Steve Kerr praised Kristaps Porzingis’s return, saying, “Really encouraging night, you know, for him to play 23 minutes… you can see what kind of weapon he is and the size he gives us.”
He highlighted Porzingis’ impact on spacing and offensive opportunities. “He’s really good spacing the floor… keeps his man occupied… draws three or four fouls in that first half,” Kerr explained.
Kerr discussed the experiment with bigger lineups late in the game. “Tonight it was just a matter of let’s just put our best players on the floor… thought we got some decent looks… just needed to make a couple shots,” he said.
On Draymond Green’s defensive assignments, Kerr noted the motivational aspect. “When we give him a task of you guard the best player, I think he loves it… he’s still one of the great defensive players in the game,” he said.
He cited Green’s recent matchups with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kevin Durant, and Kawhi Leonard. “He’s guarded three of the hardest guys on earth and done a phenomenal job,” Kerr added. He acknowledged free-throw disparity as a deciding factor: “They made 23 free throws to our 11 and that was the difference.”
Kerr confirmed that Green will continue in a primary defensive role with help from Porzingis and Al Horford. “Give Draymond the toughest task and have a big guy behind him… it’s a good formula,” he said.
On the challenge of playing against Gilgeous-Alexander, Kerr expressed frustration with league rules. “He’s incredibly clever… I have no problem with Shai. I have a problem with the rules… the players just… take advantage of the rules,” Kerr explained.
Kerr also addressed Porzingis’ readiness for future games. “I just listened to the training staff… he’s had a couple workouts and they said he’s feeling better and ready to go… he will not play Monday, plan is to play him Tuesday,” he said.
The remarks followed Golden State’s 97-104 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday, March 7, a game in which Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 27 points to lead Oklahoma City to its fifth consecutive win. The Warriors struggled with shooting efficiency, converting 40.9 percent from the field and 14 of 45 from three-point range while playing without Stephen Curry.
Kerr stressed the effort despite injuries. “Really impressed with our guys fight… giving ourselves a chance every night despite all the injuries… the guys are really competing well together,” he said, reflecting on Golden State’s resilience.
