https://www.nbcsportsbayarea.com/nba/golden-state-warriors/kerr-doubles-down-on-strong-warriors-critique-after-meeting-with-team/1686795/

Kerr doubles down on strong Warriors critique after meeting with team

By Michael Wagaman

• Published 4 hours ago

SAN FRANCISCO — Even while he sat at home recovering from his calf
injury and watching the games on TV, Gary Payton II had a sense that
something was amiss from the Warriors. When he finally made his return
Saturday, his initial suspicions were confirmed.

“I’m pretty sure you can see it on the court, just the disconnect that
we have, especially on the defensive end,” Payton said after practice
Monday. “I think a little bit of our offense is predicated on our
defense, which it should be the opposite way around. We just [have] to
get back to keep it simple on offense, and defense just coming out with
first, second and third efforts and just using our brains while we play.
We’ll turn things around sooner than expected.”

Two days after coach Steve Kerr hinted at a disconnect of some sort with
his team, the Warriors returned to practice to prepare for Tuesday’s
home game against a very tough Orlando Magic team that currently sits
fifth in the Eastern Conference.

Kerr’s postgame comments — when he said the Warriors lacked “that grit
every good team needs, when you pull together and just play for the
group,” — caused a ripple effect throughout Dub Nation and the media.

While the coach didn’t point fingers at anyone in particular, his words
left many people wondering who, if anyone, he was referring to or if he
was just talking out of frustration.

Kerr said Monday that he had shared those feelings with his players, but
he declined to go into specifics about what was said.

“Not anything I want to share,” Kerr said. “But we address everything
that happens within this team. I have to pick my times to say certain
things, to not say certain things. I felt like it was a good time to say
that publicly because we have to turn the corner in that regard.

“We are not where we want to be. But I also don’t think we’re that far
from being so.”

Most everyone is in agreement that the majority of the Warriors’
breakdowns have been on the defensive side, even if Stephen Curry and
Klay Thompson each have had their issues with consistency on the
offensive end, as have others.

That’s forced Kerr to jumble his rotations in hopes of finding something
that consistently works. He made some significant changes before
Saturday’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks, starting Chris Paul over rookie
Brandin Podziemski and going with rookie center Trayce Jackson-Davis
instead of veteran Kevon Looney.

While both played well against the Mavericks, it wasn’t enough to solve
the issues that have bogged down the Warriors for most of the season.

Frustrated, Kerr opened up after the Dallas game and implored the
Warriors to connect and be committed to the quest and task at hand.

On Monday, the Warriors coach seemed less stressed than he’d been nearly
48 hours previously.

“I know the areas we have to improve in, both on the floor and
intangibly,” Kerr said. “And I have a lot of confidence that we can
figure it out together and become the team that we expected coming into
the year.

“There have been a lot of circumstances that have led us to this point.
They are what they are. What I’ve learned as a coach is every year is
different. Every year you get hit with surprises, whether it’s an injury
or suspension. Stuff just happens. The whole point of coaching is to
help guide the group through that, and that’s what my staff and I are
trying to for now.”

Following the loss to Dallas, Paul and Curry were among the players who
talked about some of the issues facing the Warriors in that game and
overall this season. Both spoke of the team needing to stay connected,
and both seemed confident that things eventually will turn around.

Payton echoed some of the thoughts his teammates have.

“We have to get back to winning ways, doing things the right way, doing
the simple things before it’s too late,” Payton said. “We have to pick
and choose when we want to come back with the connectivity and get back
to doing things for each other, get back to playing for one another and
get back to having our trust on both sides of the ball.”