situation is one of many variables for Golden State. The team has pursued Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant and LeBron James at the past two trade deadlines and could revisit those ideas. If I were Kerr, I'd want to know how serious the front office is about adding reinforcements, especially given that Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody will be sidelined for a significant portion of next season.

More specifically, if I were Kerr, I'd want to know in what scenarios the team would consider parting with first-round draft picks in a trade. I'd also want to know how management envisioned things playing out with several players on the current roster: Can the Warriors bring back Kristaps Porziņģis on the cheap? What about Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton? Is extending Brandin Podziemski a priority?

Kerr didn't seek a contract extension last summer, and Lacob and Dunleavy have publicly taken the position that the ball is in his court. The reality, though, is not necessarily that simple. Kerr can simultaneously have been sincere about never leaving Curry and be uncomfortable signing a medium-term deal. If it's true that Lacob and Dunleavy want to hear from Kerr that he's committed to the franchise for reasons that go beyond nostalgia, as ESPN reported, then why shouldn't Kerr want to hear from them that they still believe that he's the right guy for the job for reasons that go beyond Curry wanting to continue playing for him? And if it's true that Kerr's comments on social issues have "at times caused internal frustration," as The Athletic put it, then why shouldn't he want some assurance from Lacob that he can continue to speak his mind?

Over the last dozen years, Kerr and the franchise have been through just about everything imaginable together. It's a bit weird that there's so little clarity about their partnership going forward, but it's not abnormal at all for the major stakeholders of a team with an aging core to reassess where the franchise is going after a 37-45 season. My read on Kerr's situation: He'd like to coach Curry until the future Hall of Famer hangs it up, but only if it feels right and only if he feels wanted.