Mark Jackson was fired as head coach of the Warriors at the conclusion of last season, though the reasons weren’t necessarily related to the team’s overall performance.
Golden State won 51 games in the regular season, and went seven games in the first round of the playoffs before being ousted by the Clippers.
Jackson was beloved by his players, and Stephen Curry was among those who hated to see his former coach go. Jackson returned to Oracle Arena on Friday as a member of ESPN’s broadcast crew, and as seen in the video clip above, he received a very warm welcome from both the fans and the players alike.
Jackson also got a shot in at his former team during the broadcast, when talking about how the Warriors have improved immensely this season under first-year head coach Steve Kerr.
“You cannot disrespect the caterpillar and rave about the butterfly,” Jackson said.
