Jan 29, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and guard Stephen Curry (30) are recognized as the USA Basketball head coach and male athlete of the year before the start of the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Steve Kerr Gives Beautiful Admission on Steph Curry's Impact

Originally posted on Golden State Warriors on SI
By Farbod Esnaashari | Last updated Aug 10, 2025 5:37 AM ET

For as long as Steve Kerr has been a head coach in the NBA, he's had the opportunity to be alongside Steph Curry. Kerr and Curry's connection is one of the rarest in the NBA, especially in a league that has as much coaching turnover as it does.

In 11 years as an NBA head coach, Kerr has won four championships with Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors. He became the winningest coach in franchise history, but Kerr's entire future could have been much different without Steph Curry.

Kerr will be the first to tell fans that.

Steve Kerr Reveals Steph Curry's Impact on Career

During a recent interview on the Glue Guys Podcast, Kerr gave a touching sentiment on just how impactful Curry has been to his career.

"I'm well aware that the reason I'm still here is because Steph Curry is still here," Kerr admitted. "I'm not being modest, I'm just telling the truth... If I didn't have Steph, I would have been like every other NBA coach and lasted a few years, and then gone somewhere else and coached somewhere else.

Kerr isn't wrong in his sentiments, either. In 2014, Kerr rejected a tentative agreement to coach the Knicks to become the head coach of the Golden State Warriors. In the very next season, Kerr won an NBA championship in his first season as a coach.

"So, I'm incredibly lucky to have this partnership with Steph and he provides this stability and continuinty with the organization that just makes everybody's job easier."

When Will Steve Kerr Retire?

Based on everything Steve Kerr has said in numerous interviews, it's hard to see why he'd walk back on his word. When Steph Curry eventually leaves the Golden State Warriors, the team will likely be on a downturn. With how old Curry, Draymond Green, and Jimmy Butler all are, it's hard to see how the team will still be contending.

Unless the Golden State Warriors are miraculously contending, it's hard to see Steve Kerr continuing to coach. While it's not an impossibility, it's a much more fitting storybook ending for a Kerr to retire when Curry. However, it's always hard for any person to say no to money.

The end isn't here yet for either Steph Curry or Steve Kerr. So, the most important thing for the Golden State Warriors is to maximize whatever time the organization has left with both of their Hall of Fame players.