Steve Kerr built a resume that will immediately place him into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a head coach. However, former NBA player Kendrick Perkins pointed out one area that the Golden State Warriors head coach has failed to develop in spite of his accomplishments.
Perkins appeared as a special guest on a July 25 episode of the Road Trippin’ podcast with Richard Jefferson, Channing Frye and Allie Clifton. They went over multiple topics as a segment in the second half of the video evaluated the Warriors’ state of affairs.
The topic of conversation was first the handling of Jonathan Kuminga and the idea that he hasn’t gotten a fair opportunity to shine with the Warriors.
Perkins blames Kerr for it and says if people look at young players that Steve Kerr has coached, he doesn’t help them grow.
Another rookie that Kerr has coached that never panned out as higher pick was James Wiseman, who dealt with injury problems, but he also didn’t get a lot of opportunity when he was available.
“Steve Kerr, in my opinion, has a hard time letting young guys be great. The only person that I’ve seen him wrap his arms around as a young guy is Podziemski. And Podziemski is going to have a long career as a role player. But when it comes down to guys elevating, and you see a guy that has the potential to be a franchise guy, Steve Kerr is holding these guys back,” Perkins said at the 43:26 mark.
What Lies Ahead For Steve Kerr, Warriors
GettyHead coach Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors talks with Stephen Curry #30 against the Houston Rockets during the third quarter in Game Seven of the Western Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at Toyota Center on May 04, 2025 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
Steve Kerr’s championship squads featured youth with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green starring as the core. However, the Warriors had veterans that made key plays on both sides of the ball that pushed Golden State to that elite status. Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston are two of those examples.
Drafting hasn’t been at the top of Golden State’s radar since they were already dominating with their championship core, especially after adding Kevin Durant in 2016. From 2015 to 2019, they won three titles, showing how much they focused on winning now.
Of course, that has its drawbacks. Since they topped the standings every year, their draft picks were late-rounders, meaning they wouldn’t get the best talents available with 2020 being the exception. Even though James Wiseman didn’t pan out for the Warriors, Kerr’s inability to help him grow on and off the court was significant as the team now lacks a quality center that they can start.
Golden State still possesses a playoff core with Curry, Green and Jimmy Butler III highlighting it. However, it is clear that their title window is small as all three players are closer to the end of their careers, meaning it’s now or never for the franchise to win.
When Curry, Green and Butler move on from the Warriors, whether it involves retirement or a trade, it will be intriguing to see what happens with Kerr. He could make the decision to improve his weakness of developing young talents or depart from the franchise he made into a dynasty and embrace a new chapter of his career.
There are coaches who excel at elevating young players and there are coaches who do a marvelous job managing veteran stars. Kerr might as well be on the latter, which isn’t an issue as long as he’s aware of his ability to lead teams to success in his way.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Kendrick Perkins Criticizes Warriors HC Steve Kerr For One Lacking Area appeared first on Heavy Sports.