Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr opened Monday’s postgame press conference discussing the exchange with Draymond Green on the bench, saying, “Yeah, we got into it obviously and, you know, I took the time out just because I thought we lost our focus there a little bit…he made his decision to go back to the locker room to cool off and that’s all I’m going to say about it.”
Kerr clarified Green was not sent off. The coach emphasized the team’s resilience despite Green’s absence in the final 20 minutes: “The group’s ready to go. We need Draymond and he’s a champion…all we can do is keep pushing, keep getting better.”
The coach highlighted the Warriors’ performance despite early struggles from Stephen Curry: “I thought the first half was brilliant. We just didn’t make shots…we were three for 18 from the three-point line. We just couldn’t make anything in the first half, but the process was great. That continued through the second half.”
On the team’s depth and adaptability, Kerr noted, “We got guys on the bench who are dying to play…Jimmy was really efficient in the first half and Steph couldn’t get much going and then it flipped in the second half where Steph came out on fire. That kind of tag team action…it’s two of the best players in the league.”
Brandin Podziemski’s impact earned specific praise: “He’s a hell of a player…when he’s at his best, you know, it looks like it did tonight. Ball’s moving, he’s attacking, rebounding…he really connects a lot of our lineups.”
Kerr also applauded Moses Moody’s defense on Paolo Banchero: “Moses was fantastic…to get him back in the starting lineup, he had a great role tonight guarding the other team’s best player and spotting up.”
Regarding the Warriors’ paint dominance, Kerr explained, “I thought we had really good spacing which gave us driving lanes. We rebounded really well…18 or 14 offensive boards, that’s a monster team. To stay even with them on the free throw line and the glass was a big deal.”
On center rotation choices between Quinten Post and Trayce Jackson-Davis, Kerr added, “They complement each other really well…Quinten has grown defensively, gotten stronger…Trace gives us a different look, more of a roller finisher at the rim. It’s exciting seeing these young guys start to emerge.”
Kerr concluded on the team’s growth, stating, “I’m very confident in this group and I think we’re going to find it. Tonight you saw what that can look like.”
