It is safe to say that the 2025-26 season was a disappointing one for the Golden State Warriors. With recurring injuries plaguing the campaign, there was little that could have salvaged it. Still, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr admits that the team’s shortcomings were his own.
For all intents and purposes, the Warriors’ season was snakebitten. Despite Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry being sidelined, the Dubs secured a play-in spot with a 37-45 record (10th in the West), a notable feat in every sense. Regardless, during a recent appearance on “Dubs Talk,” Steve Kerr was quite harsh while reviewing his own performance as a head coach.
“I didn’t have a great year,” he admitted. “I think coaches are similar to players. You have years that are better than others; you have years that are worse than others.”
Kerr’s standards are justifiably high. Having won four NBA championships with the Warriors, the head coach has become accustomed to a certain caliber of performance, to say the least. In light of this, the Dubs’ execution was anything but up to the mark.
Even with a healthy roster, Golden State didn’t inspire much confidence as a championship squad this year. Although it is difficult to count out a core featuring title-winning players like Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, the aging roster and the evident lack of depth were jarring.
Thus, when both Curry and Butler went down in quick succession, the Warriors found themselves swooning out of the playoff picture. Given that Brandin Podziemski (13.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 3.7 APG) looked like the most reliable player on the roster, there was little that could be done.
For the most part, a drop-off in performance due to such errors can be chalked up to roster issues. However, Steve Kerr remained firm in his stance, as he continued:
“We never found our identity. Even early in the year, when we were healthy, we were giving games away at the end. I didn’t think my late-game execution stuff as a coach was great. Those are all valid points.”
It is difficult to argue with Steve Kerr’s point on this front. When fielding a healthy roster, the Warriors were a relatively more competitive team, ending the 2025 calendar year with an 18-16 record. Unfortunately, despite Stephen Curry’s brilliance on most nights, the Dubs would routinely collapse in the fourth quarter.
Before the All-Star break, the Warriors boasted an offensive rating of 117.7 in the fourth quarter (5th in the NBA). After the All-Star break, surprisingly, this increased to 121.2 (3rd in the NBA). Still, over a 27-game span, the Dubs only notched an 8-19 record.
It is quite challenging to fully capture Golden State’s shortcomings this season, mainly because of the challenges they faced. All things considered, however, it is difficult to fault Steve Kerr for the eventual result.
Although the 2025-26 season can be deemed a failure from the perspective of title contention, Kerr remained quite positive about the future, adding:
“When you have a moment like this, it gives you time to reflect. And it’s a challenge. ‘All right, I got to get better.’ I think that’s true for me, and it’s true for our players, our organization. And that’s invigorating. I’m excited.”
In this regard, it will be promising to see Steve Kerr return as head coach next season after signing a two-year extension.
With growing expectations for improvements, it will be intriguing to see how the Warriors’ head coach and front office approach the offseason and whether they can build another title-contending roster.
