Steve Kerr was understandably frustrated following Wednesday’s 124-123 loss to the Utah Jazz as the Warriors fall to 2-11 on the road this season.
The Warriors nearly pulled off a heroic comeback over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, but what unfolded on the Vivint Arena court instead was a loss unlike any coach Steve Kerr has experienced during his time in the Bay.
“It’s such an emotional loss, it’s such a brutal loss,” Kerr said Friday on 95.7 The Game’s “Damon and Ratto” show. “I mean, I think probably the worst ending we’ve had since I’ve been coach.”
Golden State suffered a last-second 124-123 loss in Utah after overcoming a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter, as starters Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins watched from back home.
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The Warriors’ four-point lead with 13.3 seconds left was cut to one after a breakdown on defense that left Jazz sharpshooter Malik Beasley wide open. Then, a turnover on Golden State’s ensuing possession allowed Utah to win on a game-sealing dunk.
Kerr said the Warriors were “stunned” and “dead silent” in the locker room after the crushing defeat.
“... There’s usually one game a year like this where you can’t believe what just happened, and I think that’s the truth,” Kerr said. “But of all of those in my time [with the Warriors], that was the worst one.”
Despite the loss, the ninth-year coach believes there’s plenty the Warriors can take away from the game moving forward.
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“As long as you learn from it, and it doesn’t happen, especially in a playoff game, then it’s OK,” Kerr said. “But you have to learn from it, and I think there was plenty to learn from that game.”
Kerr compared Wednesday’s defeat to last season’s overtime loss to a depleted Indiana Pacers team. The Warriors learned plenty from that, eventually going on to win the 2022 NBA Finals.
“Last year we lost a game to Indiana when we left a 3-point shooter at the buzzer up three,” Kerr said. “And then we learned from that. We never did it again. In the playoffs, it didn’t happen.
“But it happened, and so we learned from it. And we’ve got to learn from it this time.”
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The Warriors’ next seven games will reveal plenty about a team that has been up and down to start the 2022 NBA season, starting with the Boston Celtics on Saturday night at Chase Center.
But if Golden State uses this latest lesson like it did last season, Kerr’s worst loss could prove to be a turning point.