May 27, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr instructs during the third quarter in game five of the Western Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs against the Houston Rockets at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Rockets 104-90 to advance to the NBA Finals. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
The name Steve Kerr is almost synonymous with the University of Arizona, and now it is synonymous with his NBA team, the Golden State Warriors.
Kerr played college basketball, then went on to play in the NBA for 16 years, then became a sports broadcaster and landed a perfect job as head coach of the Golden State Warriors.
New York Knicks GM Phil Jackson had seriously recruited Kerr to be the head coach his team, but New Yorks was too far away from his family, and he would have to rebuild the team. So Jackson turned to another first-time NBA coach, former Laker Derek Fisher.
It seems like yesterday that social media was buzzing with news of Kerr and his Warriors beating LeBron James’s Cleveland Cavaliers in six games to win the NBA championship. In his post-game interview, Kerr mentioned and thanked his mentor and former hall of fame college coach Lute Olson.
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While at Arizona, Kerr was a big part of the famous 1988 Arizona Wildcats basketball team. The Wildcats went 17-1 in the then Pac-10 becoming the Pac-10 Champions. The team went on to the NCAA Championship tournament seeded No. 1 in the West and beat in succession, No. 16 Cornell, No. 8 Seton Hall, No. 5 Iowa, No. 2 North Carolina and lost to the No. 1 seeded Oklahoma in the Final Four 86-78.
Kerr played in 129 games at Arizona, averaging 11.2 points per game, 3.4 blocks, one steal, and 2.2 rebounds. In 1988, the 3-point shot was introduced, and what was impressive about Kerr was that he shot 199 3-pointers, making 117 or 57.3% of his 3-point shots.
In the NBA, Kerr played for 16 seasons and six different teams, starting at the age of 23 and ending his career at 37. He earned some impressive stats.
| Season | Lg | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P | 3P% | 2P | 2P% | eFG% | FT | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | NBA | 2042 | 4263 | .479 | 726 | .454 | 1316 | .494 | .564 | 627 | .864 | 1060 | 1658 | 476 | 46 | 5437 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/14/2015.
Kerr is currently recuperating from back surgery; he put his trust in his assist coach and fellow Wildcats alumni Luke Walton to lead the team while his is recovering. We hope he gets back on his feet quickly.
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