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Warriors Notes: Kerr, Dunleavy, Lottery Pick, Roster
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Steve Kerr wasn’t happy with the job he did as head coach of the Warriors last season, writes Anthony Slater of ESPN.com. Kerr spoke to the media on Friday for the first time since he decided to return to the organization on a new two-year contract.
“I know I have to be better,” Kerr said. “I didn’t have a great coaching year.”
Still, Kerr made it clear he was excited to be back in role he’s held for the past 12 years, according to Josh Dubow of The Associated Press.
“I still love what I do,” Kerr said Friday. “If I were tired and burned out, then I would not be doing this. But I love my job, I love coaching the Warriors, being in this city, being in the Bay.”
Mike Dunleavy Jr. also took questions on Friday, calling Golden State’s 2025/26 season “pretty underwhelming” after the team went just 37-45 and missed the playoffs, Slater writes. Both Dunleavy and Kerr highlighted cutting down on turnovers as a key improvement area for next season.
“We got a little too loose,” Kerr said. “Literally loose with the ball. But because of our age, because of our injuries, we spent a lot of time resting. So I’ve got to tighten the ship up next year.”
Here’s more on the Warriors:

Dunleavy said the Warriors will consider every option at their disposal with the 11th overall pick in June’s draft, but barring an unexpected blockbuster trade, Slater hears from team sources that Golden State would prefer to add a young player with that selection to bolster an aging roster. Slater’s colleague Marc J. Spears reported similarly this week on NBA Today (Twitter video link). “Totally,” Kerr said when asked if he’d be committed to playing a rookie. “I’ve talked to Mike. I don’t know the draft, but he feels really strongly we’re going to get a good player. It could be a 19-year-old and it could be someone older. … That guy has to play. He’s got to earn it. But we’re committed to the development of our young players.”
Kerr discussed why he decided to return as coach and what led to the decision, citing a conversation with his wife Margot as playing a critical role. He also talked about his conversations with Dunleavy and owner Joe Lacob regarding the state of the roster and the desire to be competitive while acknowledging the current team isn’t capable of competing for championships. “The idea is let’s see how good we can be next year,” Kerr said, per Dubow. “We think we can still be good. We have to get some guys back from injury. We have to make some moves. I have to do some things. Let’s run it back and see how good we can be. I think we’re all excited about that.”
Although Kerr suggested the roster needed some tweaks, particularly adding “younger legs” and players who can suit up for both ends of back-to-backs, Dunleavy didn’t sound as though he plans to make major changes this summer, according to Slater. “This isn’t about the roster frankly,” Dunleavy said. “This year, I don’t think we came up short because of the talent on the roster. It was injuries and things we can control. Do we need to get better rosterwise? I think so. But we didn’t get to a point where we played a team that the roster was better than ours.”



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Warriors Notes: Giannis, 11th Pick, Prospects, Kerr
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The Warriors should — and almost certainly will — be among the suitors for Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, but if they’re unable to pull off a deal, it doesn’t mean the pursuit was a failure, argues Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area.
The possibility of trading for Antetokounmpo now carries much more risk than it would’ve several years ago, when the team first viewed the two-time MVP as its “holy grail,” Poole writes. The Warriors’ best current offer — centered around draft picks but not much in the way of young players — could also theoretically be topped by several rival teams, Poole observes.
Still, Poole thinks it’s the right call to trade for the 31-year-old star, assuming he’s open to the idea and Golden State can convince Milwaukee’s front office to get on board. He just doesn’t view that outcome as likely.
Here’s more on the Warriors:

Assistant general manager Larry Harris expressed optimism before the draft lottery that the Warriors would select a prospect they like if they stayed at the 11th pick, which would up happening, Poole writes in another story. “I’ve heard the noise,” Harris said when asked about the top-four prospects being in their own tier. “Certainly, there’s four players that everybody seems to talk about when I look at all the mock drafts and everything. But the way we look at it is we really believe it’s beyond 11. But up to 11, we feel really, really, really good about whatever player lands in our lap.”
Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area lists five “very different” prospects the Warriors could target at No. 11, including Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg and his college teammate Aday Mara. Johnson also weighs the pros and cons of each prospect, particularly from Golden State’s perspective.
Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic isn’t surprised that Steve Kerr signed a two-year deal to stay the Warriors’ head coach and views Kerr as the fitting person to guide the rest of Stephen Curry‘s career. While he acknowledges Kerr will have to evolve his way of thinking in some respects, Thompson also believes Kerr has earned an enormous amount of respect and trust over the course of his long career and is definitely the right coach if the Warriors end up acquiring another star player.



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Stein’s Latest: Mosley, Nuggets, Bulls, Mavs, Kerr
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The job security of Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley has been one of the bigger points of speculation around the league for some time, and it remains widely expected that he will take the blame for Orlando’s first-round exit, writes Marc Stein in a recent edition of The Stein Line (subscriber link).
In terms of who would take over should Mosley be let go, Stein notes that there have been rumors about Billy Donovan taking the job, which he was first offered in 2007, since before he left the Bulls. Another name of interest for Orlando is Michigan head coach Dusty May, though Stein notes that the expectation is that May will remain with Michigan after winning the national championship this year.
As far as the current coach’s future is concerned, Stein cites a previous report from Jake Fischer about the Pelicans‘ ongoing interest in bringing Mosley into the fold.
We have more league-wide news from Stein:

The Nuggets will have to look in the mirror and figure out what comes next after losing in Round 1. Stein reports that head coach David Adelman‘s job is expected to be safe, but adds that Denver is rumored to be open to any trade possibilities that would improve the athleticism and defense around star Nikola Jokic.
The Bulls are close to reaching their decision regarding their head of basketball operations search, and while many people believe the Timberwolves’ Matt Lloyd is the frontrunner, Dennis Lindsey (Detroit), Bryson Graham (Atlanta), and Dave Lewin (Boston) are all finalists for the position.
As the Mavericks look to find their long-term head of operations, owner Patrick Dumont is hoping to hire the splashiest name possible in an attempt to put Nico Harrison’s tenure firmly in the rearview mirror, Stein reports. It appears unlikely that the Mavs will get to interview their top choice, the Wolves’ Tim Connelly, or their second choice, Bob Myers. Stein muses about the level of unavailability that Connelly truly is, and whether his future contract extension talks will come into play. Former owner Mark Cuban has endorsed Detroit’s Lindsey in the past, but the team has yet to seek permission to interview him. Finally, Stein notes that the Mavs could choose one of his co-interim GMs, Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley, for the position. Dumont has stated previously that he intended to fill the position by mid-May.
A decision is imminent for Steve Kerr and his future with the Warriors. Stein reports that ESPN has been recruiting Golden State’s coach to return to his time as a broadcaster, and that the team is expected to meet with him as soon as Monday, and has been operating as if they expect him to return.



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