Inside The Warriors

Steve Kerr Reveals Truth About Kevin Durant Leaving Golden State Warriors

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr spoke on Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant.

Joey Linn

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and forward Kevin Durant (35) against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center.
Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and forward Kevin Durant (35) against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images
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14-time NBA All-Star Kevin Durant had an incredible three seasons with the Golden State Warriors.

Winning back-to-back NBA championships in 2017 and 2018, Golden State made the NBA Finals again in 2019. Losing to the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 NBA Finals, Golden State had a strong chance to win three-straight titles had Durant and Klay Thompson not gone down with injuries.

Durant’s decision to leave Golden State and join the Brooklyn Nets has received a lot of attention over the years. This has been magnified due to Durant’s lack of team success since leaving the Warriors, as he has yet to get back to the Conference Finals.

There was a well-documented issue between Durant and Draymond Green during their last season as teammates which many believe led to his departure.

During a recent appearance on the LeBatardShow, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Durant was visibly wanting to move one throughout that 2018-19 season.

“Those years were incredible,” Kerr said of his time with Durant. “I loved coaching Kevin. I think that last year that he was here, he was visibly wanting to move on. We could feel it, and that was his choice as a free agent. Everything that he gave to us and brought to us. We will be thankful for that forever."

On how he could sense Durant wanting to move on, Kerr said, “You can tell when somebody is happy or not… It was obvious to everyone that Kevin just needed a new challenge. He was looking to move on.”

Kevin Durant and Steph Curry
Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) and guard Stephen Curry (30) against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

While the incident with Green may have contributed to Durant’s departure, Kerr said the two-time Finals MVP was looking to move on throughout that season.

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Joey Linn

JOEY LINN

Title: Credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation Email: joeylinn52@gmail.com Education: Communication Studies degree from Biola University Location: Los Angeles, California Expertise: NBA analysis and reporting Experience: Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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