While the Warriors and Steve Kerr haven’t prioritized getting a contract extension done right away, the two sides have had preliminary talks about a new deal. As he tells Tim Kawakami of The Athletic, Kerr opted to table those discussions until next summer, when he can be sure that his health will allow him to make a long-term commitment to the franchise.
Kerr and GM Bob Myers, who held the initial extension talks, are both confident that – health permitting – the two sides will finalize a new contract in 2018, according to Kawakami. Warriors owner Joe Lacob also conveyed optimism about getting something done next summer with his club’s coach.
Kerr, who signed a five-year, $25MM contract in 2014, still has one more year left on that deal after 2017/18, so there’s no rush to hammer something out immediately. Kerr has been plagued by back issues in recent years, which forced him to take a leave of absence on multiple occasions. If he can make it through the ’17/18 campaign without any complications, Kerr will be in good position to commit to a few more years with Golden State.
“We just agreed we’d wait,” Kerr said, per Kawakami. “I’ve got two years left on my deal and wanted to make sure that everything went well this year health-wise. And I don’t anticipate any issues going forward. … I don’t have any desire to be anywhere else. So I’m sure when we get down to it, we’ll come to an agreement pretty quickly.”
Although it remains to be seen what Kerr’s next contract would look like, he joked that he’s given up his leverage by publicly stating on multiple occasions that he has no desire to coach anywhere else. Nonetheless, Kerr tells Kawakami that, when the time comes, he’s confident Myers and Lacob will give him a “great offer.”