Steve Kerr has gotten the benefit of working around some of the greatest basketball players of all time during his many decades playing, coaching and working around the NBA.
Kerr played on the Chicago Bulls with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, served as the general manager of the Phoenix Suns with league MVP Steve Nash, and coached the Warriors with transcendent talents like Steph Curry and Klay Thompson.
But after two seasons as the head coach for Golden State, the Warriors signed a player who would go on to win back-to-back NBA Finals MVP awards and simultaneously put the finishing touches on the league's most dangerous team in history. In a conversation with The Ringer's Logan Murdock, Kerr explained why this player stands above all the rest.
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“I would say Kevin (Durant) is ... when you factor in everything, size, speed, athleticism, I think he’s the most talented basketball player I’ve ever seen in my life,” Kerr said.
“It was more just a level of basketball that I’m not sure had ever been reached before.”
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Although the prolific scorer left the Warriors after three seasons to join the Brooklyn Nets in a sign-and-trade last summer, Kerr emphasized to Murdock why he valued his time coaching KD.
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“He was very coachable. He was a sponge, especially the first year, he wanted to learn a new style,” Kerr said. “I think he really enjoyed playing the way we played, and he was really easy to coach. When a star makes it easy, for a coach to do his job, he just allows everything to click. And so, that first year, I think one of the reasons we were so dominant was because we had that dynamic across the board between Steph, Klay, Draymond, Kevin, we had it all lined up and everybody was on board and clicking, and it was a smooth ride.”
A smooth ride indeed, as Golden State advanced to three consecutive NBA Finals with Durant in the fold, winning two championships. While KD’s rocky relationship with Draymond Green seemed to be part of the reason Durant chose to take his talents elsewhere, KD still can reflect on all the great times and winning that took place in the Bay Area.