Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is seen during the second half of his NBA play-in tournament game against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Ariz., Friday, April 17, 2026. The Suns defeated the Warriors 111-96. (Photo by Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
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Steve Kerr is running it back.
The 60-year-old coach agreed in principle to a two-year contract to return to the Golden State Warriors, according to reports from ESPN and the AP.
A five-time NBA champion as a player with the Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs, Kerr has led the Warriors to four NBA titles (2015, ‘17, ’18 and ’22) and was named NBA Coach of the Year in 2016.
But as its core of Steph Curry and Draymond Green has aged in recent years, the Warriors have missed the playoffs the last two seasons. This year they were the No. 10 seed and lost to the Phoenix Suns in the Play-In Tournament.
Kerr shared an embrace with Curry and Green near the end of the loss in Phoenix, saying afterward he knew it could be their final time together.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA – APRIL 17: Head coach Steve Kerr, Stephen Curry #30 and Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors hug during the final moments of an NBA play-in tournament game against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center on April 17, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Warriors 111-96. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
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Meantime, Green took aim at Kerr for supposedly holding him back offensively.
“As much as he’s done for me in basketball, a part of me thinks he’s hindered me in my career and what I could have become,” Green said in a recent episode of “The Draymond Green Show.” “But what he’s also helped me become. Like you got to take the good with the bad, man.
“You know, when I think of who I was offensively as a player and who I became, I think a part of that is due to him. I don’t hold that against him. I’m forever grateful that he still put me in a position to be successful and that I could become Draymond Green despite my offensive role on our team.”
Appearing on “The Dan Patrick Show,” former NBA player Austin Rivers countered that Green benefited from playing for Kerr on the Warriors.
“You were the luckiest basketball player I think I’ve ever seen,” Rivers said. “You were drafted to a franchise with a Hall of Fame front office, Hall of Fame coach, the greatest shooter of all time and perhaps a top five player of all time. Not to mention one of the most lethal scorers of all time and arguably a top 10 player of all time, Kevin Durant, the same guy you chased off because you talk too much. Steve Kerr made your career. How dare you?”
Kerr has a career record of 604-353 and a 104-48 playoff mark.
The Warriors were 37-45 this season while dealing with numerous injuries, including losing Jimmy Butler to a season-ending right knee injury in January and Curry’s 27-game absence with a right knee injury of his own.
“We’re always going to try to compete,” Green said recently on ESPN. “When you win championships, the goal will always be to try to reach that level. Can we get back to that level? Listen, Jimmy gonna miss a lot of next year [with a torn ACL], Moses [Moody’s] gonna miss a lot of next year. That’s $70 million, $75 million of, what, a $160 million payroll. So it’s gonna be tough, but make no mistake, the goal will always be to compete at a championship standard level.”
The AP contributed reporting.