Steve Kerr Weighs Warriors Future After Play-In Loss to Phoenix Suns

Steve Kerr’s future with the Golden State Warriors is now an open question after the team’s season ended with a 111-96 play-in loss to the Phoenix Suns on Friday night at the Mortgage Matchup Center.

“From one moment to the next, the Warriors went from feeling calm about finding consistency to being filled with a thousand and one doubts about the team's future”

Bolavip Mexico

After the elimination, Kerr acknowledged that his time with the franchise could be coming to an end, saying, "I don't know what's going to happen," and adding, "These jobs all have an expiration date."

Bolavip Mexico

Kerr told reporters his plan was to take "a week or two" to contemplate his future before sitting down with controlling owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy.

NBC Bay Area reported that Kerr’s contract has now expired, while ESPN described him as on an expiring contract and said he intentionally didn’t seek an extension before this season.

In the closing moments of the play-in, Kerr subbed Steph Curry and Draymond Green out, circled them for a quick conversation, and gave them both a combination hug after telling them: "I don't know what's going to happen next, but I love you guys to death. Thank you."

The Monterey Herald described a huddle in which Kerr told Curry and Green, "I don't know what’s going to happen next, but I love you guys to death," during an embrace that lasted 18 seconds.

Kerr finished his 12th season as head coach, and the Warriors now shift their focus to an offseason full of questions about whether he will return.

The Warriors’ coaching uncertainty is unfolding against a season that multiple outlets tied directly to injuries and absences, culminating in the play-in loss to the Suns.

ESPN said the season sputtered in January after star wing Jimmy Butler III tore an ACL and Curry left the lineup for 27 consecutive games with a persistent right knee issue, and it described the team’s record as a 37-45 mark that left them as the 10-seed.

CBS Sports

The New York Times similarly traced the end of the campaign to Jan. 19, when Jimmy Butler tore his ACL, and then to 11 days later when a Curry knee injury sidelined him for 27 games, describing that stretch as long enough to relieve the Warriors from the delusion of their puncher’s chance.

The Monterey Herald and AP-style reporting both framed the play-in as a final test after the Warriors had to absorb multiple setbacks, with the Monterey Herald noting the scoreboard read 110-94 in favor of the Suns with 1:06 left and describing Green wearing his warmups mere seconds before being ejected.

The Monterey Herald also recounted Moses Moody being stretchered off in Dallas on March 24 after he tore his patellar tendon, and it quoted Green saying, "So many guys going in and out of the lineup, just unfortunate stuff."

ESPN added that in the closing seconds Kerr circled Curry and Green and delivered the message that he didn’t know what would happen next, while the New York Times described the trio’s hug as possibly the last time.

Even as the Warriors’ season ended, the sources described the team’s attempt to keep fighting, with the AP report quoting Kerr saying, "This was as tough a season as you can have, with the injuries, with all kinds of adversity."

Curry and Green made their preferences clear even as Kerr kept his own timeline uncertain, and their comments gave the offseason a personal edge.

“PHOENIX -- Longtime Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged after Friday night's elimination that his time with the franchise could be coming to an end”

ESPN

ESPN reported that Green said postgame he would not retire and reiterated that he wanted to remain with the Warriors, and it quoted Green saying, "Hopefully I've done enough to still be here."

ESPN also reported that Curry has one season and $62.6 million remaining on his contract and said he would be interested in extension conversations this summer, adding that he envisions his career lasting "multiple" more seasons.

The AP report quoted Curry directly, saying, "I want Coach to be happy. I want him to be excited for the job. I want him to believe he's the right guy for the job," and it added, "I want him to have an opportunity to again enjoy what he does."

Green, in the AP report, said, "I just don't deal with change well. I don't love it. So, I don't want to think about that."

Kerr, for his part, emphasized that he does not want to walk away from Curry, telling reporters, "I don't want to walk away from Steph," and "I'm definitely not going and coaching somewhere else next year in the NBA."

The Monterey Herald captured the same sentiment in a direct quote, with Kerr saying, "I don’t want to walk away from Steph, I’m definitely not going and coaching somewhere else next year in the NBA," and it framed Curry’s response as cautioning against reading too much into the moment.

While all the outlets described Kerr’s uncertainty after the Warriors’ elimination, they emphasized different angles—contract mechanics, emotional symbolism, or the broader roster picture.

ESPN focused on Kerr’s language about “expiration dates” and said he would take a week or two to contemplate his future before discussing with Joe Lacob and Mike Dunleavy, while also detailing the Warriors’ recent results and the injuries that shaped the season.

Golden State Of Mind

NBC Bay Area framed the same comments as a decision process after Kerr’s contract expired, quoting Kerr’s plan to take time and then “eventually sit down and talk with [owner] Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy.”

The Monterey Herald leaned into the physical moment of the embrace, describing the scoreboard at 110-94 with 1:06 left and quoting Kerr’s message to Curry and Green that ended with “Thank you.”

The AP-style report included Kerr’s refusal to reveal what he said in the moment, quoting him as saying, "None of your business," and it also tied the uncertainty to the fact that the Warriors missed the playoffs for the fourth time in the last seven seasons.

Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports both highlighted Kerr’s “expiration date” language and his lack of a contract for next season, with Sports Illustrated quoting Kerr’s line, "These jobs all have an expiration date," and CBS Sports adding that Kerr signed a two-year, $35 million extension in 2024 that just expired after Friday’s loss.

The New York Times broadened the frame by linking the coaching question to the Warriors’ roster and contract structure, stating that Kerr does not have a contract to coach the Warriors next season and describing the Warriors’ 2025-26 campaign as ending in the Mortgage Matchup Center with a 111-96 loss.

The sources portray the offseason as a multi-variable negotiation that extends beyond Kerr’s own choice, with contract options and roster decisions tied to whether the Warriors can keep their core together.

“PHOENIX – Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Steve Kerr gathered in a circle, hands on one another’s shoulders and embraced as the Warriors’ season concluded during the play-in tournament on Friday night”

Monterey Herald

ESPN said Kerr will discuss with Joe Lacob and Mike Dunleavy whether he should return as head coach, and it described the partnership with Steph Curry as part of the equation, with Kerr saying, "That's part of the equation," and "I don't want to walk away from Steph."

Monterey Herald

The AP report said Kerr would meet with owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy eventually and suggested it might come in a week or two, while also quoting Kerr’s “collaborative decision” language about what’s next.

Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports both emphasized that Kerr is not under contract for next season and that he confirmed the Warriors are the only team he’d consider coaching next season, with Kerr saying, "I don't want to walk away from Steph," and "I'm definitely not going and coaching somewhere else next year."

The New York Times added that the Warriors have just three contracts on the books currently beyond next season—Moody, Gui Santos and Will Richard—and it described Brandin Podziemski as a restricted free agent if he doesn’t sign an extension this offseason.

It also laid out that Green has a player option and wants an extension, and that Curry and Butler are eligible for extensions, while Porziņģis has to decide if he wants in and Moses Moody would do well to return around the next All-Star break from his knee injury.

Even as the Warriors plan, the sources show that the immediate next step is Kerr’s meeting and decision window, with Kerr telling reporters, "we will come to a collaborative decision on what's next."