Getty Steve Kerr reacts to a play in a Golden State Warriors game.
The Golden State Warriors had a rough end to their first road trip of the season, but head coach Steve Kerr believes he may have identified the changes the team needs to right the ship.
The Warriors lost to the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night, falling 114-105 in a game where the Warriors rested nearly all of their core veteran players — Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andrew Wiggins. Despite relying almost exclusively on their young players, the Warriors were able to keep the game close until the final minute. After the game, Kerr struck an optimistic tone and said he believes the Warriors can turn things around next week with a few changes to the rotation.
Kerr Sees Changes Needed
After Friday’s loss, Kerr said he has some changes in mind as the team prepares to head back to the Bay Area to get a break from their busy schedule. The Warriors play a game on Monday and then have three days off, a much-needed rest for a team that just played five games in the last seven days.
“We’re gonna change up the rotations a little bit, and I’ve got an idea of what I’m gonna do, but the staff will talk about it in the next couple of days and will solidify that,” Kerr said. “It should be a good week for us to get back on track.”
Friday’s game gave a chance for some struggling Warriors to log more minutes. Second-year big man Jonathan Kuminga, who had fallen out of Kerr’s rotation early this season, scored 19 points in a career-high 38 minutes. Kuminga had a strong all-around game, adding 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 block.
As ESPN’s Kendra Andrews noted, Kerr said Kuminga has played his way back into the rotation.
“It was apparent who really played tonight. [Kuminga] played really well,” Kerr said. “He’s earned some minutes … He showed tonight that he’s ready to step into the rotation and contribute. But that has to be every night … be able to play through the tough nights when maybe the minutes aren’t there.”
Friday was a big night for some other players who have failed to crack the rotation. Two-way player Anthony Lamb logged his first start with the Warriors, scoring 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from behind the three-point line. Rookie Ryan Rollins also scored 7 points in nine minutes, and Ty Jerome had season highs with 18 points in 32 minutes.
Kerr Happy With Effort of Warriors’ Bench Players
The Warriors went into their Eastern Conference road trip with the chance to accumulate some wins, facing off against a number of the league’s worst teams. But they instead stumbled through the trip, dropping all five games.
The 3-7 Warriors are now 0-6 on the road this season and have not won consecutive games all season. Despite the rough start to their title defense season, Kerr
“I thought the guys competed, and it was a two-possession game with a minute left, so we had a chance but couldn’t get it done,” Kerr said. “Very happy with the effort and excited about getting home, and we’ve got a game Monday, and then we don’t play again until Friday. So I think next week will be a great opportunity for us to get a lot of work in execution-wise at both ends and work on our rotations.”